The Digest – Gameweek Eight

A double Dutch weekend, rescued for some by the elegant brilliance of the Arsenal skipper, after Alex Ferguson had conspired to baffle us by attacking Liverpool with a blunt instrument. With such unpredictable madness afoot, even the brawn and bluster on sale in the Potteries is beginning to appeal…

The Player

The build-up to the weekend was dominated by talk of Robin Van Persie and merits of trading from Wayne Rooney to the Arsenal skipper. On Sunday, Van Persie’s performance compounded the misery of those who held firm on Rooney, only to see their man twiddling his medically enhanced fringe on the bench at Anfield.

The Dutchman’s one-man show in Arsenal’s stuttering 2-1 victory over Sunderland underlined his potential to rival Rooney and City’s Sergio Aguero for the Golden Boot, cementing a place in our Fantasy forward lines. The opening goal after less than 30 seconds hinted at an avalanche that never quite arrived; nevertheless Van Persie was unfortunate not to add to his tally with a turn and chip of Bergkamp-like brilliance – the Emirates woodwork denying him a coup de grâce. Van Persie had his match-defining moment, however, his beautifully flighted deadball effort instantly dismissed Seb Larsson’s own quality free-kick as inconsequential – Arsenal had their three points and Van Persie had delivered on his promise.

Having promoted him to the top of Watchlist last week, we were quick to push him above the Manchester duo for the next few gameweeks. Both Rooney and Aguero square up this weekend, whilst Van Persie has another Emirates encounter to size up. Stoke will likely provide a significant obstacle, but, on Sunday’s evidence, those who choose to ignore the Dutchman again will go into gameweek nine feeling ill at ease at the prospect of another rich return for the Arsenal maestro.

The Team

While City powered their way to the pinnacle and Newcastle defended their unbeaten record like their Geordie brethren protecting a pint, our vote goes to a team gradually emerging as a Fantasy force. Stoke’s 2-0 win over Fulham at the Britannia was never in doubt – they simply swamped their opponents with a relentless and powerful showing. Fulham we’re bullied; given no time to settle and produce the kind of cultured flourishes that had Neil Warnock spitting out excuses following his side’s 6-0 slaying at the Cottage.

Stoke were a monster. Tony Pulis’ rigidly regimented unit have now conceded just a single goal in four home matches, emphasising the value of their defensive assets. The flipside of this is that, in attacking terms, they continue to struggle with just 4 goals scored at the Britannia although, with Matt Etherington demonstrating intent with two assists and Jermaine Pennant remaining fit (for now) on the opposite flank, prospects may improve.

A trip to the Emirates next weekend will be a test of Stoke’s progress and Arsenal’s ability to play through the most muscular and stubborn of opponents. Following that however, Stoke have three home matches in four which promise to cement a placing in the top reaches of the table. Newcastle, QPR and Blackburn all visit the Britannia before the end of November and, with a trip to Bolton amongst that group, Pulis will have his sights set on four positive results to take them into December and the Christmas programme. Fantasy managers will surely be taking note and preparing for an acquisition.

The Talking Point

Alex Ferguson appears to be playing some kind of rotation roulette with Roberto Mancini. It’s as if they’re competing to see who can put together the most expensive bench lineup and still fetch the three points. While Sir Alex saw fit to omit Rooney, Nani and Anderson from his teamsheet for the clash with arch-rivals Liverpool, Mancini looked to better him by preserving the talents of David Silva, Samir Nasri and Edin Dzeko with Villa in town.

For Fantasy managers, this recent trend creates a nightmarish scenario. Clearly, around Champions League fixtures, we have to ready ourselves for this rest and rotation to continue, for millions of our Fantasy talent to go to waste or be limited to a 20-minute cameo.

Suddenly a decent bench who can actually contribute some points to our gameweek effort might be the way to go. It’s surely foolhardy to risk going into a gameweek without the likes of Silva and Nani and yet, if Ferguson and Mancini persist with their policy around crucial European fixtures, we have to presume that this weekend’s disappointment will kick us in the Balotellis again. We need to be ready for next time; time to shift Shane Ferguson perhaps? I know this bloke down at Wigan who’s good for a couple of points every week.