Scout Notes – Gameweek Twenty Three – Wednesday

Fraizer Campbell overshadows Stephane Sessegnon to make a dream return to first-team action. Djibril Cisse needs less than fifteen minutes to grab his first goal in QPR colours, Darren Bent continues his recent goalscoring spree, while Clint Dempsey produces the goods once again for his Fantasy owners at the Cottage…

Fraizer Campbell
A goal and assist in his first start since returning from a long-term knee injury helped Sunderland record yet another victory under Martin O’Neill. Campbell- who also grabbed the equaliser in the FA Cup draw against Middlesbrough- needed just 20 minutes before opening the scoring, before setting up Stephane Sessegnon for the Black Cats’ second on the half-hour mark. At 5.9, he looks good value, given his team’s strong form, and could maybe even rival the popular Sessegnon as a potential source of Fantasy points. The return of Nicklas Bendtner from a facial injury could well hand Martin O’Neill a major selection headache.

Stephane Sessegnon
Another game, another goal for the Benin international. Sessegnon continued an outstanding run of form under O’Neill which has seen him produce attacking returns in six of his last seven games. Only three Gameweeks ago, he was available for 6.3, but Sessegnon has soared in price, sitting at 7.0 and climbing. With just one home fixture in the next four, though (stk, ARS, wba, new) his schedule isn’t overly appealing but he looks capable of producing every time he takes to the pitch right now.

Djibril Cisse
The Frenchman needed just twelve minutes to open his QPR account at Villa Park last night. Cisse –priced at 6.5 in Fantasy Premier League (FPL) – looked lively throughout, and already the London outfit are offering a far superior goal threat under Mark Hughes than Neil Warnock. Unbeaten in their last two, QPR have netted 5 times over those couple of games- they had scored the same number of goals in Warnock’s last eight games in charge. With Bobby Zamora likely to make his debut at the weekend, the omens are looking good and with a run of obliging fixtures up next (WOL, bla, FUL, EVE), there’ll be quite a few Fantasy managers fancying a punt on Hughes’ outfit over the next few Gameweeks.

Taye Taiwo
Slotting in at left-back after receiving international clearance in time to play, the Nigerian made an immediate impact. Taiwo’s attacking sensibilities are likely to play a significant part in his Fantasy fortunes and he wasted little time in picking up an assist last night – Stephen Warnock nodding his cross past Shay Given for a sloppy own goal. Nedum Onouha also made his debut, playing at centre-half alongside Anton Ferdinand, with Luke Young holding onto the right-back position.

Stiliyan Petrov
Villa’s skipper continued his impressive season with an assist in their comeback against QPR. Petrov has now bagged 4 goals and 3 assists this term, easily the most impressive attacking haul of his Premier League career. Alex McLeish clearly knows how to get the best out of the Bulgarian and the midfielder is proving to be a pivotal figure for the Midlanders with every passing game. Priced at just 5.8, Petrov is comfortably the best value player in the Villa team so far this season.

Darren Bent
The forward justified his selection in the Scout Picks with yet another goal. Since returning from injury in Gameweek 19, Bent has scored in four of his five appearances, in addition to netting in the FA Cup defeat at Arsenal at the weekend. With Newcastle and City up next, though, he faces a real test to maintain his goalscoring exploits but it’s clear he’s finally form his feet under the new boss.

Charles N’Zogbia
The summer signing from Wigan returned to the Villa first XI, having missed the last couple of Gameweeks due to a heel injury. With Gabby Agbonlahor dropping out due to a hamstring problem, N’Zogbia lined up alongside Robbie Keane and Stephen Ireland behind Bent and grabbed his first goal of the season to salvage a late draw and deny QPR the three points. There’s little doubt he has been a huge disappointment since moving to the midlands but N’Zogbia is hinting at a return to the form of old – he has now picked up a goal and assist in his last three appearances, with Villa losing just once in their last six league matches.

Robin Van Persie
With a trip to Bolton on the cards, many had chosen to hand Van Persie the armband over Gareth Bale, despite the latter’s home game with Wigan. While Bale grabbed a brace on Tuesday night, Van Persie drew a surprise blank at the Reebok last night, much to many a manager’s frustration. The decision seems to be the difference between an average Gameweek and a good one, though with a home clash against Blackburn up next, the Dutchman will be a strong favourite once again this weekend.

Ryan Taylor
It seems nigh-on impossible to cast Taylor aside. Last night he returned to the Newcastle starting lineup, filling in for the suspended Yohan Cabaye alongside Danny Guthrie in central midfield. Taylor duly delivered an assist for his Fantasy owners, in addition to collecting yet more bonus this morning. Once again though, it must be stressed that his starting role remains fragile. Cabaye and Cheik Tiote will both be back in contention by Gameweek 26 and with Ben Arfa impressing on the flank and Davide Santon cementing the left-back role, Alan Pardew will struggle to find a position for Taylor. Even so, it looks as though Taylor has at least a couple more Gameweeks respite, with the bonus of an advanced role.

Clint Dempsey
As expected, the American continued in the support striker role following the departure of Bobby Zamora and, with Simon Davies returning to the right-flank, Bryan Ruiz shifted to a more central attacking position. With Pavel Pogrebnyak likely to need time to settle to the pace of Premier League football, it seems likely that Dempsey will carry the responsibility of scoring the goals over a period of obliging fixtures. He duly returned his tenth goal of the season last night, justfiying his recent burst of Fantasy investment – only Gareth Bale can match that return.

Newcastle’s Defence
Alan Pardew’s back four kept their third shut-out in four league games, with Fabricio Coloccini putting in a dominant shift, the Magpies held out at Ewood to earn another precious three points. Tim Krul again drew the plaudits with a penalty save that saw him fetch handsome returns. The Dutchman is now trailing his compatriot Michel Vorm by just three points in the FPL keeper rankings. With three home games in four up next, Krul and his defence look strong bets for continued profit.