Spot the Differential – Gameweek 27

Friday evening comes to a close with our regular rundown of a trio of overlooked contenders. A couple of our protagonists have flattered to deceive this season, while the other has impressed in his debut campaign in the Premier League. The one thing all three have in common, though, is they look key to their respective side’s chances of success over the remaining three months of the season.

Nani

After racking up 198 and 157 Fantasy Premier League (FPL) points in the last couple of seasons, Nani had finally established himself as a bone fide Fantasy asset after three frustrating campaigns at Old Trafford. Goals, assists and bonus points arrived in abundance as the United winger proved a regular source of points and, as the current campaign got underway, more of the same was expected.

Fair to say, then, that this time round has been dismal – one goal and two assists over nine appearances, with a single start since Gameweek 6, has seen Nani’s price plummet to 8.2. Indeed, with both Antonio Valencia and Shinji Kagawa failing to impress, the United midfield has been a huge source of Fantasy frustration this time round. Climbing off the bench in last Monday’s FA Cup win over Reading, though, Nani served a reminder of his capabilities with a goal and assist in the 2-1 win and, with his contract set to expire next year, Sir Alex Ferguson has gone out his way to lavish praise upon the Portuguese star, saying:

“Definitely we want to keep him. He’s one of the best match-winners in the game and I’m including the whole of Europe. He wants guaranteed first-team football but he can guarantee that, his performance the other night can guarantee that. We’re trying our best because he’s such a match-winning player and capable of scoring the most incredible goals.”

With his side still battling for silverware on three fronts, Ferguson could be set to call upon Nani with a little more regularity as he looks to utilise his squad to maximum effect. Having established a 12 point gap over City, United certainly have a little leeway to rest and rotate, giving the winger a platform to perform once again. Coming in at 8.7 in the Sky Sports game, he’s a little more expensive than in FPL but with an ownership of just over 1% in both games, Nani could be a real differential for tomorrow’s match with QPR and beyond for those Fantasy managers willing to take a punt on a player with proven Premier League pedigree.

Arouna Kone

Despite a four-Gameweek absence with Ivory Coast for the African Cup of Nations last month, Kone remains Wigan’s top scoring FPL player on 87 points– a clear indication of how crucial he is to their chances of survival. Having been eased back into the side with a second-half sub role last time out, Kone led the line against Huddersfield in last weekend’s FA Cup Fifth Round clash and bagged a brace in a comfortable 4-1 win.

Up next for Roberto Martinez’s side is a proverbial six-pointer at fellow-strugglers Reading tomorrow afternoon. Bearing in mind their hosts have conceded in each of their last six, the Latics will be optimistic heading to the Madejski – more so when you consider Kone’s exploits on the road. Prior to leaving for the ACoN, he had produced attacking returns in each of his last three away appearances, with a goal and assist at Villa following on from an assist away to Norwich and a strike at Everton; that’s 23 points across that trio of fixtures.

Coming in at 6.5 in FPL and 7.7 in the Sky Sports game, Kone has flown firmly under the radar with a FPL ownership of just 0.5%. If Martinez is to engineer another great escape this season, though, there’s a high chance he’ll be leaning heavily on the former Levante forward to fire the Latics to safety.

Papiss Cisse

Similar to Nani, his performances have been hugely underwhelming this term – more so, perhaps, given he’s started 23 of Newcastle’s matches thus far. Cisse has notched just five times in 1919 minutes compared to 13 strikes in 1106 minutes in the latter half of the previous season but with Demba Ba now out the picture, there’s still hope he will rediscover his 2011/12 form.

Cisse has notched twice in the last six matches for the Magpies and, handed the lone forward role once again, welcomes Southampton to St James’ Park this Sunday in a crucial battle near the foot of the table. With his side just four points clear of the drop zone, Alan Pardew will be looking to replicate the result of his side’s previous home match, which harvested a 3-2 win over Chelsea. Clearly, then, Cisse has plenty to play for and also has game time guaranteed – in addition, Newcastle’s Gameweek 29 fixture, at home to Stoke, is not in question; a factor that may affect some Fantasy managers’ transfer policy, with a handful of clubs facing the possibility of a blank that weekend.

Coming in at 8.8 in FPL and 9.3 in the Sky Sports game, he doesn’t come cheap but if he can hit even half the heights of the previous campaign over the remaining 12 Gameweeks, Cisse could still be one to watch.