Scout Notes – Gameweek 3 – Sunday

Daniel Sturridge and Olivier Giroud are the goal heroes once again as Liverpool and Arsenal register vital derby victories over United and Tottenham respectively. Elsewhere, Pablo Hernandez inspires Swansea to their first win of the domestic campaign at the Hawthorns as West Brom’s barren run continues:

The Sturridge Bandwagon Picks Up Pace
The Liverpool forward continued his relentless scoring streak in yesterday’s win over United. Having notched in each of the opening two Gameweeks, Sturridge bagged a brace in the midweek Capital One Cup triumph over Notts County and maintained his superb form with another strike yesterday. While Iago Aspas and Philippe Coutinho have yet to pick up points after strong pre-seasons, Sturridge owners are racking up the returns and with many a wildcard being wielded, the bandwagon is starting to pick up speed. With an enticing upcoming schedule on the Reds’ horizon (swa, SOT, sun, CPL, new, WBA), the January signing has already risen in price overnight and is set for significant investment over the two-week international break as Fantasy managers scramble to acquire Sturridge for their three-man frontlines.

After the match, Brendan Rodgers admitted the forward was far from fully fit for the United clash but conceded that even when Sturridge is not 100%, he is still willing to take a chance on the forward’s deadly eye for goal:

“I’m delighted with his application because he was nowhere near fit today. He played a full game and extra-time during the week and he had a slight knock on his thigh. But this is what we’ve been speaking to him about – just putting yourself out there. Even at 70 per cent he’ll be as good as – if not better than – a lot of Premier League strikers, so you’ve got to find the will and desire to want to push yourself. He did that today and got his reward for it. He showed great anticipation coming off the ‘keeper for the goal and always when he’s on the pitch he can be a threat.”

Reds Hold Firm Once More
It’s three clean sheets in succession now for the Merseysiders after yet another 1-0 win. Despite losing Kolo Toure to the groin injury sustained in midweek, Rodgers’ men were strong enough to keep out the champions, with Martin Skrtel slotting in alongside Daniel Agger in the heart of defence. This morning’s signing of PSG centre-half Mamadou Sakho should strengthen the Reds further at the back – expected to get the nod ahead of Toure at centre-half, his price across the Fantasy games will be eagerly anticipated, given that Agger, Glen Johnson and Jose Enrique are all priced at 6.0 apiece in Fantasy Premier League (FPL). With the above-mentioned schedule on the horizon, investment in Liverpool’s defence is expected to accelerate – Johnson owners will be hoping he recovers from the knock that forced him off towards the end, though, with Rodgers revealing after the final whistle:

“He took a bad knock – he turned onto his ankle. He’s getting treatment at the moment. It’s obviously quite bad for him to come off, but I’ll just need to see after.”

Van Persie’s Frustrations Continue
Having failed to register a shot on target, let alone find the net, against Chelsea last Monday, Robin Van Persie’s owners were hoping for a return to the form that saw the Dutchman bag a brace in the Gameweek 1 opener at Swansea. Once again, however, he turned in a hugely disappointing display and, denied of any real service, was unable to trouble Simon Mignolet in the Liverpool goal – looking thoroughly disenchanted throughout, he picked up an early booking and was also involved in a scuffle with Martin Skrtel which could easily have seen him sent packing.

Despite the back-to-back blanks, Van Persie’s owners will be confident he can find his form again – Palace, West Brom, Southampton and Stoke all roll up to Old Trafford over the next six Gameweeks and with Wayne Rooney sustaining a training ground head wound which is set to leave him sidelined for “a few weeks” the Dutchman’s contribution will be vital if David Moyes’ side are to pick themselves from a couple of lacklustre displays. With the likes of Sturridge, Christian Benteke, Roberto Soldado, Olivier Giroud and Rickie Lambert all set for favourable schedules, though, the non-Van Persie bandwagon seems to be in the ascendany; the Dutchman has a negative number of transfers in this week in spite of the upcoming run of fixtures.

Lacklustre Baggies
Three games gone and West Brom are the only side still looking for a goal after yesterday’s home defeat by Swansea. Steve Clarke switched from 4-4-2 to a 4-3-3 yesterday, with Scott Sinclair and Shane Long on either side of Nicolas Anelka up top as James Morrison shifted to the central midfield three alongside Claudio Yacob and Youssouf Mulumbu. Devoid of the services of former loan star Romelu Lukaku this term, the Baggies continue to look toothless in attack and with games against United, Liverpool and Arsenal allied with a trip to Stoke in the next six, faith in their attacking options is surely set to fall further after yesterday’s display. Clarke also has injury worries before a ball has been kicked over the international break – Morrison sustained a groin problem in yesterday’s game and was forced off at half-time. He will be assessed later this week.

Hernandez Proving Pivotal
While the Swansea defence picked up a first clean sheet of the season, Pablo Hernandez was the main man further up the field. Michael Laudrup handed Wilfried Bony his first start of the season and shifted Michu into “the hole” behind the Ivorian – but the pair were kept firmly in the shadow by the former Valencia man, who grabbed a goal, an assist and a couple of bonus points in the 2-0 win. Having also provided the assist for Bony’s consolation in the Gameweek 1 home defeat by United, Hernandez has now played a part in all three of the Swans’ strikes this term and seems to be establishing himself as a key figure in his second year at the Liberty after managing just three goals and eight assists in 2012/13. At just 6.0 in FPL, he’s staking a claim for our consideration as a real mid-price option – games against Liverpool and Arsenal in the following three are hardly enticing, though, with the schedule smiling a little kinder from Gameweek 8 onwards (SUN, WH, car, STK, ful).

Giroud in the Goals Again
Arsenal’s much-maligned Frenchman continues to defy his critics with yet another crucial strike for the Gunners. Giroud’s match-winner in the north London derby means he, like Sturridge, has now scored in all three of the opening Gameweeks and providing Arsene Wenger doesn’t add to his forward options before the transfer window closes, he’s set for major Fantasy investment over the next couple of weeks as the Gunners brace themselves for a superb run of upcoming fixtures. Wenger did hint he could spring a surprise as he attempts to bring ”one or two super players” to the Emirates over the next 24-hours, suggesting he could be finally set to splash the cash after a frustrating summer.

Nevertheless, he took time out to praise his compatriot’s performance in the post-match press conference:

“..you [the press] spent a lot of time in finding another striker for us! Maybe that woke something up in him. I like what he did today, because technically it was good, he had a huge physical presence. He looked to me today that he had a exceptional quality performance of a real centre forward.”

Theo Walcott – subject of last week’s Technical Area article along with Giroud – supplied the assist for the winner to keep his stock ticking over after a similar return against Fulham last week. While Giroud’s owners will be nervously awaiting the closure of the transfer window, Walcott’s place is assured regardless of any incoming trades – with the Gunners next six Gameweeks (sun, STO, swa, wba, NOR, cpl) rated second by our season ticker, the winger could be primed to pick up the points as Arsenal quickly put their disappointing opening day defeat by Villa behind them.

Capoue Concern for Tottenham
After the inevitable departure of Gareth Bale to Real Madrid was confirmed, Andre Villas-Boas’ attention turned to one of his new summer signings. Having watched Etienne Capoue stretchered off in the derby, the Spurs boss revealed “it doesn’t look good” amid concerns the Frenchman may have suffered a broken leg.

If the prognosis confirms Villas-Boas’ worst fears, it will bring Sandro back into the fold or prove the catalyst for a shift back to a 4-2-3-1 formation after he’d rolled out a 4-3-3 in the last couple of games, with Capoue alongside Mousa Dembele and Paulinho in central midfield. While the trio have added a little more steel to Tottenham’s game, the lack of creativity in the middle of the park has been all too apparent, with Roberto Soldado far too isolated as the lone forward. With Erik Lamela and Christian Eriksen now affording Spurs options for the role in “the hole”, Villas-Boas will surely be looking to go on the attack after Spurs lost their unbeaten record yesterday. Similar to Arsenal, they have an enticing run of games on the horizon which looks likely to bring plenty new owners their way, with home games against Norwich, West Ham and Hull, allied with trips to Cardiff and Villa in the next six.