This Much We Know – Gameweek 7

Two matches down and we have a temporary front runner in the battle of the Liverpool strike pairing. Elsewhere, Andre Villas-Boas confirmed Soldado’s struggles by benching his misfiring hit man, whilst Newcastle’s performance at Cardiff made it clear that their talisman may have to become accustomed to warming the bench. Here’s our lessons learned from the Gameweek…

It’s advantage Sturridge..for now…
A goal against Palace took his tally to three in two matches since returning from suspension but Luis Suarez was once again outscored by his strike partner at the weekend. While the Uruguayan’s haul of 19 Fantasy Premier League (FPL) points over the past two Gameweeks is more than respectable, Daniel Sturridge has registered 23 points over the same period and has stepped up another level since operating as part of a front two.

Suarez failed to deliver any bonus points last week and was punished by the new metric for being caught offside five times and dispossessed on a dozen occasions but if Victor Moses’ backside had managed to convert the Uruguayan’s pass from no more than three yards out, there would be a different argument altogether this morning. With Rodgers likely to persevere with two up top, Sturridge looks capable of holding his own, though, and with Suarez’ proving the catalyst for an improvement in his Fantasy returns, it’s Sturridge who leads the way in “transfers in” this week after climbing to the top of the overall FPL standings.

Soldado benched could be just the start of changes at the Lane…
By dropping Roberto Soldado from the first XI to face West Ham, Andre Villas-Boas has shown he won’t shirk from making big decisions. The summer signing from Valencia made way for Jermain Defoe after failing to score from open play in the league but Tottenham’s woes in front of goal continued despite the change in personnel.

Up until yesterday, Spurs were reliant on their backline to help grind out results but, forced to chase the game against the West Ham, their flaws were laid bare in alarming fashion. It’s six goals scored in seven now for the north London outfit – a tally better only than the bottom five clubs so far and a sign that Spurs have far from clicked following a raft of summer signings.

It may simply be that the new faces need time to gel after a substantial shopping spree but yesterday’s display highlighted that Villas-Boas’ side are anything but the finished product. Erik Lamela – with 16 goals in Serie A last season – must surely be pushing for a starting role on the right, whilst Gylfi Sigurdsson’s withdrawal on the hour mark once again places question marks over his long-term game time as his manager struggles to find a better shape and balance in the final third. At the back, the defensive performance may also raise question marks over Michael Dawson’s regular role, with new boy Vlad Chiriches possessing the pace and ability on the ball more suited to Villas-Boas’ high defensive line. We might well see a very different Spurs at Villa after the break.

Wenger’s rotation is on its way….
As the Arsenal treatment room slowly begins to evacuate, the permutations on offer to Arsene Wenger look set to hand Fantasy managers a potential headache. With Mikel Arteta fit again and earning his first league start of the campaign, Aaron Ramey was shuffled onto the right flank against West Brom and was subbed off on the hour mark after producing his most ineffective display of the season.

While the return of Mathieu Flamini offers the ideal shield in front of the Gunners back-four, Wenger is now left with the dilemma of trying to juggle Jack Wilshere, Ramsey, Arteta and Flamini for the roles in the double-pivot. Granted, the former two’s versatility has allowed them to take up the wide roles but with Tomas Rosicky also back in the mix and Santi Cazorla and Theo Walcott edging towards returns, Wenger has plenty of options available as he looks to prevent further injury and keep his side at the summit. Are we about to see Ramsey’s flame doused a little?

We have to consider Januzaj…
Rolling up at Sunderland on the back of two consecutive defeats, David Moyes’ decision to hand Adnan Januzaj the role on United’s left was undoubtedly a brave one. The youngster more than repaid his manager’s faith with both the visitors’ goals and turned in a performance that will surely have sealed his role for the Gameweek 8 home clash against Southampton.

With United’s expensive frontline simply failing to keep pace with far more budget-friendly forward options, Fantasy managers are scouring the market for alternatives to Robin Van Persie and Wayne Rooney, with the Dutchman, in particular, struggling badly under Moyes. Given the lack of impact amongst his midfield team-mates, Januzaj looks a real breath of fresh air for Moyes’ side and with such a kindly price tag across the Fantasy games, he’s been quick to attract new owners – over 75,000 have already snapped the 4.7 priced midfielder up since his weekend display. If he produces the goods across United’s next two home games, Januzaj could well accelerate in ownership as Fantasy managers look for the next Aaron Ramsey or Ross Barkley. Those without that pair may now postpone their bandwagon jump and look instead to the United man, in hope of finding a new budget differential.

If City can tighten up, Kolarov looks an option…
So often a source of frustration under Roberto Mancini, with game time never secure, the Serbian seems to have convinced Manuel Pellegrini of his worth. Kolarov has now started each of the last five under the new man at the City helm and has edged past Gael Clichy in the left-back pecking order – subbed off with a head wound at the weekend, he’ll surely recover in time to take his place ahead of the Frenchman for the Gameweek 8 trip to West Ham in a fortnight’s time. His renowned eye for goal has yet to come to the fore but, at 5.3 in FPL, the Serbian is starting to look a viable option if City can find a little more resilience at the back. Admittedly, that’s quite a big “if”, should Vincent Kompany’s scan on his injury sustained on Saturday reveal significant damage.

Lukaku isn’t unplayable after all…
While Joleon Lescott struggled to shackle the big Belgian, Matija Nastasic actually played him well in the second period and showed that, perhaps Jose Mourinho isn’t totally barmy when he farmed the 19-year-old out on loan again. Lukaku’s game isn’t complete and Saturday highlighted that he can drift out of the action and become isolated and ineffective. Even so, the first half burst away from the City defence and calm finish past Joe Hart earned him his fourth goal in three appearances – with Hull up next at Goodison, few Fantasy managers will be worried about the tepid second half showing at the Etihad. As for those turning their back on Lukaku’s promise – they’re likely adopting the same view as Jose Mourinho – greeting his second half failings with some satisfaction and praying that he doesn’t steamroller the Hull defence.

Willian has made life more difficult…
Just when Juan Mata thought he had finally earned his place in Jose Mourinho’s starting XI, the Spaniard was quickly overshadowed as the Blues clinched a win at Norwich. With Oscar grabbing his third league goal of the season, Mata was largely ineffective on the Chelsea right and his withdrawal proved the catalyst for the visitors win – Eden Hazard and Willian both supplied the late, late goals to vindicate Mourinho’s tactical tinkering. With Oscar and fit-again Hazard looking relatively secure starters in the attacking midfield three, Andre Schurrle has also seen increased minutes and has started four of the last five – while Willian’s superb strike strengthened his claim for increased game time, it merely emphasised the number of options Mourinho has at his disposal and clouded the issue further for onlooking Fantasy managers. When it comes to Chelsea’s attacking assets, it’s Oscar or bust down at the Bridge, right now.

Ben Arfa bench-warming duties may have only just begun…
Unfortunately for the Frenchman, there are two definitions of “unplayable”. One is the type of display that helped steer Newcastle to back-to-back victories against Fulham and Villa in Gameweek 3 and 4, whilst the other is the inept first-half display that saw him hauled off at the break in last Monday’s loss at Everton. Alan Pardew’s decision to withdraw Ben Arfa at Goodison led to his side almost clawing back a three-goal deficit and with the winger benched at Cardiff, the Magpies’ battled to a vital win against Malky Mackay’s men. Almost 70,000 FPL managers jumped ship last week and with Ben Arfa confined to a mere five-minute sub appearance against the Bluebirds, his talents could well be sacrificed for the Gameweek 8 home clash against Liverpool as Pardew looks to strike a “better balance”. For now at least, Ben Arfa’s Ballon d’Or appears to be floating further from him.