Scout Scribbles – Vidic Relief for United

Nemanja Vidic is out of hospital after undergoing head scans for the concussion sustained in Sunday’s clash with Arsenal. Winston Reid reveals his ankle injury is worse than first feared. Pablo Zabaleta admits concerns over City’s defence, Seamus Coleman hails Roberto Martinez’ consistency of selection, while Tottenham’s Vlad Chiriches heads the international call-offs after being forced off with a broken nose against Newcastle:

Moyes Handed Vidic Boost

United have confirmed their skipper has been released from hospital after sustaining concussion in a clash with David De Gea during the weekend home win over Arsenal.

The Scout Says: Having recently recovered from a previous injury, Vidic has started the last two league games alongside Jonny Evans in the heart of the back-four, with David Moyes using Phil Jones in midfield against the Gunners prior to the Serbian’s half-time withdrawal. The 1-0 win saw United register their first clean sheet since Gameweek 4 in what has been a patchy run of performances at the back under Moyes – it’s no coincidence, though, that all three of their clean sheets have arrived in games Vidic has started, with the champions conceding in all of the three games he has missed. Upcoming games against Spurs and Everton could pose problems for the likes of Robin Van Persie and Wayne Rooney but with both sides toiling up top, United may well be set for an upturn in defensive resilience – with just under a fortnight to recover before the trip to Cardiff, Vidic is now down to 5.8 in Fantasy Premier League (FPL), though Evans, at 5.0, has now started five of the last six.

Reid Concern for Hammers

The West Ham centre-half has admitted to a radio station in his native New Zealand that his ankle injury is worse than first feared. Reports even suggest Reid may be out until the New Year with the problem, though the Hammers have yet to confirm this.

“There’s maybe a one per cent chance, if a miracle happens, but apart from that the injury is serious enough that it’s going to take a far longer time than two weeks.”

The Scout Says: Reid’s absence was immediately felt away to Norwich on Saturday evening. The Hammers had conceded once in five road trips but shipped three against a side that had taken the previous seven Gameweeks to accumulate the same number of goals – with six clean sheets in the opening 10, West Ham’s defence looked poised for investment ahead of some kind fixtures (Fulham, Palace and Sunderland in the next five) but Reid’s potential absence will undoubtedly affect their chances of picking up the points. Nonetheless, for those eyeing up their backline assets, James Collins has now dropped to 4.3 and would be set for an extended run in the XI if Reid is sidelined for any length of time.

Coleman Hails Toffees Resilience

The Everton right-back has talked up the defensive record than has seen his side register three successive clean sheets ahead of the upcoming Merseyside derby with Liverpool. Speaking to the club’s official website, Coleman reckons a consistency of selection has made the difference for the Toffees, who have now picked up six clean sheets thus far:

“It is (stability). The lads are great and are very loud with their communication. It’s important to keep a clean sheet and we did that. It’s also important to create chances and score goals and we didn’t do that, unfortunately, but it is a positive to keep a clean sheet. Maybe we have to had to rely on Tim a little bit in the last two games. He has been brilliant.”

The Scout Says: After just 11 Gameweeks, Roberto Martinez is now the only manager to name the same back-four and keeper in every league match. As a result of their resilience, Leighton Baines, Phil Jagielka and Coleman all sit inside the top six for FPL defenders while Tim Howard is number one for keepers but with Liverpool, United and Arsenal in the next four, many may decide to steer clear in the short-term until the fixtures pick up again around Gameweek 16.

Zabaleta Concerned Over City’s Defensive Frailties

The City defender admitted his side may struggle to challenge for the title if they continue to ship goals at the back. Sunday’s defeat at Sunderland means Manuel Pellegrini’s side have taken just four points from six games on their travels and sit six points off the summit, despite being the only side to win all of their home matches so far:

“I don’t know if it is just about our away form – when you look at the games we have played away, we have dominated all of them. But it is true we cannot keep a clean sheet, and when you play away you must defend much better, and try not to concede goals. It’s not happening, every time we play away. There is a long way to go and we have too many games to the end, but when you lose points like that it will be really difficult to fight for the title.”

The Scout Says: Zabaleta’s owners will be weighing up their options after he was dropped to the bench for the second time in the last four Gameweeks at the Stadium of Light. Introduced to the action with just 20 minutes, he picked up a single point for his endeavours and sits on just 40 points in the FPL standings – joint-20th for defenders. Certainly, a lack of consistency isn’t helping – Pellegrini fielded just one of the back-four that started the previous league game at home to Norwich as a result of their midweek Champions League exertions but with the likes of Hull equalling City’s four clean sheets at a cut-price rate, and Southampton and West Ham producing six apiece, it’s no surprise that Zabaleta has dropped 0.3 in price since Gameweek 8.

Kompany to Remain Sidelined

Zabaleta’s skipper looks likely to miss another three weeks with a thigh injury, according to new reports. Physio Lieven Messchalck has assessed Kompnay for the Belgian national side and, in an interview with Sky Sports, went on to elaborate:

“I think Vincent is going to be ready in several weeks. We will do everything we can to bring back Vincent in a good way for a long time. First of all he had a rupture, a tear into the abductor and then also he has bad luck with a small thing on the front side now, so it’s everything together. It’s not really so long, eight weeks is nothing in the time of injury, you must respect biology.’”

The Scout Says: Given that Kompany picked up the problem on October 5, an eight-week period would bring him up to November 30 – missing the Gameweek 12 clash against Spurs and placing question marks over the following week’s showdown with Swansea. If he misses both, he’d be back for a run of three away trips in four – a huge boost for Pellegrini, given the club’s woes on the road.

Chiriches Out for Romania

The international withdrawals are already underway, with Robbie Brady unsurprisingly pulling out of the Republic of Ireland squad. His compatriot, and Villa defender, Ciaran Clark, has already called off with a foot injury, while Tottenham’s Vlad Chiriches has been forced out of Romania’s crucial World Cup play-off against Greece with the injury that saw him withdrawn at the break against Newcastle.

After the Magpies defeat, Andre Villas-Boas had revealed:

“I think he broke his nose. He went to the hospital. He could have continued to play but it wouldn’t stop bleeding and I think that would have affected his concentration in the end.”

The Scout Says: While Brady’s owners have become somewhat accustomed to his ongoing hernia problems, Clark and Chiriches have only recently arrived on our radars. The Villa centre-half has been pivotal to the form that has helped his side register four clean sheets in seven and, at 4.5, has a kind run of fixtures to benefit further – with Ron Vlaar priced at just 4.4, though, many may opt for the Dutchman instead. Chiriches has established himself as part of the Tottenham back-four that has conceded just one goal in the last four Gameweeks and at 5.3, is certainly more budget-friendly than Jan Vertonghen or Kyle Walker for those eyeing up Villas-Boas’ defence. With City and United up next, though, any would-be suitors will likely hold fire on any potential transfers, providing he recuperates quickly.