Scout Notes – Gameweek 17 – Monday

Theo Walcott and Olivier Giroud grab a goal apiece as Arsenal defeat City at the Emirates. Mesut Ozil provides a pair of assists and has now produced points in 11 successive Gameweeks. Sergio Aguero lasts just over an hour for the beaten visitors, with Yaya Toure’s late strike proving scant consolation.

Ozil Guides Gunners to Victory

Arsenal moved to within two points of the summit by way of a 2-1 home win over fellow title-chasers Manchester City at the Emirates last night. Mesut Ozil delivered attacking returns for the 11^th Gameweek in succession, turning provider for both of the Gunners’ goals. The Germany international has now amassed an incredible 15 assists in 16 league outings, positioning him seven clear of Gerard Deulofeu (eight assists) on the distribution front.

Theo Walcott set the tone for the hosts with a searing strike in 33^rd minute, while Olivier Giroud doubled their advantage with his seventh goal in as many matches – illuminating the wealth of viable routes into Arsenal’s attack. Aaron Ramsey didn’t trouble the scoreboard at the Emirates but was the only midfielder among his team to card a shot inside the box (three), illustrating his penchant for late runs into the area.

Given that the north Londoners enjoy two favourable home ties (BOU, NEW) beyond a trip to Southampton, the Gunners’ chief protagonists look well placed to perpetuate their purple patch. Only Everton (eight) have shipped more goals than the Saints (seven) during the last four Gameweeks, while Bournemouth and Newcastle United rank joint-second for goals conceded (32) this term, which bodes well for Arsenal’s attacking prospects.

After the match, Arsene Wenger admitted that Ozil had struggled with illness for most of the week, and with Alexis Sanchez suffering a minor setback to his hamstring injury, the Gunners boss is keen to court caution with his players’ fitness:

“He (Ozil) had a chest infection for the week and was in bed. He had only one training session yesterday and for a guy who could not prepare well he has done very well physically. I’m a bit cautious because we have lost three or four players recently so I have to be cautious a little bit….He (Sanchez) had had a slight one (setback)… he planned to be on the bench tonight but he is so keen he got a little bit of a pain and we didn’t take a gamble. I think he will be back January 10. Christmas period – you can’t count him.”

City’s Away Woes Continue

Save for a 15-minute spell at the end of the encounter – inspired by Yaya Toure’s languid strike – Manchester City looked short of ideas, culminating in their third defeat in five fixtures. Toure has served up attacking returns (two goals and one assist) in three of the last six Gameweeks but looks a far cry from the dominant Fantasy asset that chalked up 20 goals and nine assists during the 2013/14 campaign.

The travails of Manuel Pellegrini’s troops in the final third are denoted by the fact they failed to register a solitary big chance and rank second-bottom for big chances (three) across the last four Gameweeks. Indeed, Kevin De Bruyne’s 27% ownership have suffered in the form of three successive blanks, while the 3,409 early Sergio Aguero adopters were left scratching their heads as the rusty Argentine mustered just two attempts against Arsenal before being withdrawn just after the hour-mark.

After the match, Manuel Pellegrini conceded that Aguero – who played for just the third time since Gameweek 8 last night – is far from full match sharpness right now:

“I think that it was important for Sergio to return to the team. Maybe he needs a few more matches to return to his form but it was important for the team that he played tonight”.

Notwithstanding the scoreline, Bacary Sagna scooped three bonus points by virtue of his assist and defensive efforts. Speaking of the Sky Blues rearguard, they’ve now conceded in five consecutive league clashes and recorded just two shut-outs in the past 12 Gameweeks. It’s safe to say that Vincent Kompany’s stock has risen immeasurably over the past two months, while the Fantasy appeal of Man City’s other rearguard starters has diminished considerably.

Ultimately, Sunderland’s visit this weekend will act at a litmus test to ascertain the extent of Man City’s malaise before they travel to Leicester and Watford – given that they’ve picked up just two points from their last five away fixtures, scoring twice along the way, some Fantasy managers will be thinking twice over loading up on the Etihad outfit right now.