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Keane Remains Gloomy Over Jones
Roy Keane is still none the wiser over the injury status of Kenwyne Jones but has admitted that the big striker will certainly sit out the first two months of the season.
Jones suffered a knee injury whilst playing for Trinidad and Tobago against England in June. Reports back then suggested that Jones could well be sidelined until February with ligament damage.
Right now however, Keane can’t look beyond the first two months of the season, ruling him out for the next 6 to 9 weeks at least. Jones is set to see a specialist in early August when a more accurate prognosis is expected.
The Sunderland striker was set to be a key pre-season target for fantasy managers having been a major success in his first season firing 7 goals and 10 assists.
Wigan Seal Zaki Deal
Wigan have finally completed the signing of Egytian striker Amr Zaki. The 25 year-old will put pen to paper on a one year loan deal that will offer Wigan the option to buy in January.
This guy has various nicknames - “The Egyptian Gladiator”, “The Egyptian Bulldozer”, “The Egyptian Rooney”. All of which seem to indicate that he won’t be shirking from the physical stuff he’s likely to encounter from day one in the Premiership.
The stats show Zaki to have a very decent record. Indeed his strike rate in International football 27 goals in 48 appearances, ranks him as the world’s top striker according to FIFA. He notched 22 goals in 54 games for El Zamalek in the Egyptian league over two seasons.
Another Friendly Round-Up
Continuing my attempts to bring you all the news and lineups from the pre-season games, here is another round-up of games to bring you bang up to date. There’s a lot to get through so there follows a blast of news for those short on time. The rest of you can click “continue” to read the full story.
Another lacklustre Liverpool peformance. United see out a draw against the Chiefs. A Duff hat-trick has Keegan smiling and fantasy managers wondering. Zamora fires a beauty on his debut as Fulham see off Celtic. Chopra faces 3-match ban after seeing red against Sporting. Bellamy sparkles again for the Hammers. Defeat for Ince in Austria. A brace for Crouch as he gets things started with Defoe. And relax.
Selection Stats Are Live
My selection statistics tables are now up and running. Over on this page you’ll find links to tables of statistics that include information on team and player performance in the 2007-08 season.
The team stats hold the usual information plus such gems as total shots on goal, goals from set-pieces and penalties. There are complete tables for home, away and overall performance.
The player stats include general player tables showing goals, assists etc. I’ve also added a whole set of tables tailored to the Fantasy Premier League game. These list the usual stats, plus a bundle of FPL specific stats that analyse such things as “points per million”.
Take a gander here.
Injury Scare For Gerrard
Steven Gerrard has been sent home from Liverpool’s training camp in Switzerland after sustaining a groin injury.
The midfielder sat out Liverpool’s win over Lucerne earlier this week and it has today been revealed that he was carrying the injury. Gerrard is expected to be sidelined for around 10 days, missing the clubs next friendly with Wisla Krakow today, as well as next week’s fixture with Hertha Berlin in Germany.
The midfielder will be a huge favourite with fantasy managers going into the season but this “minor” injury certainly suggests that we need to exercise some caution before spending the significant amount of cash required to buy in the Liverpool man. I’ll keep you posted on his progress.
The Friendly Round-Up
I’ve been stranded in the US all week, fighting a different time zone to bring you news of proceedings back home. As a result, I’ve fallen behind with the pre-season games as the week has gone on. To put things right and to catch up before things go pre-season crazy, I’ve rounded up all the week’s friendlies, together with team lineups, in one handy post.
Carson Signing Offers Little Value
West Brom have made their seventh signing of a busy summer by sealing a deal for Liverpool’s Scott Carson.
Carson signs on for a fee of £3.5 million and will compete for the number one spot with Dean Kiely.
While I fully expect Carson to establish himself as the Baggies number one, his value to fantasy managers is certainly reduced by his price which is distorted by his club status. In the Telegraph he is priced at £3.4 million as a Liverpool keeper, while in the Fantasy Premier League game you can acquire him for 5.0 - a game which currently has him in Villa colours after his season-long loan.
Potters Swoop For Kitson
Stoke have confirmed the signing of Dave Kitson from Reading for a club record fee of £5.5 million.
The big striker is Stoke’s first summer signing and is set to play a key role alongside Ricardo Fuller in the promoted side’s attack.
Kitson scored 10 goals in 28 starts for Reading last season, earning 3 assists along the way. That’s not a bad return for a striker playing in a relegated side. Previously Kitson made just 9 appearances in an injury-hit first season in the Premiership in 2006-07 when he notched 2 goals and 2 assists.
Cahill To Miss Kick-Off
Everton have confirmed that Tim Cahill will miss the start of the season as he continues his rehabilitation for a foot injury sustained at the tail-end of last term.
Cahill had surgery in Australia at the end of the season to address a metatarsal injury and the midfielder will apparently fly back to have “a last check” in pre-season. No return date is offered by the club but you can probably rule out the first month of the season at least.
There was better news elsewhere on the injury front at Goodison however as Mikel Arteta is said to have “an outside chance” of making a return to action in a friendly at Cambridge at the weekend. The Spanish playmaker has resumed training after stomach surgery at the end of last season. Baines and Hibbert have also had summer surgery on ankle and knee injuries respectively and, although Baines is reportedly ahead of schedule, Moyes is treating both players with kid gloves as the season nears.
Cech In For Baggies
West Brom have signed Slovakia international Marek Cech from Porto in a £1.4million deal.
Although a West Brom signing wouldn’t normally hit the headlines for fantasy managers, Cech is a 6ft 1in defender and is a left-back, although he can also be employed in midfield. He will therefore replace Martin Albrechtsen who has departed for Derby and provide competition for Paul Robinson for the left-back slot.
Robinson, to this point, is the most popular West Brom defender in terms of fantasy signings, certainly in the FPL game where 2% of managers have drafted him in. Cech’s arrival could put Robinson’s starting role in doubt so this situation will be worth monitoring for those looking to cash in on a budget West Brom defender.
Cech has joined the Baggies for their pre-season tour of Germany. They kick things off against Borussia Moenchengladbach tomorrow evening.
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