There’s a change of format for this morning’s “Preamble”. With few pressing issues clattering around in my head, I’ve opted to give you an information blast, marrying up some of the noteworthy elements from the morning papers with some of my random thoughts on the Gameweek ahead. It might just work…
All four papers, apart from The Times, go with Marouane Chamakh up front for Arsenal against Fulham. That particular broadsheet has Robin Van Persie starting with the unlucky Chamakh presumably benched. Samir Nasri owners need Van Persie off the pitch to keep the Frenchman on set-piece and spot-kick duty.
Intriguingly, three of the four papers this morning feel that Seamus Coleman will be recalled to the Everton starting lineup on the right of midfield. A strange one this considering that he lost his place to Victor Anichebe against West Brom last week and was an unused sub. I’m not sure I see the logic in this unless it’s felt that Coleman gives better defensive cover against Ashley Cole – a possible consideration.
Craig Gardner is a starter for Birmingham in just two of our four papers this morning. I feel he will come in for Lee Bowyer in midfield and the stats show that, when he plays, he is by far the most threatening player on the pitch for Alex McLeish’s men. I think he’ll be a factor against Spurs.
Tom Cleverley is another one to watch – mentioned in last night’s “Spot The Differential” by Big Dunc, he’s a starter in all four of the morning papers and I see him being an influence for Wigan. Plenty will back Charles N’Zogbia in this one but I feel Cleverley could be a factor if the Latics do breach the Stoke defence. That’s a big “if” however – Stoke have conceded just 3 goals in their last 4 which is why I’ve backed Ryan Shawcross for my Scout Picks bench.
There should be goals in the Sunderland vs West Ham clash. The Hammers have confidence and attacking players on form and the same could be said of Sunderland, despite last week’s defeat at Molineux. The reshuffled Black Cats’ defence will get a thorough examination here and Steve Bruce may need a couple from his strikers – Darren Bent and Danny Welbeck. It’s hard to spot a goal threat elsewhere in the Sunderland side, although I’m monitoring Kieran Richardson. The stats show that he’s firing in shots and he’s their key man on direct free-kicks.
The City vs Bolton fixture looks one of the most difficult to call. In Fantasy terms I’ve a feeling we will see plenty of goals shared out here. Bolton have kept just one clean sheet but they’ve also only failed to score twice all season. An early strike from the visitors would ruin City’s clean sheet prospects but it would surely bring Roberto Mancini’s men out of the shell; a good thing for Carlos Tevez owners. The Telegraph have predicted a 3-2 – they might be on to something.
Mike Dean is the referee for the West Brom vs Newcastle clash. Mike Dean likes a penalty. That could be good news for owners of Peter Odemwingie and Shola Ameobi who will likely be on duty for those sides at the Hawthorns today. Graham Dorrans could be a starter for West Brom though (all four papers agree on that) and he could possibly take duties from Odemwingie. If he does and he enjoys a decent game, we could see the midfielder pick up some interest at last.
Predicting clean sheets is possibly the most difficult task in Fantasy Football right now. I’ve been pondering this a lot over the last 24 hours and I still see Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool as the strongest options – simply because their opponents are low on confidence and dealing with injuries. We could be relying on attacking returns from Blackburn, City and Birmingham defenders this week, and if you want a couple of dark horse options then Stoke at Wigan and West Brom at home to Newcastle appear to present them. The Newcastle attack has stalled somewhat of late, with 4 goals in 5 games, all scored by Andy Carroll. If they can keep him quiet (another big “if”) then the Baggies could surprise us with a shut-out.
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