The Championship play-off final; the richest club game in the world and the last chance for Fantasy managers to weigh up the promoted clubs for potential diamonds, with the top-flight performances of Blackpool’s Charlie Adam -finishing second-top scorer in Fantasy Premier League (FPL) 2010/11- setting the standard to follow. With a hat-trick in Swansea’s 4-2 win over Reading, Scott Sinclair guaranteed his club a £90m windfall and announced himself on our Fantasy radars for the upcoming Premier League campaign as a definite “one to watch”.
Snapped up by Brendan Rodgers last summer, the past season has seen the twenty-two year old winger establish himself in a starting XI for the first time in his career and Swansea have reaped the benefits, with Rodgers’ expansive passing game affording Sinclair the stage to flourish. Having spent time under Rodgers at both youth and reserve level while at Stamford Bridge, Sinclair acknowledged his manager’s part in his successful campaign:
“Leaving Chelsea was the best decision I ever made as I’m finally playing every weekend, showing everyone what I can do. Last summer, I could have gone on loan again but I’d had enough of that…I had the chance to sign for another Premier League club but decided it was best to join a manager who knows me and gave me confidence. Brendan Rodgers was the main reason I signed for Swansea as we knew each other when he was reserve-team manager at Chelsea.”
The Statistics
Sinclair was something of a prodigious talent, joining Bristol Rovers at the age of nine before making his debut aged fifteen. After just 2 appearances for the club, he was snapped up by Chelsea in 2005 but spent the next few seasons being farmed out on loan by a variety of Blues bosses.
His nomadic existence spanned to loan spells at six different clubs, including a stint at Wigan a couple of seasons back, but Sinclair failed to settle wherever he ended up and made a total 65 appearances on loan, scoring just 6 goals. Back he went to Chelsea last summer but this time the club decided to cash in on his services and Sinclair left without ever being given a chance at Stamford Bridge; he played just 5 games, failing to score a single goal.
Swansea paid an initial £500K to land the winger, in a three-year deal which may rise to £1m, dependant on the player’s performances. With 22 goals and 3 assists last term, however, Sinclair has already made something of a mockery of the price tag.
The Prospects
Swansea’s attacking game under Rodgers proves more fruitful at home, with 41 of their 69 goals coming at the Liberty Stadium last term, just under 2 goals per home game. The system clearly suits Sinclair’s pace and trickery out wide; he was the club’s top-scorer in the Championship and, with penalty-kick duties in the bag, will be high on Fantasy radars as potential bargain material.
Up against superior defences this time round it will be interesting to see how Sinclair copes, though after the win over Reading, Rodgers- mirroring the ethos of Ian Holloway upon Blackpool’s promotion the previous season- promised to forge ahead with the style of football that has drawn the Swans plenty plaudits:
“We’re going to places like Old Trafford and Stamford Bridge so it will be tough, but we’ll try to maintain the way we play. We said before this game we must maintain the identity of the team under pressure, with millions watching. You’ve seen a clear demonstration of how we play today.”
Blackpool‘s approach, while ultimately culminating in relegation on the final day of the season, saw Holloway’s men score 55 goals, the same number as fifth-placed Spurs and while their defenders were a Fantasy no-no, the Seasiders’ goal scoring feats meant the likes of DJ Campbell joined Adam as a viable FPL option.
Sinclair is a guaranteed starter for Swansea; there won’t be any threat of rotation hanging over his head, though fatigue saw him rested by Rodgers for a couple of games towards end of last season. He should be priced around the 5.0 to 5.5 bracket and will no doubt be the subject of plenty interest come the start of the campaign, more so if this Friday’s Premier League 2011/12 presents a kind beginning for the Welsh side.
