Despite the game at Old Trafford grabbing most of the headlines, today’s Scout Notes has more than little Dutch flavour to it after Arsenal, Spurs and Everton all grab wins in Sunday afternoon’s fixtures. Here’s our round-up of yesterday’s games from a Fantasy perspective…
Royston Drenthe
A first start for the Dutchman saw him produce the goods as Everton ended Fulham’s unbeaten home league record. Drenthe has been used sparingly since his loan move but has presented a strong case for a continued role in David Moyes’ first XI following his display at the Cottage. A goal and 2 assists helped him to the maximum bonus points and he is now second-top FPL scoring player for Everton, despite limited game time. Currently a member of just 0.4% of Fantasy squads, he’s likely to take a substantial jump from Gameweek 12 onwards, as Everton’s fixtures improve considerably.
Mario Balotelli
Unlucky not to grab any bonus points this weekend, the Italian’s consistency has taken a dramatic upturn over the last few fixtures. Having played just twenty minutes in the first five games of the season, Balotelli’s brace at Old Trafford means he has now found the net in each of City’s last four league games and is looking a viable Fantasy prospect. While he claims there’s a new-found maturity to his game, there are a couple of other factors to his recent run in the first-team. Edin Dzeko’s tantrum at Bayern coupled with Sergio Aguero’s groin injury afforded Balotelli virtually a full game at Blackburn, while his European suspension helped him to more league time, with the aforementioned pair rested for Champions League action. With his suspension now over, he could be more prone to league rotation.
James Milner
A little like Adam Johnson, Milner –when picked- clearly has the potential to produce for City. Yesterday’s game saw him make his third start in a row for Roberto Mancini’s side, however, and he’s now overtaken Samir Nasri’s Fantasy total for the season. Milner’s game is clearly suited to the new bonus scoring system, too; somewhat bizarrely, he has now picked up more bonus than David Silva, despite playing almost two hundred and forty minutes less than the Spaniard.
David Luiz
Andre Villas-Boas’ decision to start Luiz over Branislav Ivanovic wasn’t the most inspired selection of his Chelsea tenure. Aside from conceding the penalty that helped QPR to a 1-0 win, Luiz looked ill-at-ease throughout and his display, if anything, could well have a positive impact on Ivanovic’s future game time at centre-half. In turn, this could help cement Jose Bosingwa’s future at right-back; Chelsea have been poor at the back this season and Luiz’s introduction further undermined this aspect of their game- his poor performance will certainly have given his manager food for thought, with the unexpected defeat depriving the Blues of a chance to leapfrog Man United into second place.
Robin Van Persie
When the team sheets were announced yesterday afternoon, many a Fantasy manager’s heart sank with the news that the Dutchman was benched for the visit of Stoke. While Gervinho ultimately outscored his skipper Fantasy-wise, with a goal, 2 assist s and 3 bonus points, Van Persie-once again- produced the goods for Arsene Wenger’s side, despite just twenty-five minutes game time. Although the Gunners away form has been woeful, with one point from four games, they have now won four in a row at the Emirates and Van Persie has ran riot in recent weeks- he has now scored twice in each of his last three home games.
Rafael Van der Vaart
Two more goals from Van der Vaart means he’s scored five in his last four games now. Spurs’ poor start to the campaign is a distant memory and with five wins in six, they’ll go into this weekend’s home game with QPR as huge favourites. The Dutchman’s maximum bonus award has seen him pick up 11 for the season now, more than any other player in FPL. It’s clear that if Harry Redknapp continues to play him in the hole behind Emmanuel Adebayor, Van der Vaart looks capable of racking up the Fantasy points time after time and with a strong run of fixtures ahead, looks set for heavy investment.
Anton Ferdinand
The QPR centre half has slipped under the radar of most Fantasy managers thus far, though yesterday’s performance further increased his potential. Ferdinand’s move to Loftus Road has seen him return 3 clean sheets and 7 bonus points in his six appearances for Neil Warnock’s side. Similar to Milner, his game seems to suit the new bonus system, though Ferdinand is a guaranteed starter- he is now just 1 bonus point behind Steven Taylor, though the Newcastle centre-half has picked up just a single bonus in the last six Gameweeks, in comparison.
Heidar Helguson
Drafted into the QPR starting for the misfiring Jay Bothroyd in Gameweek 8, Helguson has fully vindicated Neil Warnock’s decision. Yesterday’s penalty was his second goal in two games- Bothroyd had failed to find the net in the previous seven matches. With DJ Campbell injured for around two months with a foot problem, Helguson’s chances of leading the line for QPR over the next few gameweeks look strong, though with a tricky run of fixtures on the horizon, his chances of returning the Fantasy points perhaps don’t look too prosperous.
