Roberto Di Matteo contemplates the merits of pairing Didier Drogba with Fernando Torres, while also hinting at less game time for Daniel Sturridge. Peter Odemwingie is on course for a return against Newcastle this weekend, Ashley Williams is a doubt for Swansea, while Terry Connor may recall Roger Johnson to the Wolves starting XI for the trip to Norwich:
Roberto Di Matteo isn’t done with tinkering with his Chelsea lineup, judging by recent statements regarding his strikers. The Chelsea boss faces a dilemma for tonight’s visit to the Etihad, after Fernando Torres broke his scoring duck with a man-of-the-match showing in the FA Cup win over Leicester. Having rotated Torres for league games, with Didier Drogba starting the previous three outings, Di Matteo is now toying with the prospect of partnering both strikers…
I usually look at the form of the player and the opposition we have to play and see which team suits best that opposition to win the game. I put them [Torres and Drogba] in together for the Napoli game. We have a fantastic squad and it hurts to leave players out of that calibre…If the game requires it [that I change the system] then yes [I would change it]. It [the formation] has served us well for the last four games and I think the players like it. I would consider changing the formation to create problems for the opposition.
Having seen Juan Mata and Frank Lampard deployed in the central midfield support role in a 4-2-3-1, Fantasy managers may now have to assess a new Chelsea setup. In addition, Di Matteo’s recent selections have dented the potential of Daniel Sturridge, who appears to have dropped in the pecking order, having held down a role on the right flank in a 4-3-3 under Andre Villas-Boas. Sturridge started all of Villas-Boas’ last six league matches, but was immediately dropped to the subs bench by Di Matteo for the 1-0 win over Stoke. He’s scored just a single goal in 2012 and, from recent statements, the interim Blues boss seems to suggest he’ll use the striker more sparingly…
We forget that he’s a very young player, a very young man, and really this is his first full season with his club. He’s still developing if you think about it for his age and how many games he’s played. There is certainly some incredible talent that you can improve and he can make the team help and win more games. I think he could play down the centre. He has the ability to play in both positions.
For now, then, we’ll need more time to weigh up Di Matteo’s tinkering, with Chelsea’s attacking potential seemingly best served by the creative talents of Juan Mata. Having been rested to the bench against Stoke, the Spaniard emerged to help turn that game in Chelsea’s favour. He is set to start at City this evening, though Frank Lampard’s role seems less certain.
Peter Odemwingie is set to return to contention for West Brom’s meet with Newcastle at the Hawthorns. The Nigerian sat out of the 1-1 draw at Wigan with a calf injury but now looks on course to come back into the Baggies lineup – perhaps adopting his recent role on the right flank.
The update from the West Brom camp also included news on various scrapes and knocks from Saturday’s DW stalemate via assistant coach, Keith Downing…
Peter didn’t train yesterday, but it looks like he’s going to train today. Chris Brunt had a bit of a sore ankle but trained yesterday and is fine…James Morrison is a little fatigued – he’s been playing a lot of games recently – so he didn’t train yesterday…Keith Andrews had a bang on the knee at Manchester United.
This follows statements reported in yesterday’s Scribbles, which indicated Roy Hodgson was ready to rotate his squad over the run-in. It will be interesting to see if Morrison, for one, is handed a rest for the Magpies visit this weekend, as the likes of Odemwingie and Andrews bolster the options available.
There’s also a strong possibility that Marc-Antoine Fortune will be recalled this weekend. Downing offered further insight on the decision to drop him to the bench with Shane Long leading the line at Wigan.
Playing on your own up front is hugely demanding. Marco put a hell of a stint in during the three wins we had on the run, and then he had to go to Manchester United, which made it even more difficult. So Saturday was the sensible call, especially as Shane had started to look himself around ten days ago.
Swansea’s defensive lynchpin Ashley Williams, is reportedly struggling to be in contention for Saturday’s encounter with Everton at the Liberty Stadium. Williams missed the trip to Fulham with an illness that has only just seen him start to take steps towards a recovery…
We will have to assess Ash because he has lost a lot of fluid and he has only just started to eat again…We will see how he is over the next 48 hours. He was not well before we played Manchester City — he had not eaten before the game, which was incredible really when you consider his level of performance.
Gary Monk will continue to deputise should he fail to make it and, having sealed a clean sheet at the Cottage in Williams’ absence, Brendan Rodgers and Fantasy owners of Michel Vorm and Steven Caulker, will have few concerns about going into the Everton clash without the centre-half.
Wolves boss Terry Connor has revealed Roger Johnson is in contention for his first start since the sacking of Mick McCarthy. A lack of form and breach of club discipline has meant Johnson has failed to feature in any of Connor’s four games in charge and with Ronald Zubar suspended for the trip to Norwich, the former Birmingham man may be afforded a start. Wolves have conceded 14 goals in just four games since Connor’s installation in the Molineux hotseat and, having slipped to the bottom of the table, an upturn in defensive solidity is critical if they are to have any hope of avoiding the drop. Connor went on to say:
He wants to play, he wants to compete, he wants to win and he reminds me of that. He lets me know he’s available, and that’s fine, I’ve no problem with that whatsoever. There’s a first time for everything if it’s the first time (I play him). He’s been there every session, working hard, and is ready to go.
Bolton have this afternoon confirmed their weekend game against Blackburn will go ahead as scheduled. With Fabrice Muamba continuing to show improvement after Saturday evening’s collapse at the Lane, Owen Coyle revealed a decision was made after discussions with the midfielder’s family:
We spoke together with the players as a group this morning and I talked with Fabrice’s family last night. Fabrice’s father Marcel and his fiancée Shauna were keen that we fulfil our fixtures. Once the players knew this, there was no doubt in our minds that we would play the matches.
With the Trotters approaching a kind upcoming schedule, this brings Ryo Miyaichi back into our Fantasy thinking as a mid-price midfield option. Coyle’s side have (BLA, wol, FUL) in the next three, in addition to a rescheduled match with Villa, which will afford them a double gameweek somewhere along the line; certainly, we know it won’t be next week, though, as The FA Cup game at Spurs will now take place next Tuesday.
