Captain Poll – Matchday Three – Day Three

If you happen to have a certain CR7 as your captain choice this evening, the chances are you’ll stick. Cristiano Ronaldo’s brace against Holland harvested a 20 point armband return, vindicating the 23% of Fantasy managers who handed him their vote in the Matchday Three, Day Two Captain Poll.

The other main protagonists failed to justify our faith, with Mario Gomez and Mesut Ozil bagging just an assist apiece in Germany’s win over Denmark. Robin Van Persie and Wesley Sneijder stuttered over the finishing line as the Dutch limped out of the tournament without a single point to their name. Time to assess the Group C options, then, ahead of tomorrow’s final matches.

Italy will be confident heading into their must-win match with Republic of Ireland. Giovanni Trapattoni’s have conceded seven goals in their two games thus far and arrive on the back of a morale-sapping 4-0 defeat at the hands of Spain. After a couple of back-to-back draws, the Italians know they must clinch a victory to stand any hope of progressing – Andrea Pirlo has had a hand in both their goals to date, while Antonio Cassano and Mario Balotelli will be desperate to break their scoring ducks. If Balotelli fails to shrug off a knee problem, Antonio Di Natale could come into contention, while Cesare Prandelli has also been talking up the displays of Alessandro Diamanti in training over the last couple of days.

Croatia will be reliant on Mario Mandzukic to maintain his sensational start to the tournament. The Wolfsburg man has proven to be an outstanding out-of-position midfielder in the McDonald’s game and has sparkled up front, finding the net three times already. Nikica Jelavic’s eye for goal deserted him against Italy but, as Fantasy Premier League (FPL) managers know too well, he’s more than capable of capitalising on a half-chance. Darijo Srna’s set-piece and spot-kick duties mean he cannot be dismissed, despite Slaven Bilic’s decision to switch him to right-back in the first two fixtures.

Spain shifted up a gear against Ireland after playing out a stalemate with Italy in their opener. Fernando Torres’ brace against Trapattoni’s men will see many target the Chelsea man as a captaincy option against Croatia, while David Silva has been their most consistent attacking performer thus far. The City man has hand a hand in four of his side’s five goals over the first two games and is another strong candidate. Andres Iniesta’s threat on the left of the attacking three can never be overlooked, Cesc Fabregas has notched in each of his appearances, while the creativity of Xavi is sure to provide plenty of opportunities.

Republic of Ireland have a final chance to pick up a point and restore some pride before flying home after tomorrow’s match. Trapattoni will be desperate to mastermind a result against his native country, though it’s something of an understatement to say the Irish are firm underdogs. Robbie Keane looks the man most likely, while Aiden McGeady’s creativity and Kevin Doyle’s role as a foil for Keane up top sees them come into contention.