It says a lot about Robert Huth’s previous performances that the Stoke City defender started last season’s Fantasy Premier League (FPL) game with the same price tag as Vincent Kompany. Granted, the City skipper had been classified as a midfielder beforehand but Huth’s outstanding attacking returns were enough to see him slapped with a 6.0 valuation as the campaign kicked off last August:
The former Chelsea man seemed to discover a keen eye for goal in 2010/11, finding the net six times in addition to providing a trio of assists. Huth’s offensive exploits, teamed with his resilience at the back, helped harvest 14 bonus points and racked up eight clean sheets for the Potters – in total, he returned 138 points, eclipsing central defensive partner Ryan Shawcross’ haul of 98 by some distance.
The big German suffered from Tony Pulis’ tinkering last time out, though. While Huth missed just four of the Potters’ league games, only 22 of his 31 starts came in his natural position at centre-half, with the Stoke boss fielding him as a full-back on nine occasions. Out wide, Huth looked ill-at-ease and notched just three times in 2011/12, with only one goal in the first 31 Gameweeks of the campaign. A single assist and eight bonus points, in addition to seven clean sheets, boosted his tally to 101 but Shawcross proved far greater value in Pulis’ backline, returning 118 points from a starting price of 5.0.
The Prospects
Ideally for Fantasy managers, a permanent berth at centre-back is the perfect scenario – at the very least, this would afford Huth a better chance to rack up the blocks than the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index favours so much. Many of his appearances at right-back were down to Andy Wilkinson’s injury-plagued campaign, though with Ryan Shotton now establishing himself as a regular in the first-team squad, Pulis has a more natural alternative as cover. Last summer, the Stoke boss snapped up both Jonathan Woodgate and Matthew Upson with one eye on the club’s European exploits but this term the Potters have no such diversions; with less need for chopping and changing required, Huth could once again forge a partnership with Shawcross at the back.
A drop in price seems on the cards across the Fantasy games. Huth had never been dearer than 5.0 beforehand in FPL and if his cost returns to that same level, he is likely to afford Fantasy managers a decent mid-price option at the back and will be favoured by many over Shawcross. Looking at the statistics, Huth still offered plenty offensive potential last time round. Only Pulis’ first-choice front two, Peter Crouch and Jon Walters, averaged more efforts per game than the German – for a side with just 36 goals (the lowest in the Premier League) his set-piece threat is ever-crucial and vital to his Fantasy potential.
With six of those eight clean sheets coming in front of their own fans last time out, Pulis’ backline clearly offers greater potential at home but the opening fixture list has done them little favour. The Potters have just three home matches in the first eight Gameweeks, with Arsenal, City and Swansea all rolling up to the Britannia. Visits to Chelsea, Liverpool and United are also all on the agenda in the first couple of months, suggesting that Fantasy managers are likely to steer clear of Huth until Stoke’s shocking schedule takes a turn for the better.
