It hasn’t been the best of seasons for Steven Gerrard so far. While many of the premium midfielders have justified their lofty Fantasy price tags, the Liverpool skipper has been overshadowed by the cut-price appeal afforded by Raheem Sterling at Anfield, while Luis Suarez has proved the Reds’ inspiration after a patchy start under Brendan Rodgers.
As mentioned in Monday’s Technical Area, however, the return of Lucas could be key to an upturn in his captain’s campaign. Sidelined since Gameweek 2, the Brazilian’s comeback against Southampton last weekend seems to have afforded Gerrard more leeway to bomb forward and help Suarez in attack. In terms of goal attempts and chances created against Nigel Adkins’ men, Gerrard’s statistics were a significant improvement on his previous endeavours and suggest that, with Lucas stationed in front of the back-four, he could be a different proposition altogether.
While Rodgers’ side have a tricky trip to Upton Park on the horizon this weekend, the upcoming schedule is sure to bring investment their way. Home clashes against Villa, Fulham and Sunderland in the following five look enticing, with the Merseysiders having won three of their last four at home, and although a trip to Stoke is never appealing, Liverpool’s visit to Loftus Road could prove prosperous before the schedule takes a turn for the worse in Gameweek 22.
After serving his upcoming one-match suspension at Upton Park, Suarez will undoubtedly pick up more interest to boost his current 27% ownership, while Sterling – already popular with 22% of Fantasy managers – will also climb. Jose Enrique continues to attract plenty new suitors – over 16,000 have snapped up the Spaniard heading into the weekend; despite moving back to defence from a place in the front three, he still showed plenty menace against the Saints. This leaves Gerrard somewhat overlooked and with an ownership of less than 4% in Fantasy Premier League (FPL), he has the potential to be an intriguing differential. Ruled out of last night’s Europa League clash with Udinese as a precautionary measure due to illness, Gerrard’s return to the squad for this weekend’s Hammers clash has already been confirmed by Brendan Rodgers, casting aside any doubts over his availability.
Priced at 9.3 in FPL and 7.8 in the Sky Sports game, he doesn’t come cheap but with similarly priced midfielders such as Juan Mata and Eden Hazard facing a blank Gameweek 17 and struggling to produce under Rafa Benitez, Gerrard could appeal to those looking to freshen up their five-man midfields. With Gareth Bale ruled out for a couple of matches, Theo Walcott out for Arsenal and Roberto Mancini admitting he “will try” to have David Silva ready for this weekend, Gerrard offers a straight swap, with spot-kicks and a share of set-pieces also in his locker. While a return of two goals and four assists sum up his season up to now, Lucas’ return has released the central midfield shackles and should allow Gerrard the chance to prosper as Rodgers looks to take advantage of an eye-catching set of festive fixtures.
