The Knee Jerk – Saturday

A stunning hat-trick from Luis Suarez maintains his devastating form and keeps Liverpool’s prolific “SAS” pairing on track. Meanwhile, at Old Trafford, a wonder strike from a lesser owned Austrian earns our attention, as David Moyes is forced to turn to his benched young starlet to help rescue three points and keep himself in touch with the leaders.

The Game Changer

We went in the Gameweek without a Premier League hat-trick this season – a statistic that was emphatically banished by Luis Suarez who single handedly dismantled West Brom at Anfield.

A superb solo effort opened his account, before two headers put the game to bed prior to Daniel Sturridge getting in on the act with a sublime fourth for Brendan Rodgers’ side. The Liverpool “SAS” produced again, then, taking their account to ten goals and four assists between them since the partnership was renewed in the Gameweek 6 win at Sunderland.

Incredibly, that has seen Daniel Sturridge score in every match since the return of Suarez, but, significantly, he’s now been overshadowed by his Uruguayan strike partner for the last two outings, with Suarez set to pocket 17 points this evening to add to the 10 gathered in the 2-2 draw at Newcastle.

Predictably perhaps, Suarez is emerging as the weapon of choice in this vibrant Liverpool attack but the consistency of Sturridge continues to make a case for doubling up on the duo. A trip to league leaders Arsenal next weekend will provide their sternest test yet – deliver again and the case for “SAS” acquisition will build to new heights.

The Underused

While he was on the losing side at Old Trafford, the performance and superb dead ball strike by Marko Arnautovic at last revealed his potential.

United’s tormentor in the first half, the Austrian was handed back his role on the flank as Peter Crouch returned to lead the attack for the Potters. Nevertheless, Arnautovic made his mark on his fifth Premier League start to suggest that he could yet be a key figure for Mark Hughes’ side and a factor in our Fantasy seasons.

Priced as a 5.5 midfielder, we’ve already seen Arnautovic deployed as a lone striker, while his propensity to shoot and ability at set-plays adds to his potential. Owned by less than 1% Fantasy Premier League managers, it’s likely that the Austrian will have to prove his worth again before interest begins to escalate given the competition for places in our midfield, even within his price bracket.

Even so, with home matches against Southampton, Sunderland and Cardiff to come in the next five, Arnautovic should have the opportunity to impress and draw further attention to his talent.

As a side note, Mark Hughes has confirmed, post-match, that illness forced Arnautovic to make way shortly after half-time.

The Selection Poser

While the Suarez vs Sturridge debate will be re-ignited and reassessed following Suarez’s superb haul, elsewhere it was the benching of Adnan Januzaj that will have caused some concern amongst his early adopters.

Having started in the 1-1 draw with Southampton, David Moyes elected to take the 18-year-old out of the spotlight for the visit of Stoke, only to turn to him in the final quarter to reinvigorate the ailing home side. Once again, Januzaj impressed, raising the expectations of the Old Trafford crowd whilst bringing fresh ideas and impetus to the United attack. Ultimately, his introduction was instrumental in their comeback which saw them earn the three points.

It’s not clear what this means for Januzaj – clearly, as we’ve previously indicated, Moyes appears to need the young winger’s influence right now. While today’s decision to start him from the bench will have caused some concern amongst his Fantasy owners, then, his performance will have at least confirmed his importance to the cause. It remains to be seen if that’s enough to see Januzaj start at Fulham in Gameweek 10.