Sunday’s pair of fixtures provided us with a single goal and worries over two of the most popular Fantasy assets in the game after Michu and Romelu Lukaku both failed to finish their respective fixtures. Steven Caulker grabs the winner for Cardiff over former club Swansea, whilst Jan Vertonghen climbs to the top of the defender standings to justify his premium price tag:
Caulker the Bluebirds Hero
The summer signing grabbed the only goal of the game as Malky Mackay’s side prevailed in the South Wales derby. With two goals to his name since arriving from Tottenham, Caulker is now Cardiff’s joint-top scorer and has also accrued nine bonus points after yesterday’s match – more than double the tally of any of his team-mates. Initially priced at 5.0 in FPL, the centre-half has failed to pick up much Fantasy interest – he currently sits in just 2% of teams – but has now reached 48 points for the season; the same number as Everton’s Seamus Coleman, for example, and just one less that former Tottenham team-mate Kyle Walker. Elsewhere in the home defence, Ben Turner earned his highest return of the campaign; with a couple of bonus points accrued, the 4.0 priced defender is now up to 27 points but while he’s proving decent value, trails far behind his fellow Cardiff centre-half.
Michu Worry for Swans
Without a goal in the four league games prior to yesterday’s 1-0 defeat, it’s fair to say the Spaniard has toiled in recent weeks. Many Fantasy managers have chosen to keep faith as a result of Swansea’s fixtures but after limping out of the derby, the exodus is picking up pace – already, significant numbers have parted company since yesterday’s match. After the game, Laudrup cast doubts over his star midfielder’s availability for the weekend home game against Stoke:
“Michu is not 100% right now. He is struggling with some physical problems and on top of that he had to leave the pitch with another twisted ankle so probably he will be out for a couple of games.”
The Swans boss will definitely be without Michael Vorm for the Potters showdown after the Dutchman received his marching orders for denying a goalscoring opportunity – he will sit out a one-match ban and return for the Gameweek 12 trip to Fulham.
Vertonghen Proves his Worth
The Belgian was again fielded at left-back as Michael Dawson and Vlad Chiriches were handed the centre-half roles at Goodison. Everton had scored in each of the previous six but were denied by Andre Villas-Boas’ backline, who have now gone three consecutive games without conceding – indeed, yesterday’s clean sheet was their seventh of the season already. Vertonghen’s propensity to pick up bonus points also came to the fore – his maximum haul means he now has 12 this term, equalling his tally for the whole of the previous campaign. More significantly, yesterday’s nine-point haul took the 7.1 priced Belgian to the top of the defender rankings on 61 points, though with City and United in the next three, many may hold fire in investing for now.
Elsewhere at the back, Villas-Boas defended his decision to keep Hugo Lloris on the pitch after the keeper sustained a head injury in a collision with Romelu Lukaku. The Spurs boss admitted the Frenchman has no recollection of the incident but went on to confirmed Lloris is “well” in his post-match interview.
Toffees Resolute
Leighton Baines and co also picked up the points, with the goalless draw handing Everton their fifth clean sheet of the season. While Vertonghen’s ability to deliver bonus shows no sign of slowing, 7.7 priced Baines has suffered in recent weeks – he has failed to deliver any bonus in each of the last two Gameweeks, despite his side delivering a clean sheet on both occasions. Nonetheless, yesterday’s result saw him make a move up the leaderboard to justify his premium price tag – he’s now sitting third for defenders but, like Tottenham, has some tricky fixtures on the horizon, with Liverpool, United and Arsenal in the next five.
Barkley Warms the Bench
The Toffees midfielder dropped out of the starting line-up for the first time this terms as Leon Osman returned to the XI after producing a goal and assist against Villa last weekend. Clearly, Martinez is keen to protect the youngster and it was noticeable that prior to yesterday’s match his game time had dropped – 79 minutes in Gameweek 8, then just 59 minutes at Villa Park. Despite dropping from 5.7 to 5.6 in FPL last week, Barkley remains the third most popular midfielder in the game, with 35% ownership – yesterday’s sub role, allied with the fact he has now gone four fixtures without a goal or assist, looks set to signal plenty sales.
Lukaku Concern for Martinez
The big Belgian’s 25% FPL owners will be somewhat concerned after he was forced off towards the end following the collision with Lloris. Martinez admitted Lukaku was withdrawn after picking up a thigh problem in the clash – given that he had notched five times in five prior to yesterday’s match and now has a trip to basement-dwellers Palace up next, he looks a real captaincy contender for next weekend. An injury update will be anxiously awaited, with would-be suitors perhaps putting their plans on hold until Martinez gives us further prognosis.
