Scout Scribbles – Merciless City Maul Wednesday

Edin Dzeko and Frank Lampard both bag a brace as City hammer Sheffield Wednesday. Oscar fires Chelsea past Bolton, Roberto Soldado is amongst the goals as Tottenham progress, Emmanuel Riviere scores twice for Newcastle, while Saido Berahino helps West Brom edge past Hull in a five-goal thriller at The Hawthorns.

WEDNESDAY WALK-OVER FOR CITY

Man City recorded a comprehensive 7-0 victory over Championship side Sheffield Wednesday in last night’s Capital One Cup third-round tie. Edin Dzeko and Frank Lampard grabbed braces in the rout, whilst Yaya Toure and Jesus Navas both notched their first goals of the campaign, with the latter also chipping in with two assists.

The Scout Says: Providing Sergio Aguero is fit for the weekend, Dzeko’s two-goal showing will surely convince Manuel Pellegrini to start with two up front against Hull – with the Tigers being breached twice in each of their last three league fixtures, sizeable returns could await the City forward pairing on Saturday. Navas’ performance, meanwhile, brings the 7.3-priced midfielder on to our radars for the first time this season – despite only making one league start thus far, the Spaniard has already tallied two assists, and with Samir Nasri a major doubt for the KC trip, Navas’ form makes him a differential option worth considering. Yaya Toure’s first strike of the season, albeit from the penalty spot, will have offered his dwindling band of owners some comfort, though his 10.8 price tag could certainly be spent elsewhere for now.

OSCAR SENDS CHELSEA THROUGH

Oscar’s first goal of the campaign helped Chelsea advance through to the fourth round of the League Cup with a 2-1 victory over Bolton. Young centre-back Kurt Zouma grabbed the host’s opener, as the likes of Cesc Fabregas, Diego Costa and Branislav Ivanovic were handed the night off by Jose Mourinho.

The Scout Says: It was a profitable night for Mourinho’s men, with a place in the next round of the cup competition booked, the decision to rest key players paying off and Oscar starting to find his feet after an iffy start to the season. Nonetheless, with Fabregas and Eden Hazard so prominent in the Blues’ midfield right now, the Brazilian remains far from our thoughts for the time being. The same can be said for Andre Schurrle who, following his Gameweek 5 strike against City, was afforded the full 90 minutes against Bolton last night, leaving his chances of making the starting line-up against Aston Villa on Saturday highly dubious.

SPURS SAVED BY LATE TREBLE

Tottenham were forced to score three times in the last 20 minutes to advance past Nottingham Forest 3-1 in their Capital One Cup clash last night. Mauricio Pochettino fielded an entirely different side to the one that tasted defeat against West Brom at the weekend, with Ryan Mason, Roberto Soldado and Harry Kane all getting on the scoresheet.

The Scout Says: After a dismal display against West Brom last weekend, Pochettino admitted he will have no qualms over ringing the changes in order to find his best XI. Last night’s selection certainly showed he’s willing to hand fringe players a chance to impress but it’s fair to that those on show did little to strengthen their claims for a starting berth. Whilst the likes of Andros Townsend and Erik Lamela chipped in with an assist apiece, it seems more likely that Pochettino will lean towards last weekend’s starting XI once again. Owners of Nacer Chadli, for example, will be a little more confident of the Belgian’s pitch time against Arsenal in spite of his withdrawal on the hour mark last weekend, with his main rivals for a starting role still struggling for any semblance of form.

BAGGIES FORWARD PAIR DOWN TIGERS

Brown Ideye and Saido Berahino both notched for West Brom as Alan Irvine’s side knocked Hull out of the cup with a tightly-fought 3-2 victory. The former left the field in the 21^st minute of the game, however, after injuring himself in scoring the goal.

The Scout Says: The Baggies’ form is picking up after back-to-back wins for the Midlands outfit, and Berahino certainly looks their weapon of choice right now. The 5.5-priced striker hadn’t found the back of the net since his opening-day brace against Sunderland until last night, but with Ideye now potentially set for a spell on the sidelines, the onus is on Berahino to kick on as the Baggies face testing fixtures against Liverpool and Man United in their next three. Centre-back Gareth McAuley also struck in yesterday’s encounter, and the Northern Irishman will be hoping to make his first league appearance of the campaign against Burnley this weekend, though with Joleon Lescott, Craig Dawson and Jonas Olsson also competing for the two spots at the heart of the Baggies’ rearguard, Irvine has a tough decision on his hands in selecting his backline on Sunday.

INCE AND BRADY BREAK SCORING DUCKS

Tom Ince and Robbie Brady supplied the goals for Hull last night, but another poor display at the back cost the Tigers a spot in the next round of the League Cup. Steve Bruce made wholesale changes to the team he selected against Newcastle last Saturday, but rolled out a back-four once again, only to see his side’s dire defensive form since switching from 3-5-2 continue.

The Scout Says: Hull have conceded six times in their last three league fixtures, and with budget favourite James Chester now seemingly out of the first-team picture, Fantasy faith in their backline is at a real low. The performances of Brady and Ince, however, will at least give Bruce some positives to dwell over from last night – both could now press for a greater role than they’ve been offered over the past few Gameweeks when the Tigers welcome City this weekend, though Bruce does have plenty of other attacking midfield options to turn to, with deadline day signings Gaston Ramirez and Hatem Ben Arfa also pushing for inclusion.

RIVIERE AT THE DOUBLE

An extra-time winner from Paul Dummett saw Newcastle overcome Crystal Palace 3-2 in their cup clash last night. However, it was Emmanuel Riviere who stole the show for the Tyneside team with a brace to open his account for the Magpies.

The Scout Says: Whilst Riviere still has plenty of work to do to prove his worth to Fantasy managers after a less than thrilling start to the campaign, he has at least picked a good time to find his scoring boots. With Stoke, Swansea and Leicester up next for the Toon, the Frenchman could be set to profit so long as he can hold off Papiss Cisse in the starting XI, though Riviere’s encouraging performance last night should mean that Alan Pardew is less likely to rush Cisse back into his starting XI. Cisse bagged a brace from the bench last weekend but with Pardew keen to court caution with his pitch time after a long stint on the sidelines, he’s likely to be gradually handed more minutes off the bench until his match sharpness returns.

Gayle in the Goals for Palace

Neil Warnock also handed a number of fringe players an opportunity last night.
Dwight Gayle was amongst the goals for Palace once again with a coolly taken penalty, whilst Sullay Kaikai also scored in the 3-2 home defeat.

The Scout Says: The likes of Wilfried Zaha and Adrian Mariappa also managed the entire 120 minutes against the Magpies, as Warnock also gave Brede Hangeland and Zeki Fryers the chance to impress. With none of the hosts players standing out, though, it seems more likely that Warnock will keep faith in the side that won at Everton last week, with Yannick Bolasie and Jason Puncheon on the flanks and Martin Kelly at right-back once again as he looks to extend his unbeaten league run to four matches.