A wind of change is in the air as the community battens down the hatches and braces itself for a dramatic shift in the fixture list. As we patiently sit through the third international break of the season, our community writers have indulged in a spot of crystal ball gazing, with a little help from their calculators and, surprisingly, Jimmy Bullard. We also catch up on the latest statistics in our members tables and some impressive league leaders in our community tournaments.
The Community Articles
Crystal ball gazing was taken to new number crunching levels by Footballoholic and Gillesdegoult this week. Firstly, Footballoholic presented this excellent look at the goal scoring potential of all Premier League sides over the next six weeks, based on the defensive form of their opponents, before Gillesdegoult then followed this research up by combining attacking form of all teams.
Heels over heads was also busy soothsaying, looking at the defensive form of Premier League sides over a number of seasons to assess whether Southampton can significantly add to their seven clean sheets so far.
Christina has been looking ahead to Christmas and provided us with this Dickensian look at some of the Premier League’s struggling sides chances of success over the festive period.
Finally, with a little bit of help from former Wigan and Hull legend Jimmy Bullard, John Terry’s Dog looked at the similarities of being a Fantasy Football manager and running a business.
Don’t forget, if you’ve got some analysis, scout reports or features brewing, be sure to visit our community section to submit your article. We also offer £25 to the writer of the most popular article each month.
The Hottest Topics
An imminent shift in the fixture list, when Southampton’s kind run comes to a dramatic end and Chelsea and Liverpool face easier opposition, dominated discussion this week.
Ahead of Liverpool’s run over the next four Gameweeks (cpl, STO, lei, SUN) many are eagerly awaiting Daniel Sturridge’s return from injury. In our discussion on how his comeback will affect our teams, Doosra and myself took a good look into his recent statistics to assess just whether his reputation for selfishness in front of goal is myth or reality.
For many, though, Liverpool’s good fixtures mean little when their recent form is so dire. In our discussion on the form over fixtures debate Moin was among the fixture list fans, while Gary 32 pointed out that Spurs recent poor home record against weaker teams proves form can often win the day.
Turning to Southampton’s poor run of fixtures, that includes Manchester City, Manchester United and Arsenal in the next four, Dat Guy has been looking at the south coast side’s form against bigger sides. This provided a compelling argument for ditching Saints defenders, while in stark contrast Accounting on Chris believes that they could be worth hanging onto despite the tough upcoming opposition.
Dat Guy also looked at some emerging conflict of interests coming up in the fixture list, where popular defenders face well-owned attackers. To get on top of such issues the community is urged to make full use of our season ticker, which has been afforded an autumnal refresh to take recent form into account.
Chelsea’s fine upcoming run (WBA, sun, TOT, new, HUL, sto) has many Fantasy managers mulling over which Blues players to draft in. But Sinik wonders whether now may be a good time to cash in on Cesc Fabregas’s recent price rises and look elsewhere among their ranks. Eden Hazard has the potential to thrive but Eaglia remains unconvinced and believes his strong performances are still not being converted into solid Fantasy Football returns.
On numerous occasions, a change in system can be attributed as a key reason for some players’ failure to being in the points. However, in Giggs Boson’s tactics talk, he believes it’s far too simplistic to blame formations when players fail.
Among those to benefit from a team’s change in tactics is Leighton Baines, who, under manager Roberto Martinez, has been given considerable licence to attack down Everton’s left flank. In our latest round up of so-called ‘essential’ players Baines was a name mentioned time and again – Brian (not the messiah) is among his many fans and later in the week urged Baines owners to cling on to him for dear life. Another member of the Baines fan club is MJ6987, who placed the Everton defender on his list of the best four Fantasy assets.
Our biggest discussion this week was sparked by Bojan Is For Kinnear with the simple line “You know you’re a Fantasy Football addict when…”. Among the best replies was from TheHut who recounted the many times his question of ‘who got the assist’ is met with incredulity from fellow spectators.
Finally, a message from Bsloebadger also proved to be one of the most talked about hot topics this week. Concerned that people take too much heed in a person’s rank when receiving advice, he instead believes everyone’s advice is valid, whether highly or lowly ranked. The key criteria for giving and receiving advice should instead be politeness, he added.
The Members Tables
Manchester United is another team that have improved fixtures on the horizon. I’ve been taking a look at their attacking threat. Members are urged to sort this table by last two Gameweeks to see who has been the Red Devils’ most prolific shooters since their switch to a more defensive formation.
Sturridge’s imminent return prompted Doosra to carry out a temporary revamp of his Forward Foragers table, which takes a look at the strikers who excel at holding the ball and providing chances. This now focuses on last season’s statistics to give a better look at the Liverpool striker’s statistics.
Elsewhere, Guidinho has constructed a table to focus on full back potential, with a strong focus on crossing and creativity.
If you’re a member and are yet to get to grips with the custom statistics tables, you can view this movie for an explanation of how they work. Also, remember to tag them so that people can find the tables with ease.
The Community Leagues
In TorresMagic‘s Last Man Standing competition, 878 teams survived after 54 were eliminated when the safety score was set at 55.
In the Fantasy Football Scout moderators and contributors league Tinkerman has opened up a 22 lead on second placed Mark. With a rank of 79th overall, Tinkerman will be tough to catch.
Tinkerman has to settle for second in the Long and Winding Road main league behind league leader King Nil Miss, who is 18th overall.
Rasping Drive, who is 43rd overall, continues to dominate many of our other community leagues, topping the FFS Old Farts Club, FFS Dead Zone and The Puffinboy Memorial Cup.
