The Digest – Gameweek 8

Southampton’s display at Stamford Bridge serves notice of their potential ahead of some kind upcoming fixtures. Meanwhile, Sergio Aguero and Alexis Sanchez’ simultaneous return to form turns the Fantasy landscape on its head.

The Player

A five-goal blitz in just 20 minutes against Newcastle last Saturday served a telling reminder of Sergio Aguero’s talents as the Argentine cast aside his early-season toils emphatically.

There’s no doubt that Aguero had tested our collective patience. At a time where many mid-price frontman were flourishing, the City striker’s single goal and assist over the first seven Gameweeks were a major concern.

You only had to look at the underlying stats for reassurance, though. Between Gameweek 1-7, he was firing an effort every 19.7 minutes – almost on a par with last year’s 17.9 minutes per shot. Even his frequency of key passes (82.2 minutes compared to 80.1) was more or less identical.

Whereas last term, he netted 17.6% of his efforts on his way to 26 goals and ten assists, Aguero had scored just 4% of his shots before Steve McClaren’s boys paid visit last weekend, spurning all but one of his previous 25 attempts.

There were hints this was coming, though. Three goals and four assists over the previous international break for Argentina. Eight attempts and a late winner in City’s midweek Champions League win in Wolfsburg. Aguero was getting the chances.

In a season that’s proven unpredictable, Saturday’s 50-point armband haul shows just why Aguero is the one real must-have frontman for most Fantasy managers around these parts. With Bournemouth, Norwich and Villa in the next four Gameweeks alone, the bandwagon is in full flow as those who’d braved the Magpies match without him scramble for a belated piece of the action.

The Team

A 3-1 win over Chelsea at the Bridge heaped further pressure on Jose Mourinho as the Saints moved into the top half of the table for the first time this term.

After a slow start, blighted by a number of first-team departures over the summer, Ronald Koeman’s side have finally settled into their groove. The St Mary’s outfit have racked up eight goals in the last three matches, which also includes clashes with Swansea and Man United, and look well-stocked with form options to consider. Impressively, Graziano Pelle has played a part in ten (five goals, five assists) of their 13 goals for the season, whilst Sadio Mane’s two goals and five assists in four starts perhaps gives him the edge over Dusan Tadic in the centre of the park.

At the back, the return of Ryan Bertrand and addition of Virgil van Dijk has helped Koeman’s men rediscover the resilience which saw them concede just 33 times last term. Aside from their 3-2 reverse at home to United in Gameweek 6, Southampton have conceded a combined total of two goals in five of the last six Gameweeks – both came from dead-ball situations, a Gylfi Sigurdsson penalty and Willian free-kick.

Encouragingly, the about-turn in form arrives at a time when the fixtures smile very kindly on the Saints. Over the next eight Gameweeks, Koeman’s side are afforded four eye-catching home clashes (LEI, BOU, STO, AVL) and also travel to Sunderland and Palace. Investment at both ends of the pitch could well pay off, then, as they look build momentum on the back of their Chelsea destruction.

The Talking Point

Aguero’s return to scoring form arrives at a time where Alexis Sanchez has also banished his own barren run to rack up the goals for Arsenal. The Chilean followed up last week’s hat-trick at Leicester with a brace against United to soar up the Fantasy standings after a similarly sluggish start to 2015/16.

Taking the midweek Champions League matches into consideration, the South American duo have scored six times apiece in their last three appearances. Few, if any, top-flight talents can match that explosive potential and it’s fair to say that their recent resurgence has shaken up the Fantasy landscape.

Those who filled their 15-man squads with mid-price and budget form players, thus choosing to ignore one or both of Aguero and Sanchez, now face a major restructuring program if they are to bring the pair on board. Indeed, it’s no real surprise that the duo lead the way for transfers-in this week in the FPL game.

In this most unpredictable of seasons, there’s a reassuring sense of normality settling in once again. Those who have steadfastly held onto both and kept faith in the underlying numbers have been finally rewarded – it’s perhaps no coincidence that this recent turnaround has helped the Fantasy Football Scout leagues climb the leaderboards, an indication of our community’s faith in the big hitters.

Yes, it’s a belated victory for the so-called “template” approach. A triumph that’s been somewhat tainted by those preceding weeks of frustration and uncertainty but we’ll take it anyway. After suffering for the first two months, you could almost say we deserve it.