The community can’t get enough of Manchester City attackers following their 7-2 rout of Stoke last weekend.
Our Hot topic posters consider how to cram in as many Sky Blues options as possible, while also finding time to lament Harry Kane’s failing “home” form at Wembley in the league.
The introduction of expected goal and assist information to our Members area has kept our statistical experts busy, while our community writers have been canvassing “the crowd” for their Gameweek 9 predictions.
We finish off with a look at those who have already invested heavily in Pep Guardiola’s troops to claim top spots in our community leagues.
The Community Articles
Hutch_James‘ latest polling of the crowd indicates Gameweek 9 could be another strong week for those investing in Manchester City’s assets. Over the weekend Manchester United and Chelsea are also predicted to fly, according to mass opinion.
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.
The Hottest Topics
The chief lesson learned from Gameweek 8 was undeniably that Manchester City attackers just can’t be ignored.
During their hammering of Stoke last Saturday, Gabriel Jesus, Raheem Sterling and Leroy Sane all netted double-digit returns. Kevin De Bruyne and David Silva were not far behind with nine and seven points respectively.
But, ahead of a continuing fine run of fixtures – including the visit from Burnley this weekend – many are wondering how they can best maximise the strong scoring potential of Pep Guardiola’s assets.
For Kysersosa, a shift from the on-trend three-man midfield to playing four or even five in the centre of the park looks key to success.
Meanwhile, Rossenero recommends spreading value throughout the positions to give greater flexibility to swiftly leap aboard emerging bandwagons, such as City’s stars.
There is also a free hit chip to use, which, according to Dirty Sanchez, could come in handy to tap into Manchester United’s obliging away game to Huddersfield amid a tricky run for the Red Devils.
Another hard lesson learned by some of those responding to our rough with the smooth round-up was that Harry Kane looks untrustworthy as a Captain at Wembley on current form.
With no attacking returns at Spurs’ temporary home and a tough run of opponents ahead, including trips to Manchester United and Arsenal in the next four, Awesome-o is wondering whether the Spurs talisman can be safely jettisoned.
Ode is also concerned about Kane’s form and points out that the London side can struggle against teams that “park the bus” in defence.
Syd is another to question Kane’s place in our teams given his woeful “home” form.
There is some crumb of comfort though regarding Kane from Son Ali Kane Wait. According to his analysis of Spurs’ midweek 1-1 Champions League draw with Real Madrid at the Bernabeu, the England striker looked impressive and it would be a brave or perhaps foolhardy Fantasy manager who ushered him out.
The age-old argument of “form versus fixture” is being put to the test this week ahead of Chelsea’s home tie with Watford. While this was once a strong match-up, Antonio Conte’s side go into the weekend in poor form, having lost to Crystal Palace last weekend in the league and letting a lead against Roma slip away on Wednesday night in the Champions League. Watford meanwhile, remain unbeaten on their travels.
We canvassed your views on how best to deal with Chelsea assets, particularly as their long-term fixtures are also compelling. Blues striker Alvaro Morata looks a good investment, according to French Gooner‘s analysis of the best forwards over the next four Gameweeks.
Sticking with Chelsea, Cok3y5smurf says the lack of attacking returns from wing-back Marcos Alonso since Gameweek 2 proves he cannot be viewed as a 7.0 midfielder, as many have this season. He added to this discussion later in the week with a comparison between the Spaniard and the Premier League’s most creative midfield options.
However, Doosra’s latest fixture difficulty statistics, posted via G-Whizz, suggest that the Hornets clash may see a turnaround in Chelsea’s fortunes.
The schedule is also important when considering Manchester United options, with their lacklustre attacking display against Liverpool jarring with an array of swashbuckling performances against easier sides over the first seven Gameweeks.
Ahead of a testing schedule for Jose Mourinho’s troops – including encounters with Spurs and Chelsea in the next four – Team Cruel also points out that Red Devils striker Romelu Lukaku has a particularly poor track record against bigger sides.
This week saw the addition of expected goal (xG) and expected assist (xA) statistics in our Members area, to give an added insight into the quality of shooting and key passing. Ludo is among those to welcome their inclusion in our array of statistics and offered some top tips on getting the most out of them.
Finally, Goonermeister asked for your biggest blunders so far. For many, swerving Manchester City options has been a big mistake.
To view all our discussions please visit our Hot Topics page.
The Members Tables
The addition of xG and xA statistics has also been keeping our table constructors in the Members area busy as they get to grips with these useful indicators of future success.
Based on the new array of statistics, I’ve been taking a look at underperforming and over-performing teams and players, while BabyB has been combining xG data with goal attempt figures to unearth the best attacking options.
In addition The Biker Yogi has been gathering the new information together in his Table of Xs.
My new tables this week also include a look at mid-price midfielders under 7m, while hurrr has also been searching for value in the centre of the park.
Elsewhere, watp73 has specifically been focusing on Manchester City options in midfield and r7 has been tracking the Premier League’s worst and best defences.
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 Tournaments
PDM is the new leader of Red Lightning’s Top 10k Any Season mini-league and retains the lead in his own Top 1k Any Season league, as well as the FFS Old Farts Club.
Elswewhere, Damir TeNay still leads the main FFS league and is now up to fourth overall without using any chips, unlike the three above him.
The FFS Members League has a new leader, with Gert Smalberger reaching the summit with an impressive score of 79 in Gameweek 8.
FC Lackless has leapt to top spot in QPR Utd’s FFS Frequent Summer Posters league, with Zoumas Bloomers in hot pursuit.
In Heels over Head’s R U Smarter than 10K Club, for those who have never finished higher than this impressive ranking milestone, Brother Beaters is the current leader.
The next stage in the Community Watch tournament gets underway tonight. AA33‘s latest article from the organising committee looks back at the key events from the last set of fixtures as well as previewing Matchday 3’s most enticing encounters.
Finally, @ocprodigy provided an update from his Scout Picks Challenge contest.
If you are running a community tournament and would like the latest scores included in future Community Round-ups, please email us summary of the current leaders and a link to your league, spreadsheet or head to head competition, at jonty@fantasyfootballscout.co.uk.
