The recent performances of Micah Richards have seen an upturn in Fantasy ownership, with the Man City right-back now second only to Ryan Taylor for top-scoring defenders. A return of 54 points, compared to Vincent Kompany’s 42, has suggested he may well be the defender of choice for those considering investment in the Man City back-four.
Roberto Mancini’s team selection for City’s league games has clearly helped Richards’ prospects. As Fabio Capello continues to ignore Richards as a viable defensive alternative for the England set-up, Mancini’s thinking seems similar- only once has he selected the player for European competition, preferring Pablo Zabaleta as his first-choice right-back for Champions League affairs.
While most of the City squad is prone to rotation, Richards has played eleven of their twelve games to date, with ten of those appearances coming from the start. A look at the other City full-backs shows Gael Clichy on 8 starts, Aleksandar Kolarov on 4, with Zabaleta selected only twice for domestic matters. It’s becoming obvious as the season unfolds that Richards’ power down the flank is certainly perceived as more beneficial to City’s league campaign by his manager.
We take a look at his season to date, compared with last time round, to ascertain just why there’s been such an improvement in Richards as a Fantasy proposition:
