Wayne Rooney bags a brace in back-to-back gameweeks. Emmanuel Adebayor and Louis Saha run riot against Newcastle. Yakubu returns with a goal to help Blackburn record a vital win over QPR, Danny Graham and Grant Holt both notch doubles at the Liberty Stadium, while Steven Pienaar helps Everton see off Chelsea.
Wayne Rooney
A two-goal salvo at Old Trafford was enough to see off Liverpool and send United back to the top of the table. Rooney followed up last week’s spot-kick brace at Chelsea to take his goal tally to 17 for the season but this was the first time since Gameweek 17 he had scored from open play. Rooney has now returned double figures five times this season and, if he picks up the maximum bonus, will have averaged 7.6 points per game over his last eight starts. Encouraging news, then, for those Fantasy managers considering his acquisition, with United’s fixtures from Gameweek 28 onwards looking particularly enticing.
Ryan Giggs
With Nani and Ashley Young both missing out, the Welshman was afforded a role on the left flank. Giggs’ recent run of impressive returns continued- an assist yesterday means he has set up a United goal in each of his last four appearances, taking his total to 9 assists for the season, more than Nani’s 8. What’s most impressive about this stat is that Giggs has started just nine games for the champions, with eight appearances coming from the subs bench. Valencia also picked up an assist for his Fantasy owners-he now has 10 assists (all coming in his last 11 games), more than any United player.
Emmanuel Adebayor
We never saw this one coming. With a goal and assist in his previous ten gameweeks, the Tottenham forward had looked lethargic and offered little suggestion of what was to unfold last night. While Gareth Bale’s Fantasy owners settled for a 3 point return, Adebayor stole the show, playing a part in every one of Spurs’ 5 goals against Newcastle. A goal and 4 assists returned 18 points- his highest Fantasy haul of the season, with the maximum 3 likely to follow. With 10 goals and 11 assists, Adebayor has now had a hand in more goals than Bale (10 goals and 8 assists) and is second only to David Silva for assists, with the City playmaker on 13 for the season.
Louis Saha
With a single goal in 18 appearances for Everton this term, many had questioned the wisdom of Harry Redknapp when Spurs snapped the Frenchman up during the January transfer window. Playing in a free-flowing Tottenham team, Saha indicated he could be a different Fantasy prospect altogether. Afforded 66 minutes on his first start, he grabbed a double, in addition to providing an assist and, priced at 6.9 with 2.0% ownership, has the potential to be a mid-price differential. Saha, though, is very unlikely to retain his first-team start once Rafael Van der Vaart and Jermain Defoe are back to full fitness, though- factor in his dubious injury record and he is always likely to be no more than a huge punt.
Benoit Assou-Ekotto
A goal and clean sheet vindicated his Scout Picks selection, as the left-back returned a 12 point haul at the Lane. Assou-Ekotto is now the top-scoring Fantasy Premier League (FPL) defender, with 114 points, and has now picked up attacking returns in three of his last four home games. His price may have risen from 5.1 to 6.1 in the last eleven gameweeks, but with Spurs’ fixtures looking particularly enticing from Gameweek 28 onwards, still looks something of a bargain.
Danny Graham
A brace from the former Watford man wasn’t quite enough to stop his side slipping to only their second home defeat of the season. We had signposted Graham’s potential in the Gameweek 24 Digest, along with Gylfi Sigurdsson, and while the latter failed to fire, Graham took his goals tally to 10 for the season in the 3-2 home defeat to Norwich. He has now netted 10 times – the same number as the likes of Bale and Clint Dempsey and, priced at just 4.9, is now the top outfield player for “value” over the course of the season so far.
Grant Holt
With Steve Morison benched for the second game in a row, Holt was partnered by Simeon Jackson for the Liberty Stadium showdown. A double against Swansea means Holt is now Norwich’s top goalscorer this season, with 9 goals eclipsing Morison’s 8. Having been used mainly as a sub in the first few months of the campaign, Holt has now started nine of the Canaries’ last eleven matches and, priced at 5.0, looks a real alternative in a side that has failed to score just three times since Gameweek 6.
Anthony Pilkington
The left winger grabbed his seventh goal of the season yesterday- only Bale, Dempsey and Frank Lampard have netted more from midfield. Pilkington has now scored 3 times in his last six appearances and with six starts from the last seven, is proving to be a fundamental player in Paul Lambert’s first XI as the campaign unfolds. Priced at 5.1, he has now hit top spot for midfielders in terms of “value” and, with a total of 92 points, is the top-scoring FPL player for the Canaries.
James McClean
The winger’s remarkable season under Martin O’Neill shows no signs of abating. Left on the sidelines by Steve Bruce, the Irishman’s rise to prominence as a cut-price Fantasy asset continued yesterday, as he netted his side’s only goal in the 2-1 home defeat by Arsenal. While Stephane Sessegnon drew a rare blank, McClean once again produced for his Fantasy owners- he has now scored, assisted or picked up bonus in all but one of his seven games in the Sunderland first XI.
John Arne Riise
Dropped for last week’s trip to Man City, the left-back returned to the Fulham starting lineup for the visit of Stoke. Riise has been something of a huge disappointment in Fantasy terms thus far, but picked up his second assist of the season in the 2-1 win over the Potters, as Martin Jol’s side made it 5 wins and a draw in their last seven at the Cottage.
Clint Dempsey
Leader of this week’s Captain Poll, the American returned to a role on the left flank yesterday, much to the disappointment of his Fantasy owners. Dempsey, of course, had been playing in a more advanced role but with Pavel Pogrebnyak leading the line, Bryan Ruiz was chosen to tuck in behind the Russian. Pogrebnyak grabbed the opener on his debut, with Dempsey still managing an assist for Thomas Sorensen’s own goal- in a week that has been majorly disappointing for so many of us, this may well prove to be a decent return.
Ryan Shawcross
With Stoke on the verge of two home games against Swansea and Norwich, Shawcross served a reminder of his Fantasy potential. The centre-half netted his side’s consolation at the Cottage, picking up a 7 point haul, and with Robert Huth suspended for the first of those aforementioned fixtures, Shawcross’ 16% of Fantasy owners could well be set to increase as a result of yesterday’s display. With a single clean sheet in his last eight at the Britannia, though, he may have to continue his attacking returns if any faith is to be justified.
Steven Pienaar
A loan return to his former club has brought the South African back onto our radars. In his first game at Goodison since arriving from Spurs, Pienaar grabbed a goal and produced a lively left wing display to justify David Moyes’ decision to bring him back to Merseyside. The Toffees 2-0 win saw them score more than a single goal since Gameweek 13 and extend their unbeaten record to five games, with back-to-back home wins over Man City and Chelsea indicative of their recent form.
Jean Beausejour
The Chilean lived up to his billing in yesterday morning’s “Spot the Differential” article, helping Wigan to their first win since Gameweek 15, with a 2-1 win at Bolton. Beausejour is wasting little time in settling into the Latics first XI- yesterday’s assist for Gary Caldwell’s opener was his second in the last couple of gameweeks and, with (AVL, SWA, nor, WBA) to follow, is offering decent value at 5.0. Not to be outdone, Victor Moses also provided an assist in the crucial victory, setting up James McArthur for the winner. He’s now picked up 2 goals and 4 assists this term but, despite those decent fixtures, Fantasy managers will continue to be wary, given that all those returns have been produced on the road.
Mark Davies
The Bolton midfielder continues to flourish in his role behind lone forward David N’Gog. Davies’ equaliser was his second in the last three home games and with (QPR, BLA, FUL) up next at the Reebok, looks a decent cut-price punt, at just 4.8. With Bolton now facing trips to Chelsea and City, though, his immediate Fantasy returns look likely to be limited.
Jamie Mackie
With Chris Samba and Gael Givet missing for Blackburn, Bobby Zamora was the focus of plenty Fantasy attention. Over 24,000 transferred in the former Fulham man prior to the Ewood Park showdown, but he was overshadowed by forgotten man Mackie. On as a second half sub with less than half an hour left, the Scot grabbed a brace for Mark Hughes’ side as they unsuccessfully attempted to overcome a three-goal first-half deficit. With Hughes fielding a 4-2-3-1 yesterday, Mackie may struggle to earn a start, in spite of his goalscoring exploits.
Adel Taarabt
Playing in the hole behind Zamora, the Moroccan -similar to last week’s display against Wolves- once again stood out. Taarabt fired off a host of shots and, creating plenty of chances, was rewarded with an assist- his first attacking points of the season. With two games still left of Djibril Cisse’s suspension, Taarabt could well continue in the role and, with home games against Fulham and Everton up next, is sure to be key if QPR are to climb the table. It’s also worth noting that Armand Traore was afforded a role on the left of the attacking midfield three, and may well prove to be an out-of-position option over the next couple of games.
Yakubu
Back after his three-match suspension, the Nigerian required just 14 minutes before returning to goalscoring ways as Rovers secured a vital three points. This was his thirteenth of the season and, having netted twice in wins over Arsenal and Man United, Yakubu’s goals look likely to be the difference between safety and a drop to the Championship. With games against Villa, Wolves and Bolton in the next five, his contribution will be crucial. Steven Nzonzi looks another key player for Steve Kean. With Jason Lowe alongside him, the midfielder produced his most effective Fantasy performance of the season yesterday, with a goal and assist helping him to a 10 point haul.
