Our Differentials have a distinctly retro feel this week. All three are on the wrong side of thirty but with the added motivation of a new contract to play for or a new manager to impress, each is currently going through a purple patch of form that’s brought them to the attention of the Scout Selection Committee..
We’re going through a bit of a revival of our own recently and, after last week’s Differentials almost outscored my entire FPL team, we’re hoping for another bumper return from this week’s picks.
Tomas Rosicky
Arsenal’s Renaissance man Tomas Rosicky epitomises the recent upturn in his club’s fortunes; after spending 20 months out with a tendon problem, it was feared that Rosicky would never return to the same level of old but the Czech schemer has been back to his glorious best in recent games. Despite managing just 15 starts all season, he has begun the last seven in a row and played a pivotal role in victories over Spurs, Liverpool and Milan. With another crucial game against Newcastle up next, Arsene Wenger will be looking to the 31 year old to produce another strong performance to ensure the Gunners’ momentum remains unchecked.
With Arsenal seemingly scoring at will at the moment, choosing another attacking option in addition to their imperial front man looks like a smart ploy. This week’s Scout Pick Theo Walcott is probably the best option available but priced at 8.9, the fleet footed winger will be beyond the budget of most Fantasy managers. The other main contender, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, offers plenty of potential but has the likes of Gervinho and Yossi Benayoun as rivals for the left flank role. Rosicky’s place looks a lot more secure, on the other hand and, with two goals in his last three games, still offers a decent attacking threat for the budget price of just 5.7.
Bobby Zamora
QPR are starting to look a much improved side of late there are plenty of decent differential options in their ranks; Adel Taraabt tops the ICT index for midfielders in recent weeks, Akos Buszaky looked a constant threat against Everton last time out and Djibril Cisse also returns from suspension this weekend. Despite the strong alternatives, we’ve opted for new January signing Bobby Zamora, after another excellent performance last weekend saw the ex-Fulham star score and pick up the maximum bonus to add to his already impressive record in recent weeks.
Last week’s haul takes his recent tally to 4 goals, 3 assists and 8 bonus points in his last seven games for an average of 6.7 points per game – to add a little perspective, that’s more than Emmanuel Adebayor, Wayne Rooney and Sergio Aguero have managed over the same period, making a mockery of his 6.7 valuation in the FPL game. Granted, 17 of those points came against Newcastle while playing for Fulham, but QPR look more than capable of finding the net and his move across London hasn’t slowed him down. Zamora’s strong hold up play is the perfect foil for a side bursting with pace and creativity in Cisse, Shaun Wright Philips and Taraabt, and he looks good to provide a steady stream of goals and assists over the coming weeks, despite the relatively difficult fixtures coming up.
Carlos Cuellar
With Vincent Kompany expected to miss Man City’s next couple of games, the masses will no doubt be looking at Liverpool’s double gameweek when considering a possible replacement. Before diving in, however, it would be well worth checking out Aston Villa’s defensive options. With Richard Dunne out of action for at least another month, Carlos Cuellar looks set for a continued run of starts at centre half alongside James Collins and, while both defenders have picked up bonus points in their last two games, the Spaniard has scooped the maximum in both matches as well as an assist, and looks by far the better value of the two, at 4.9 in the FPL game.
From a defensive perspective, Villa’s next two fixtures look as good as they come; in stark contrast to their free scoring home form, Fulham have managed just eight goals on their travels all season, and Bolton have only found the net once in their last five. All the signs points to a profitable period for Villa defenders and with ownership of just 0.1%, Cuellar would be a great differential.
