This is a novelty. For once, we’re not spending our Saturday morning stroll with furrowed brows, riddled with doubt over the Man City teamsheet. After last week’s debacle, Roberto Mancini will be lucky if we talk to him again for a good while, let alone waste our energy worrying about his selection whims.
Instead we can enjoy this week’s little meander. Have a few chats with the press and get their views on some of the less pressing issues facing us Fantasy managers…
Scanning our sources this morning, things look pretty settled. For starters, the press seem in agreement that both Ashley Young and Nani will turn out on either flank for United when the Baggies pull up at Old Trafford. Danny Welbeck is expected to get the nod up front with Rooney and Paul Scholes looks ripe for a recall to the midfield. All our papers seem to align on those statements and the back four looks settled too, with Rio Ferdinand tipped for a recall. The Independent are the only ones to toy with the lineup – they have Phil Jones alongside Jonny Evans, with Rafael at right-back.
Down in London, there’s a strong feeling that Roberto Di Matteo’s experiment with the formation in the FA Cup win over Birmingham was just that – an experiment. The overwhelming view is that both Daniel Sturridge and Frank Lampard will be restored to the side for the visit of Stoke to the Bridge. A 4-3-3 is put forward, with Juan Mata back on the left of the lone striker. Fernando Torres is tipped to hold his starting role as that striker. At the back, there’s a swell of opinion supporting a John Terry recall, with Gary Cahill the favourite to make way – the Independent, the Telegraph and the Sun all have Terry returning alongside David Luiz.
Steven Gerrard is expected to be in the Liverpool lineup at Sunderland for their first fixture of the Gameweek. We’re seeing various formations in place from the press boys, with both Andy Carroll and Dirk Kuyt suggested as partners for Luis Suarez when a 4-4-2 is favoured. Gerrard remains a constant though – he’s present in every lineup.
Everton’s first teamsheet of the double Gameweek for the clash with Spurs draws various different configurations – the Daily Mail, not for the first time, are out on their own here. They go with a 4-4-2, with Nikac Jelavic handed a start alongside Denis Stracqualursi. Elsewhere, the opinion is that Jelavic will have to wait for his first start – Stracqualursi has the nod across the other press, with Tim Cahill again predicted to start in the support role. Significantly, like Gerrard for Liverpool, Royston Drenthe finds a start in all of this morning’s lineup predictions.
While Louis Saha rears his head in plenty of the Spurs lineups – presumably because news of David Moyes’ agreement with Harry Redknapp hadn’t filtered through, spare a thought for the Telegraph. They seem blissfully unaware that Landon Donovan has returned to the US and have him in their Everton lineup against Spurs. They made David Moyes’ morning there, just a few seconds.
While that error raised a knowing smile, the prize for the pre-amble’s “Do they know something we don’t?” award is hotly contested this week. Two of our papers surprise us by opting to drop Stefan Savic in the City lineup for the trip to the Liberty Stadium – in both cases, in the Mail and the Independent, it’s Jolean Lescott who makes way. Personally, I’d be astonished if Mancini took a gamble on Savic in the absence of Vincent Kompany but there was talk of a groin problem, played down by Roberto Mancini following the midweek Europa League defeat. A pinch of salt required, or was Lescott’s knock more significant?
The Independent also throw us a curveball with something slightly more credible. They are the only paper this morning proposing a start for Ben Arfa in the support role behind Demba Ba at the Emirates. Given that Alan Pardew’s side were thrashed the last time they visited North London at Spurs, this may well be a good shout. Papiss Cisse dropped to the bench then? Not as crazy as it sounds after a disappointing Tyne-Wear derby showing.
