The first midlands derby of the season finishes all square as Darren Bent climbs off the bench to clinch a point for Villa. Shane Long returns to the West Brom first XI to grab the opener as the Baggies sit sixth after six Gameweeks under Steve Clarke:
Shane Long
Having been dropped for the previous match against Reading, Long’s return to the West Brom first XI was something of a surprise given that his replacement last weekend, Romelu Lukaku, has notched the only goal of the game against the Royals. The Irishman vindicated Steve Clarke’s decision, though, by firing home the opener at Villa Park and with three home games (QPR, MCY, SOT) and a trip to Wigan in the next five, could continue to plunder the points if he gets the nod over the Belgian again. Indeed, Long has produced attacking returns in all of his home matches so far and despite Peter Odemwingie’s return from suspension, looks in the driving seat to continue – he has now started five of the Baggies six matches so far. Lukaku continues to be utilised as an impact; he has now climbed off the bench in five of the first six, a real frustration for Fantasy managers eying up the giant Belgian.
The West Brom Defence
Fantasy managers will be keenly awaiting any injury updates from the Hawthorns ahead of the aforementioned upcoming schedule. West Brom have produced clean sheets in all three of their home matches so far but yesterday saw Clarke’s first-choice full-backs, Liam Ridgewell and Steven Reid, miss out with calf and hamstring problems respectively. Gareth McAuley picked up a knock but stayed on the pitch as Clarke had made all three substitutions – while this suggests his problem can’t be too severe, the commentators admitted the centre-half was noticeably struggling. Elsewhere in the backline, Billy Jones – standing in for Reid at right-back – also picked up a problem and was subbed off on 46 minutes as the injuries at the back begin to rack up for the midlanders.
James Morrison
The Scot was rested for the midweek Capital One Cup defeat at home to Liverpool, having limped out of last week’s Reading match with a leg problem. Morrison returned to his role in “the hole” yesterday, tucking in behind Long in the Baggies 4-2-3-1 formation and, after a blank run over the previous three Gameweeks, returned to form by providing the assist for his side’s early strike. He’s now played a part in three of West Brom’s eight goals so far and priced at just 6.0 in FPL, continues to offer a decent mid-priced midfield differential as the season unfolds. With Chris Brunt succumbing to a hamstring problem once again yesterday, Morrison looks the obvious route into the Baggies midfield ahead of the above-mentioned run of fixtures.
Darren Bent
Paul Lambert sprung a major surprise with yesterday’s team sheet, as Bent dropped to the bench for the first time this season. The midweek display of Gabby Agbonlahor played a major part in the Villa manager’s thinking; having grabbed a double in the Capital One Cup win over City, the forward was handed a role alongside Christian Benteke up top. Bent had previously played every minute of Villa’s league campaign and had notched a goal and assist in the last two Gameweeks – climbing off the bench for Benteke with 23 minutes remaining, he saved the day for the hosts with a crucial equaliser. While both Benteke and Brett Holman (playing at the tip of a midfield diamond) offered plenty goal threat, Agbonlahor failed to register a single effort all game – Bent’s almost instant contribution will surely serve Lambert a reminder that he simply cannot afford to overlook his goal-getting abilities if the midlanders are to flourish this term.
Post-match, the Villa boss played down rumours of a rift between the pair. Bent has also recently been stripped of the club captaincy but Lambert denied the forward was upset at his omission from yesterday’s starting line-up:
“No, he was great. There was no problem. I just named the team and that’s the team I picked. I need everyone, it’s a collective thing, I never look at individuals. The goal was brilliant, it was a world-class finish. He was fine at full-time. I spoke to him in the dressing room as well. He was totally fine, totally, no problem, none. Everyone is as important as anyone else. I explained the captaincy thing was to do what he did there – to score. That’s the only reason I did it.”
Ciaran Clark
The Villa centre-half is proving to be a real FPL bonus magnet; a single point for yesterday’s assist means he has now produced six bonus in the last four Gameweeks. After a dire first couple of matches, Clark is beginning to look an intriguing cut-price prospect at the back – he has now averaged 5.5 points over the last four fixtures, with a goal and clean sheet also accrued. Looking at the upcoming schedule, though, it’s unlikely we’ll be targeting any of Lambert’s assets; aside from a home clash against Norwich in Gameweek 9, the midlanders are now facing a horrendous run which only begins to ease up from Gameweek 14 onwards.
