Santi Cazorla runs riot with a hat-trick and assist as Arsenal hit Reading for five. Theo Walcott celebrates his first start up front with a goal, and Lukas Podolski produces his biggest haul for the season as Reading’s defensive disasters show little sign of abating…
Cazorla Delivers a Masterclass
With just a single assist in his previous four, Santi Cazorla had somewhat stuttered heading into last night’s match but the former Malaga man unleashed a devastating display against Reading as the visitors recovered from their shock cup exit at Bradford. Three goals and an assist earned the Spaniard a 23 point haul and, with maximum bonus included, he’s sitting on 105 Fantasy Premier League (FPL) points – second only to Michu for midfielders and joint third overall, with Robin Van Persie the only other player to better his score. Yesterday’s news that Marouane Fellaini is set to be banned for the next three will see plenty Fantasy managers shopping for a new midfielder and Cazorla’s brilliance is surely set to see his 21% ownership rise further. With a strong set of fixtures to follow (wig, WHM, NEW, sou) the potential for points looks particularly enticing – with Wigan having shipped at least two goals in each of their last seven, the bandwagon looks likely to be in overdrive before Saturday’s deadline, though the Gunners are expected to announce later today whether their Boxing Day match with West Ham will go ahead in light of the tube strike – a postponement would make many think twice over Arsenal’s assets in the short-term.
Theo Up Front
He’s made no secret of his desire to move to a central role and last night Theo Walcott finally got his wish. Having recovered from a calf injury, Walcott propelled himself onto Fantasy radars by bagging the Gunners’ fifth in a rout at the Madejski and, at 8.5 in FPL, offers a possible option to Fellaini owners who can’t quite afford premium priced options such as Cazorla. Walcott’s pace up top could well prove beneficial to the likes of Cazorla, forcing opposition defences to drop deeper, thus allowing more space for the Gunners midfield to operate in further up the park. Certainly, it’s an alternative to the more laborious Olivier Giroud – the Frenchman had started nine of the last 10 but has produced just four goals and an assist over 1098 minutes so far; Walcott, by comparison, has returned five goals and four assists in just 686 minutes. On last night’s showing (and with Walcott still yet to pen a new deal) it seems highly likely that Wenger will keep things as they are next Saturday lunchtime. Wenger had this to say on Walcott’s showing, post-match…
“If you look at my statements two years ago, I said he will play in the middle. I think slowly it became his idea as well. I felt it was a good opportunity to do it tonight. On what I’ve seen in training, I thought he was ready to do it…I made my decision to play Theo through the middle based on training. He has shown ability in that position, the timing of his movements, and for his first game he did very well. The signs are very encouraging with Theo.”
When questioned whether Walcott would remain in the striker’s role, however, he remained suitably vague…
“I don’t know yet. It’s too early to say that just after the game.”
Podolski in the Points
While Cazorla stole the show and Walcott’s out of position prospects also caught the attention of Fantasy managers, Lukas Podolski helped himself to a 14 point haul against the Royals. The German international seems to have benefitted from a recent couple of first-team omissions –Wenger had left Podolski out the starting line-up in two of the previous three due to concerns over fatigue and his decision was entirely vindicated last night as the former Cologne man grabbed a goal and pair of assists, his best return of the season. With five goals and five assists, 8.2 priced Podolski has now moved up to 74 FPL points pre-bonus – that’s only three less than the likes of Steven Fletcher, for example, and with the festive schedule smiling kindly, he could well be set to continue his climb up the rankings.
Royals Defensive Woes
Brian McDermott may be reassessing his decision to continue with a 4-4-2 after last night’s home hammering. The Reading manager’s decision to draft in Kaspars Gorkss made little difference as Arsenal romped into a three-goal lead before the break, though a move to 4-5-1 after the interval allowed the hosts to salvage some pride and gives McDermott food for thought heading into Saturday’s visit to the Etihad. Having shipped 12 goals in their last four, the Royals’ dire defence looks set to persuade plenty Fantasy managers to draft in City’s attacking assets, with the champions seemingly set for a prosperous upcoming weekend. Post-match, McDermott was in a determined mood and left us with no doubt that he’s targeting defensive improvement…
“We’ve played Man Utd and scored three, we’ve got another two tonight, three against Fulham, we’re scoring goals so it’s obvious where we need to sort out our team. It’s another game with seven goals at Madejski Stadium and we want those goals to be in our favour.”
Whether he can achieve results ahead of the trip to City is another matter. Roberto Mancini’s side will be looking to boost their goals for column having struggled to reach the heights of last season in this area. For Fantasy managers, the trick is anticipating which City players will get the opportunity to take part in a potential duck shoot against the Royals.
