Todays lineup from Roberto Mancini will be eagerly anticipated. The markets are expecting a handsome win for City; Fantasy managers are expecting a flow of returns for City’s attacking players. The problem is, we’re unclear just who will be given the opportunity to fill their boots against the Royals. While David Silva seems secure enough, we’re unsure whether Carlos Tevez and Sergio Aguero – established as most people’s strongest City pairing – will both be given starts.
As we know by now, second-guessing the likes of Roberto Mancini and Sir Alex Ferguson is a thankless task. You can attempt to apply logic but there’s no assurances and, we shouldn’t forget that managers sometimes act without our perceived logic. They sometimes actually makes decisions that seem defy tactics and strategies; perhaps they even make mistakes.
While it could be futile, I’ve tried to apply some sense to the theory that Edin Dzeko has a decent chance of starting against Reading. We know that Manicini will rotate his forwards over the next three matches. He has stated that he will be forced to rotate his forward line over the Christmas period: when asked whether he knew his favoured pairing yesterday, he dismissed this and insisted that rotation was required regardless…
“When you play every three days, it’s impossible to play with the same player”
From this we can gather that both Mario Balotelli and Edin Dzeko will likely get one start over the next three Gameweeks. With Balotelli out of today’s clash with Reading, Mancini could stick with Carlos Tevez and Sergio Aguero but, arguably, he may look to preserve that partnership for the tricky Sunderland trip on Boxing Day.
By playing Dzeko today to help counter Reading’s set-piece threat, he’ll have Balotelli available and fresh for North East encounter to relieve Tevez and Aguero from the bench. That would bring a rested Dzeko back into the equation for the Carrow Road trip – where again, his height will be handy against a Norwich side who have shown strong set-piece threat of late. We know for a fact that Mancini values Dezko’s height defensively, he recently stated that he kept him on the field against Everton to counter Marouane Fellaini, so we can deduce that this could be a factor when selecting starts for the Bosnian.
That’s the logic but does Mancini really plan like this, or does he simply pick his best side against Reading, pocket the win and the confidence that a few goals could bring and then move on from there? The fact is, even when the City teamsheet is available, we’re never know the true thinking behind it. We’ll always be second-guessing.
Of course, for any of this to matter, Reading have to fulfill their role as whipping boys and perhaps we’re dismissing them far too early – we’re presuming that City will have themselves a duck shoot that will bring three or four goals and double figure returns. Brian McDermott’s side may just turn up with a 4-5-1 and frustrate; the big game against the Champions may just bring out the fight in them and deny us all the points that we’ve already banked.
Today brings a fascinating scenario then, one that can feed into the Fantasy footaball experience and bring out the best in the game we love. There is no need for me to gamble on Dzeko starting, or on Silva earning double figures. I could play safe and stick with my starting XI, with Robin Van Persie sporting the armband. The balance of risk vs reward is perfect, here. Four points can be tossed away in the hope that it comes back with profit or I can stick and hope that Reading frustrate, the City’s falter and Mancini’s lineup defies my logic.
These situations cut to the core and have you asking just what you want from playing Fantasy football. I’ve played safe before and regretted it, I’ve gambled before and probably regretted it more. Sometimes, however, I’ve found the disappointment suffered through inactivity and hesitation to be the worst of all but that’s a personal view; others may find great pleasure in denying themselves a gamble and reaping the rewards from sitting still.
Of course, I scanned the morning papers for some inspiration, some further evidence to help back up my proposed gamble. Notably, I’m not alone in thinking that Dzeko will earn a start. Both the Times and the Independent have the Bosnian in their predicted lineups – one with Tevez, the other with Aguero. That’s typical of the uncertainty on show, although it must be stressed that our four other papers go with the favoured Tevez/Aguero pairing.
Elsewhere, Juan Mata is tucked in behind Fernando Torres in every Chelsea lineup, similarly Theo Walcott starts up front in every source, with Bale on all the Spurs teamsheets on show. Raheem Sterling gets a rest in The Mail, The Telegraph and The Independent and, aside from the City stars, appears to be the only key Fantasy asset going into the weekend with his security of start in question. Even Jose Enrique offered us reassurance in the early hours of this morning, having witnessed the birth of his first child last night..
“Just arrive home from the hospital. Need a rest or tomorrow game. Happiest day ever hehehe. Good night”
We can presume he meant “Need a rest for tomorrow’s game”. Thanks for the update Jose and congratulations.
While Enrique’s expectations were met, it’s now Fantasy managers pacing the corridor waiting for a delivery. Roberto Mancini is hatching something, maybe something beautiful but why am I the one suffering the contractions?
