Our first End of Season poll is rolled out this afternoon as the Fantasy Football Scout awards gets underway. First of all we focus on the goalkeepers, where the poll will be available on the middle column of the home page before we turn our attentions to defence. Bear in mind that the vote is from an overall Fantasy perspective – overall points, price, performances and Fantasy Premier League (FPL) value should all come into consideration here:
When assessing the options, we’ve opted for a couple of costly keepers here as a result of the number of injuries that have blighted some of the regular custodians. The likes of Tim Krul and Michel Vorm – both strong picks in the previous campaign – have spent plenty time in the treatment room this time out, as has John Ruddy. The Norwich keeper returned to action last week after being sidelined since Gameweek 13 with a thigh injury and immediately helped his side to their first clean sheet in eight attempts. Given that Chris Hughton’s side have registered seven of their nine clean sheets at home, Ruddy looks an enticing shout as part of a rotation pairing next season and will hopefully remain as a budget option due to his time spent on the sidelines. Both Krul and Vorm started this season at 5.5 but could also arrive on radars once again if FPL lower their respective costs for the 2013/14 campaign. For just now, though, here’s our five candidates for your consideration…
Jussi Jaaskelainen
With a single round of matches remaining, the West Ham stopper is the top value player in the FPL game. Starting the season with a 4.5 price tag, Jaaskelainen was quick out the blocks and with three clean sheets in the first four Gameweeks, the bandwagon was an instant one. As the season unfolded, the Hammers have been all too reliant on the Finnish stopper’s heroics between the sticks – an outstanding 153 saves has played a significant part in bolstering his tally and has helped him accrue extra save points in 25 of the first 37 Gameweeks.
Jaaskelainen has now registered 11 clean sheets for the season and, having climbed to 5.2 in price racked, has racked up 142 points – second only to Joe Hart in the keeper standings and more than any Hammers player in their successful return to the top-flight.
Simon Mignolet
On many occasions, the Belgian has prevented Sunderland from a battering this term. The Black Cats may teeter on the brink of relegation but Mignolet can surely be exempt from criticism in a season populated by several underwhelming displays from the Wearsiders. Starting the season at 5.0, Mignolet has registered 11 clean sheets – the same number as last term – but has registered 145 saves in comparison to a tally of 91 from the 2011/12 campaign.
A security of starts, allied with the classification of Danny Rose and Craig Gardner as midfielders in FPL, has limited the Fantasy options at the back for Sunderland but Mignolet stands head and shoulders above any defensive team mate. With 135 points to his name, he’s 22 ahead of John O’Shea and currently sits in fifth spot in the keeper standings ahead of Sunday’s tricky trip to Tottenham.
Asmir Begovic
It’s been a Fantasy season of two halves for the Stoke stopper. For the first few months of the campaign, Begovic was simply outstanding – the opening 18 Gameweeks harvested nine clean sheets for the Potters, with a mere 13 goals conceded highlighting their resilient rearguard displays. Priced at 4.5 back in August, Begovic’s heroics proved highly persuasive for Fantasy managers and by the time Gameweek 19 arrived, he’d risen as high as 5.7, only to embark on a run of 11 matches without a clean sheet as Tony Pulis’ side suddenly capitulated at the back.
In recent weeks, the Stoke boss has somewhat steered the ship to settled waters and with a further three clean sheets, in addition to a total of 111 saves and eight bonus points (more than any keeper), Begovic sits in third spot in the goalkeeper standings on 140 points and top for Stoke, edging out Jon Walters’ 139 points with a trip to Southampton to see out the season.
Joe Hart
The City stopper has played from start to finish in all 36 of their league games so far ahead of this evening’s encounter with Reading. Hart has a seven point lead over Jaaskelainen at the top of the keeper standings thanks to 17 clean sheets – mirroring his total from 2011/12 and just one less than his best ever haul for the Manchester club.
Although City have toiled up front, Hart has been better protected than ever by his back-four and has made just 67 saves, though; significantly less than last term’s 99 with two fixtures left to play. Having offered a hassle-free route into the tightest defence in the top-flight, he has outscored Pablo Zabaleta, City’s highest ranked defender, by 26 points, and despite the Argentine’s attacking potential from deep, Hart has more or less equalled his points per game, with 4.1 to the right-back’s 4.2.
Initially priced at 7.0, Hart’s premium price means he is always likely to be overlooked for cheap rotation pairings at the back but despite the fact that his score of 149 points is down on his previous couple of campaigns (166 and 175 points), he has racked up more points that all but two defenders in the FPL game – perhaps adding weight to the argument that a one-stop keeper has its merits.
David De Gea
After a dubious first few months of the season, the young Spaniard finally established himself as United’s first-choice keeper. Initially, it hadn’t looked promising. By early December, De Gea had managed just seven starts and a single clean sheet in United’s first 15 fixtures as Sir Alex Ferguson alternated him with Anders Lindegaard between the sticks.
From Gameweek 16 onwards, however, he has nailed down a regular role and missed just one more league match. Having dropped to 5.5 from an initial cost of 6.0, De Gea offered a constant source of points into a backline that improved as the season unfolded – the highlight being a run of seven clean sheets in eight between Gameweeks 25 and 33 as United tightened up at the back and moved away from the chasing pack. Currently sitting on 114 points, with a total of 11 clean sheets, De Gea has outscored all but Patrice Evra at the back for the champions, with 89 saves also helping his rack up the points.
