Our series of pre-season “Sleeper” articles, focussing on those players who performed well below our expectations in the previous campaign, begins with the Newcastle keeper, Tim Krul. Having afforded us a route into one of the most resilient defences in the Premier League back in 2011/12, the Dutchman suffered an injury-strewn campaign as Alan Pardew’s side finished just five points clear of relegation.
A nailed-on option for the Magpies, Krul had played every minute of 2011/12 and supplemented his tally 15 clean sheets with 114 saves as Pardew’s side clinched fifth spot. His heroics between the sticks forced his valuation up, however; in the Fantasy Premier League (FPL) game, Krul moved to 5.5 and with the majority of Fantasy managers on the lookout for cheap rotating keepers, he slipped off many a radar.
In an injury-hit season, the Newcastle number one mustered a mere four clean sheets and managed only 75 points – less than half his 2011/12 tally of 156 points in the FPL game and sixteenth in the goalkeeper standings. A loss of form wasn’t just to blame, though. Krul had three separate spells on the sidelines and subsequently made just 24 appearances, as elbow, ankle and shoulder problems made a real dent on his game time.
While the shoulder dislocation suffered in the Gameweek 33 home defeat by bitter rivals Sunderland brought his season to an abrupt end, Krul remains confident he will return in time for pre-season training as the Tyneside outfit look to atone for a series of poor performances :
“I’ve had the operation and it went well but unfortunately it does mean I’m going to be out for three months. Obviously there’s never a good time to get injured but I guess it could have been worse as I will have the whole summer to recover. There are a couple of games out in the Far East which I’ll probably now miss, but I’m just concentrating on getting fit for Newcastle now. My aim is to come back better than ever for next season and to have another season like last year, when I didn’t miss a single game in the Premier League.”
The Prospects
While Pardew will undoubtedly look to invest over the summer, there’s no doubt the club’s injury problems played a major part in Newcastle’s fall from form in 2012/13. Only three players started over 30 league games last time out and with key figures such as Yohan Cabaye (25 starts), Steven Taylor (24), Cheick Tiote and Fabricio Coloccini (both 22) all missing a significant number of matches, the Magpies’ squad was stretched to the limit as they looked to battle on domestic and European fronts.
If Pardew can keep the treatment room empty, then, Krul’s chances of improved returns certainly look prosperous. While uncertainty still hovers over Coloccini’s future, Pardew has back-up in the form of Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa, the former Montpellier defender signed during the January transfer window – with first-choice right-back Mathieu Debuchy also arriving in the winter, the Newcastle boss will be looking for the pair to step up after a bedding-in period in the latter half of last term.
From a Fantasy perspective, the upturn is that Newcastle’s woeful previous campaign will result in a price drop for Krul across the Fantasy games. A new cost of 5.0 in the FPL seems realistic, though it’s intriguing to note that the Magpies main defenders began last term cheaper than the Dutchman at 5.0 – if the likes of Debuchy and Davide Santon drop into the cut-price bracket, they’d be hugely enticing, though it’s more likely they will retain their initial prices from the previous campaign.
Certainly, a more budget-friendly Krul will play a part in how we assess our keeper options when the squad lists are released. With the likes of Jussi Jaaskelainen and Asmir Begovic likely to climb as high as 5.5, the Magpies man has shown in the past he’s more than capable of providing us with superb value – if the fixtures afford us a strong rotation partner, he’s likely to see a resurgence in interest ahead of August’s kick-off, particularly if the budget stoppers from the promoted clubs fail to attract investment.
