Arsenal and Man City have this afternoon agreed a fee for the transfer of Samir Nasri. The Frenchman is due to arrive in Manchester later today for a medical and the deal, believed to be in the region of £20m, can be expected to go through imminently. Great news for City, then, but from a Fantasy manager’s point of view, does this merely muddy the waters when eyeing up Roberto Mancini’s men?
A Man City Midfield Perspective
Prior to the season kicking off, Mancini went on record as saying his outfit must score more goals if they are to stand a chance of picking up the title. So far, the team’s play has been refreshingly open and it appears the City boss is determined to shed the negative, mainly defensive take on a 4-2-3-1 formation last season.
Seven goals in their opening two games and Mancini has now added a 4-4-2 formation to his side’s repertoire. David Silva, as Mark mentioned earlier, has been outstanding in his opening two games and has looked the strongest City midfield option available so far. Yaya Toure’s performance at home to Swansea –he had 9 shots at goal- had perhaps suggested an alternative to Silva but the very real possibility of a 4-4-2 coming into play would see him drop deeper and resultantly lessen his Fantasy potential. The limited game time of both Adam Johnson and James Milner looks likely to suffer still, though the latter’s ability to play centrally may allow him more minutes.
Nasri’s adaptability will help. Although he’s able to play anywhere in the attacking midfield three, he is more likely to find a place on City’s left wing- Mancini’s use of the left-footed Silva as an inverted winger from the right is testament to that, though Silva’s role as the chief creator, the one to drop deep and link play, still looks assured; Mancini is too conservative to give two of his first XI license to act as playmakers.
Though it’s impossible to predict just how important Nasri’s role in the City first XI may prove to be, this brilliant article by Simon Kuper on the increased importance of football and statistics is revealing. Kuper paid a visit to Man City’s training ground and found that, just like Fantasy managers, the club pay a great deal of attention to player statistics. Gavin Fleig, City’s head of performance analysis, explained the line of thinking:
“The top four teams consistently have a higher percentage of pass completion in the final third of the pitch. Since the recruitment of Carlos Tévez, David Silva, Adam Johnson and Yaya Touré to our football team, in the last six months alone, our ability to keep the ball in the final third has grown by 7.7 per cent.”
A look at our Members area reveals just how strong Nasri is in that respect. He was rated seventh for successful passes in the opposition half last season- Toure and Silva, City’s top two, were eighth and ninth, despite both playing five games more. If City are to back up Mancini’s demands of attacking football, Nasri’s contribution looks key, then, though with the club also participating in the Champions League, it’s too early to take a punt, with Silva still likely to be the most assured Fantasy choice in City’s midfield until time make matters more apparent.
An Arsenal Midfield Perspective
At present, the Nasri move certainly nails down Gervinho’s place on the Arsenal left. Andrei Arshavin continues to look a shadow of his former self and while Gervinho is a more attack-minded presence than Nasri, he is still as creative- the Ivorian assisted 10 goals last season as well as scoring 15 for Lille. The problem is, in most Fantasy games, including the FPL, Gervinho is classified as a forward.
With Cesc Fabregas gone and already scoring goals for Barcelona, there are slim pickings available in the Arsenal midfield from a Fantasy point a view- a rare thing, indeed. Aaron Ramsey may yet cement his place in Arsene Wenger’s first XI and, at 6.5, is undoubtedly a potential bargain if this proves to be the case, while Theo Walcott’s season has already been blighted by injury- the winger lacks consistency and has a tendency to be one of the most frustrating Fantasy options around.
The Gunners look bereft of all confidence right now and it will be galling for Wenger that the only player who looked likely to make things happen against Liverpool on Saturday was Nasri. The Arsenal boss has plenty cash to splash, then; these next eight days before the end of August will hopefully bring us one or two more Emirates options worthy of our Fantasy consideration.
