We know that some of our footie- addicted bachelor readers are probably more interested in the announcement of a new soccer singles dating website than plunging into a world of fantasy premier league opinion and commentary, and while we respect that, we need to focus on soccer/football rather than on T&A for the time being.Speaking of relationships, as our community continues to grow week by week, we'd be honored if you invited your soccer-addicted friends, family, & footie teammates to voice their opinions on their favorite "fantasy" (and real-life) players/predictions with us.
Enough dating. Now let's take a look at (I) the best overall premier league matchup, (II) the best fantasy friendly matchup, and (III) an analysis of fantasy "studs" and "duds."
I. Liverpool @ Manchester City: The Reds arrive at Eastlands in-form after a brilliant midweek display in the Champions League and face off against Brazilians Robinho, Jo and the big-spending Citizens.
Despite Manchester City's midfield riches, it's hard to bet against Liverpool coming away with at least a point. Hold your Manchester City and Liverpool players, but this is probably not the week to buy/sell stars from these teams. Liverpool defenders (other than Carragher) are always at risk for rotation, and other than Gerrard, the midfield is often rotated too. I can't imagine owning any Liverpool players other than Gerrard, Torres, or Keane. Maybe Alonso if his shooting boots from 70-yards are laced tightly.
Manchester City players are the chic pick of the season: Blog favorite Kompany plays out of position, Ireland is cheap and producing, Wright-Phillips is comfortable and posing a serious threat, and Robinho/Jo are, well, Robinho and Jo. Stick with them if you have them, but don't expect Liverpool to leak too many. Prediction: 1-1 draw.
II. Stoke City @ Portsmouth: There are some great 'fantasy-friendly' matchups in gameweek 7, but Portsmouth at home to Stoke is up there with the best of them. Jermain Defoe is in cracking form and is an excellent buy option. You could do much worse than the out of position Armand Traore at the back. Stoke have yet to win on the road but did produce a shocking 0-0 draw at Liverpool. Midfield general Lassana Diarra will miss the match due to suspension, denting Pompey's possession plans a bit, so a direct to Defoe/Crouch strategy could be employed. Even without Diarra, Portsmouth have too much quality. Prediction: 3-0 to Pompey.
III. Value stud: Everton's Leon Osman (5.9M) is a strong value play at home to Newcastle with Tim Cahill out due to suspension. Osman likes getting forward and works well with perpetual stud Mikel Arteta. Yakubu (8.1M) and the cheaper (7.4M) Saha could get on the scoresheet too.
Surprise stud: Arsenal's Nicklas Bendtner (5.3M) could be a decent one week option. Robin van Persie has been rested each Saturday after a Champions League mid-week game, with Bendtner starting those two games (his only two starts of the season). Partnered alongside the in-form Adebayor, the massive Dane could cause problems at Sunderland if he gets a full 90 minutes under his belt, but he could also find himself on the bench for the whole match. A big gamble.
In-form West Ham are at home to Bolton, so Noble, Cole, Etherington and others look to be excellent value play studs in what is becoming a fun team to watch. Expect a few goals from the Hammers. Noble takes free kicks and corners, Etherington provides the most dangerous attacking threat and pace on the flanks, and Cole remains the massive target on set pieces.
Duds: Any Newcastle player besides Michael Owen, obviously. I'm cautious about Aston Villa "studs" (Young, Laursen, Carew, Agbonlahor) turning into "duds" at Stamford Bridge, but Chelsea are traveling back from Romania with some injuries, and I would not at all be surprised by a draw at the Bridge. Trust in your Villa "studs." Finally, I'm not jumping on the Hull bandwagon just yet. If they can take three points at Tottenham, then the likes of Marney and Geovanni could warrant starting spots. But at this point, they are just great value bench players.
Good luck to all. Let us know who you think will be this weekend's studs & duds!
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12 comments:
Is Kompany a bench player for most this week? I'm debating whether to start him or Marney this week.
I am benching Kompany in favor of the Ghanaian John Paintsil or the Honduran Maynor Figueroa.
Great picks this week, I agree with all your studs and duds. I also like Wigan to continue their good form against Boro who have shipped 6 goals in 3 away games so far away from home. Wigan are a fantasy gold mine with Zaki, Valencia, Heskey and the whole back 5 all viable options (with Figueroa appearing the best at 4.3m).
I agree, im also benching Kompany and Villas Laursen this week, in favour of A. Traore and Figueroa.
Boro are gonna have even more issues in defence this week with Taylor, Pogatetz and Huth all missing. I'd say Zaki and any other Wigan middies/forwards you may have are must starts! (And obviously stay away from any Boro GK/Def.)
And I must say I like my lineup for this week:
Hart (Liv.)
---
Traore (Stoke)
Johnson (Stoke)
Figueroa (Boro)
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Arteta (New.)
Wright-Phillips (Liv.)
Fabregas (@ Sund.)
Ronaldo (@ Blackburn) (C)
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Robinho (Liv.)
Defoe (Stoke)
Zaki (Boro)
Bench: Turnbull, Marney, Paintsil, Davenport
Only two away fixtures, and those aren't very daunting. Not too much to ask to expect points from everyone except Hart, I'd say. Very tempting to make Arteta, Defoe or Zaki captain. But can you bet against Ronaldo? Ever?
silent Jay -
A great lineup. The only concern is Portsmouth flying back from Portugal after 120 minutes in the UEFA cup. Redknapp's squad is too thin and hit by injuries to really rotate, but at home to Stoke, and tired after a UEFA cup triumph, it could be a dangerous time to face off against an "Easy" promoted team...
Yeah, I know. But I don't really have any other options, unless I wanna spend 4 points for an extra transfer. (Already got Marney this week before his price went up.)
Don't suppose you know what the deal with Davenport is? Plays 90 mins. for the first 4 games, and then gets benched. Read last week somewhere that he "should be back in contention" - but I can't find any mention of an injury. Unfortunately he again didn't play. Home to Bolton this week would of course be a pretty good matchup.
Jay -
I wonder if you should start Davenport and bench Traore or Figueroa. I don't know what the deal with Davenport is, but if he starts, West Ham have a better prospect of a clean sheet than Wigan do. Even though Boro are struggling, they are still scoring and Mido/Alves/Downing cause defenses problems. I'd go Davenport over Figueroa.
Argh... tough choice. Both Boro and Bolton suck away from home. They're both 0-0-3, having scored only 2 and 1 goals respectively.
Davenport seems to either start or not play at all, so it is worth considering. Got a few minutes to think about it... (I had already moved him ahead of Paintsil on the bench, in case Traore is rested.)
Arsenal's season over on Oct 4th. Well, at least there's the Carling Cup
Oh! Cescy time!
About time, too. I knew stripping him of the captaincy would finally do the trick...
(I did get an assist from Capt. Ronaldo, though. So I guess it doesn't make much difference.)
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