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Posts Tagged ‘Walcott’

Champions League Recap | EPL Fantasy Impact

In Sorted, Strategy on November 7, 2012 at 2:46 am

EPL Fantasy saw a number of fine performances from Barclays Premier League players in their midweek Champions League encounters. Both Arsenal and Manchester City finished the day with 2-2 draws, one leaving the Gunners in second place and the other all but closing the book on the Citizens European aspirations. We’ve already published one post this week, yesterday’s Up The Tweets!, and will endeavor to have more new content tomorrow.

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Manchester City 2-2 Ajax
Yaya Toure 22′
Sergio Aguero 74′

Manchester City starting XI: Hart; Nastasic Zabaleta Kompany Clichy; Nasri Garcia Barry Yaya; Tevez Aguero
Substitutes: Balotelli (Garcia 45′); Dzeko (Tevez 66′); Kolarov (Barry 85′)

While the result does nothing for Roberto Mancini’s side but stave off the inevitable, the goals for Yaya Toure and Sergio Aguero are a welcome site for a side with two goals in their previous three fixtures. In Barclays Premier League action, City was held scoreless against West Ham last time out and managed only one goal in their 1-0 home win over Swansea the weekend before. Read the rest of this entry »

Champions League Recap | EPL Fantasy Impact

In News of the Day, Strategy on October 24, 2012 at 10:41 pm

A bit of EPL fantasy analysis following the Wednesday Champions League action. The capitulation of Arsenal and Manchester City have left the two English clubs with difficult roads to qualify from the group stage.

Arsenal 0-2 Schalke 04

Arsenal sXI: Mannone; Santos Mertesacker Vermaelen Jenkinson (Gnabry 82′); Arteta Coquelin; Ramsey Cazorla Podolski (Arshavin 82′); Gervinho (75′)

The Gunners were under the management of Steve Bould as Arsene Wenger served the final match of his three-match touchline ban. Based on their play, it is unlikely The Prof’s presence would have made much difference. As Bould noted after the match:

He also rather astutely noted that the Gunners could do with the odd first-goal:

Champions League Recap | Fantasy EPL Impact

In News of the Day, Player Projection on October 4, 2012 at 2:30 pm

Fantasy EPL managers note: Carlos Tevez an unused substitute; Nasri played 57′; Garcia departed injured; Gervinho scored again. We have quick recaps and all the fantasy EPL analysis of Wednesday’s Champions League action as fantasy premier league managers prepare ahead of gameweek seven.

Manchester City 1-1 Borussia Dortmund
Balotelli (90′ PEN)

Manchester City sXI: Hart; Clichy Nastasic Kompany Zabaleta; Yaya Garcia; Nasri Aguero Silva; Dzeko
Substitutes: Rodwell (Garcia 34′); Kolarov (Nasri 57′); Balotelli (Clichy 81′)

Carlos Tevez was an unused substitute in this match after having played 120′ last midweek in City’s Carling Cup loss to Aston Villa and a further 65′ in the win over Fulham. The mad rush to transfer Tevez out following comments from Roberto Mancini may have been a bit of an over-reaction by fantasy EPL managers. Read the rest of this entry »

League Cup Recap | EPL Fantasy Impact

In News of the Day, Player Projection on September 27, 2012 at 2:57 pm

More League Cup action kicked-off on Wednesday and more EPL fantasy news and notes came from each fixture. The biggest news of the day were the appearance of returning players and others breaking their duck.

Arsenal 6-1 Coventry
Giroud (39′), OX (57′), Arshavin (63′), Walcott (74′), Miquel (80′), Walcott (90′)

Arsenal sXI: Martinez; Djourou Miquel Santos Angha; Arshavic Coquelin Yennaris OX Walcott; Giroud
Substitutes: Frimpong (Coquelin 72′); Gnabry (OX 72′); Chamakh (Giroud 72′)

Theo Walcott bagged a brace. The England winger has not featured prominently for Arsene Wenger’s side side the arrival of Lukas Podolski and Olivier Giroud. Walcott was a 72′ substitute in the 1-1 draw with Manchester City and has played 131′ of 450′ available EPL fantasy minutes this season. Giroud scored his first for Arsenal, opening scoring on 39′. He also missed a penalty in this match and Theo Walcott is doing more to solidify his claims that he should be the starting striker for the current incarnation of the Gunners attack. Walcott certainly had a lethal touch in this one and has already opened his Premier League account with a 88′ strike against Southampton after being introduced as a 75′ substitute (Gervinh0).

Carlisle 0-3 Tottenham
Vertonghen (37′), Townsend (53′), Sigurdsson (89′) Read the rest of this entry »

Last Minute Tinkers 2/2 | Fantasy Premier League

In Squad Sheet, Strategy on September 14, 2012 at 5:38 pm

Fantasy Premier League managers kindly take notice, this is part 2/2. Part 1/2 can be found here.

Norwich v West Ham

After allowing five in the opening day loss to Fulham, Chris Hougton’s side has recovered and posted consecutive 1-1 draws with QPR and Spurs. This side had three cleansheets last season, the same number as relegated Bolton and Blackburn. We can not condone owning any Canaries defenders, even on grounds of value as there are a number of starting defenders in the £4.0 - £4.5m range that start for sides who have a chance of posting a clean sheet. ‘Keeper John Ruddy is in the same boat, three clean sheets and 97 Fantasy Premier League points in 2011-12.

The midfield is a bit of  a better risk, Robert Snodgrass has one goal on eight shots in three games and has completed 59/73 passes – 80.8% – while playing the full 90′ in both game week 2 and 3. Snodgrass is priced £5.9m but should be watched as continued playing time and presence in the attack would make him an interesting value purchase and could  limit the value of Anthony Pilkington (also priced £5.9m and also contributing eight shots in three games resulting in no goals and one assist).

Grant Holt has only two shots through three games, with no goals and an assist. Holty had a great season a year ago but his £6.3m price is not enticing with the plethora of discount options available this season.

One of those discount options is Ricardo Vaz Te. The young Hammer’s forward has played 225′ and has two assists through three games. Read the rest of this entry »

News & Notes | Fantasy EPL

In News of the Day on September 13, 2012 at 2:35 pm

Plenty of news with a bit of the news focused on injuries that require the attention of Mssrs Wenger and Pardew. First we’ll address Arsenal where Arsene Wenger is dealing with a raft of injuries to key starting XI players:

 He will have a test on Friday morning and we will go from there. At the moment he is 50:50. It is a small muscular problem that is very minor. But of course we are in the situation that, because we play so many games now, should we take a gamble or not with him? We are playing on Saturday, on Tuesday and then we go to Manchester City.

The only problem we have at the moment is that Theo Walcott is in bed with a virus. He missed the England game with a virus. He should be back today, so we will have to see how well he has recovered from that.

Wenger also notes that Szczesny is fully fit and ready and that Bacary Sagna and Tomas Rosicky are two or three weeks away. Walcott first: for fantasy EPL purposes the England winger has been beyond useless. His high price (£9.0 at open, down to £8.8m) coupled with a 95′ of playing time – just 19′ in GW 2 and 3 combined – has left fantasy EPL managers invested to the hilt while returning four total points in Fantasy Premier League.  Walcott had a spectacular season last year, scoring eight goals, assisting 11 goals and was a pres-season buy. However, the addition of Santi Cazorla and Lukas Podolski has seen Walcott dropped to third or fourth option in Wenger’s midfield. At this point he should not be owed but news of his virus solidifies the value of Cazorla and Podolski heading into the weekend.

In the absence of ‘keeper Wojciech Szczesny will likely see Vito Mannone dropped back to the bench. Unfortunate development for fantasy EPL managers as the £4.5m GK was an excellent value proposition over the past two gameweeks, posting back-to-back clean sheets.  Read the rest of this entry »

News For Fantasy Premier League

In News of the Day on August 29, 2012 at 11:59 am

With the window still open for a few days, there is no shortage of news that will impact your Fantasy Premier League side.

Fulham have reportedly made an inquiry about West Ham’s Mark Noble – Sky Sports:

The 25-year-old midfielder has entered the final year of his contract at Upton Park and is yet to sign an extension.

The Hammers will be keen to put fresh terms to a product of their famed academy system, but as yet no agreement has been put in place.

Better news for Hammer’s fans – Maiga gets off the mark in the Carling Cup – Sky Sports:

Maiga is understandably delighted to be off the mark for his new employers and believes he is now ready to make his mark on the Premier League, having been eased into English life by Sam Allardyce.

Fulham have one out – BBC.co.uk:

Tottenham have been given permission to speak to Fulham’s Moussa Dembele after the two clubs agreed a fee.  Fulham boss Martin Jol said the 25-year-old Belgium international was having a medical at Tottenham.

And one in:

Meanwhile, Fulham are in talks with Kieran Richardson after agreeing a fee for the winger with Sunderland. Black Cats boss Martin O’Neill confirmed the Wearsiders have accepted an offer for the 27-year-old former Manchester United man. Read the rest of this entry »

Last Minute Tinkers GW2 Part 2

In Squad Sheet, Strategy on August 24, 2012 at 8:36 pm

Southampton vs. Wigan

The Saints put in a good performance against Manchester City but were simply over-matched.  Of note were the six chances (and two goals) they created against the Champions. Two goals when they held only 35.9% of the possession, and against one of the most staunch defenses in the Premier league a season ago, points to their ability to find the goal. It was Lallana and Puncheon with two chances created apiece who were the most active in probing the Citizens defenses. Rickie Lambert was not given the start last weekend. He, and fellow substitute Steven Davis, scored a goal only 3′ after entering the fray. We’re expecting that he will get the nod in this game and we’re expecting more of the same. A year ago Wigan was awful away from home, allowing 35 goals on their travels while scoring 20.  Lambert was last season’s top scorer in the Championship and we trust in him to find the back of the net over any of the other options Nigel Adkins has at his disposal. Wigan, eesssh, what? That’s a real word. It’s an expression meant to convey – Why? Why do we have to write a preview of the Latics? In one day we’ve gone from:

Moses, 21, has been heavily linked with a move for to Stamford Bridge, but Wigan want £9 million for their main asset, a price Chelsea are not willing to pay.

To:

Wigan Athletic have announced that they have accepted a bid from Chelsea for Victor Moses.

So, we’re not certain what to expect but we’re not planning on seeing Victor Moses play for either Wigan or Chelsea this weekend – and frankly we’re not expecting to see him play for Chelsea much ever.  Those left behind in Martinez’s squad will certainly have to play up the best of their ability to carry the squad through another potential relegation battle. Read the rest of this entry »

Arsenal Buying Guide | Fantasy Premier League

In Buying Guide, Pre-Season, Strategy on August 2, 2012 at 1:34 pm

We’re going to start the Buying Guide with Arsenal this season.  It’s not just a matter of the alphabet, Arsenal actually have fewer questions surrounding the team than most other Premier League sides. With stability in the management and very little turnover in the roster, we can expect a similar look to last season. Of course, the elephant at The Emirates is Robin Van Persie and his potential departure. However, the departure of RVP isn’t as important for fantasy premier league mangers as it may be for Arsene Wengers. The departure of Van Perise will leave a hole, undoubtedly, but that should be ably filled by the trio of Podolski, Giroud and Oxlade-Chamberlain.

Over the past three seasons Arsenal has been poor at keeping clean sheets. In 2011-12 they managed just 13, one fewer than Swansea City and seven off of the pace of Manchester United. That was the same number they had kept in 2010-11, when the rest of the league was considerably more porous, still Arsenal was joint-6th with Sunderland. In 2009-10 they were joint-4th with Stoke City on 14, but 12 teams had at least 10 clean sheets including Birmingham City and Blackburn. With that in mind, it is fair for Wojciech Szczesny to be priced £5.5m, and find himself in 9.9% of squads.  We like Arsenal at home where they allowed just 17 goals in 19 fixtures. but Swansea (18 allowed at home), Tottenham, Newcastle and Sunderland (all 17) were equally efficient in their home stadiums.

This translates to few Gunners defenders on our ‘Buy” list. Arsenal’s defenders are involved in the build up to goals, but for fantasy premier league purposes there is not enough in the final few touches to make an impact. Vermaelen, £7m, is priced there based on 6 goals last season. We’ve covered defender scoring before, and the short form is that there is almost no correlation from season to season. Vermaelen may be an exception to that rule, he has six and seven goals in his two full EPL seasons. Read the rest of this entry »

Walcott Injured

In Squad Sheet on September 24, 2011 at 5:39 pm

There isn’t much to report at this time but it will certainly be a worry for Arsenal and for Fantasy Premier League managers who’ve invested in Arsenal. This is not just a concern for owners of Walcott but for anyone investing in Arsenal’s midfield or attack.

From the mouth of Wenger:

‘I don’t really know. I thought it was a classic hamstring but it is not. He felt a sharp pain in his knee and at the moment he is with the doctor. I don’t know what the diagnosis will be but it is completely surprising. There was no one near him. I don’t know what they will do, whether they will have a scan tonight, I will have to speak to the medical people.’

Walcott was very good in the match prior to his injury.  He made van Persie’s second goal of the match (RvP’s 100 for Arsenal) and squandered a chance of his own when he was clean through, onside, unmarked and with just the ‘keeper to beat.  His shot wasn’t much of a threat, though still well taken and on frame forcing a save.

He has earned just 19 Fantasy Premier League points in the Official league and is a feast of famine player (like many midfielders) with two matches accounting for 13 of 19 points.  This is more pronounced in Walcott because of Arsene Wenger’s rotation policy which has seen the English winger earn just 3 starts and rarely see the full 90′.  Coupled with his price of £9m and his 2.9% ownership should come down. Read the rest of this entry »