Monday 7 September 2009

Week 4 - Strikers

 On to strikers…

Tuncay (Home to Chelsea) – I’ve already written an entire post on the subject of Tuncay so won’t go in to too much detail. What I will mention is that to return double his value, all he needs to do is win 1 corner and complete 1 cross. If he were to score, he would return TEN TIMES HIS VALUE. Oh…did I mention he costs 1.00?

Torres (Home to Burnley) – I think it was in my Week 2 Preview I mentioned that once Torres starts scoring he won’t stop. He now has 3 goals in 3 games and I can’t see that run stopping as Liverpool face Burnley at Anfield. Again I’m glad I have him at £15million but even if I didn’t I’d be considering him at full price. Torres is capable of destroying the smaller team and could’ve had a hattrick vs Bolton…I’d be disappointed if he doesn’t score at least 2 in Week 4 and suggest everyone seriously considers him.

Bent (Home to Hull) – As you probably all remember, Darren Bent was my tip of the week in my Week 4 Preview and he was set for a place in my team until the Tuncay opportunity came along. I’m a bit annoyed I can’t see a way of getting him in as I’m certain he’ll score vs a Hull side who’ll badly miss Michael Turner (who coincidently has joined Sunderland). Bent started the season on fire and has since had a couple of quieter games, but if he can score against Chelsea I’m sure he will score in Week 4.

Drogba (Away to Stoke) – Unplayable so far and not just weighing in with goals. He’s getting assists, taking lots of shots & regularly hitting the target, plus his partnership with Anelka means he often pulls wide and earns successful crossing & corners won points. Seeing as I have him at £10million and with Chelsea looking like the potential title winners, I can’t see myself dropping him until the African Nations early in 2010. Even at his current price I’d consider getting him in despite his tough fixture.

Rooney (Away to Spurs) – A tough fixture, but Tottenham are yet to keep a clean sheet despite their excellent start & Rooney is the focal point of everything good United are doing at the moment. I expect a score draw at White Hart Lane and I expect Rooney to be on the score sheet. If you’re holding Rooney at a discount then you certainly should be keeping him, especially now he’s taking penalties, but if you’re buying at full price I’d say Torres has the edge for Week 4.

Adebayor (Home to Arsenal) – A home fixture against the side you left due to feeling “unappreciated” by the fans…can there be any greater motivation for a Premiership striker to score? The City crowd & players are going to be up for this game & I expect it to be a thriller with lots of goals. If you fancy Adebayor to continue his great start/get revenge against Arsenal then he’s an excellent choice, especially if you’re still holding him at £12-£13million.

Van Persie (Away to Man City) – If you’ve watched Arsenal’s games so far this season you’ll have seen that Batman’s sidekick has done everything but score. He’s taking freekicks, he’s shooting a lot, he’s involved in great build up, he’s hit the bar, the post and he’ll take penalties. It’s only a matter of time before he hits the back of the net and as I mentioned earlier I think they’ll be plenty of goals in this fixture. He’s very expensive and it’s undoubtedly a risk but he could be in for a very big week.

Kuyt (Home to Burnley) – An outside bet for Liverpool if you can’t afford Torres. Despite playing out on the right he has a knack of getting in to good positions in the box and he’ll have plenty of opportunities vs Burnley. I’m actually surprised at how expensive he is but he’s definitely got a chance of a goal and not many other managers will pick him up. It would take a bit of a hunch feeling to select him.

Jones (Home to Hull) – He's had a decent start to the season alongside Bent and as I’ve written previously I expect a good win for Sunderland. I imagine the majority of people would go with the cheaper Bent if picking a Sunderland striker so Jones (like Kuyt) could prove a good pick for someone looking to do something a bit different to claw back points from fellow managers

Defoe (Home to Man Utd) – Very tough fixture but I have to mention at least 1 Spurs player this week ;) You’ve got to admire the way he’s started the season - he’s greedy as hell but he never lets a miss affect him and it’s why he’s showing with England that he’ll score goals at any level. United haven’t been overly impressive in defence so he’ll get a sniff and in his current form he’ll probably take it.

So that completes the set for Week 4. No real shock suggestions this week, but that’s mainly because I expect the big name strikers to do the business – after all that’s why they’re big names!

I’m going to be really busy the next few days so I’m not sure I’ll get to post again until Thursday…but you have all my selection advice for Week 4 now so I expect you’ll keep the excellent comments/debate going until I return!

Cheers,
AM

25 comments:

Anonymous said...

Thanks for the choices. Pretty much what we are all probably thinking of.

It's a tough choice for week 4. If Gerrard and Torres don't get MASSIVE points, then 90% of the FFP will be suicidal! Ha Ha.

But to drop those 2 for a balanced line up remains tempting. However, I'm not sure I'll do that.

dan in detroit said...

i think kevin doyle deserves a mention here as a decent priced (8.06) sleeper this week, or at least someone to keep an eye on when the barn door flies open. scored vs. wolves and has a decent fixture vs. sunderland (form: w,l,w,l). I had him in until the yahoo gods blessed us all with the tuncay gift!

Assistant Manager said...

Hi Dan - not sure you mean Kevin Doyle as he plays for Wolves (away at Blackburn) and hasn't scored yet this season.

dan in the D said...

so much for my analysis. LOL! you can delete that post if you want.

Fidan said...

I'm not trying to do any AM's job, but...as AM mentioned for all of them who want to gain some ground on others by picking different and reliable strikers, I'd recommend:
Benitez - with Jerome out for some time, he looks very tempting, esp considering Villa's very porous defence. He surely is worth a thought at 6m. JRoberts and HotRod deserve a mention too...

Good luck and
HASTA LA VISTA

Fidan said...

My line-up so far:

Given
Verm,Givet,(hunch)
Milijas,MTay,Gerrard,(hunch)
Drogs,Torres,hunch (yes, you guessed it - TUNCAY ;))

Stays like this unless any injury emerges "out of blue" :D

Assistant Manager said...

Hi Fidan - Benitez is a great pick if he's set to start...I wasn't sure as he's travelling back from South America late in the week (World Cup Qualifiers) but just read an article suggesting he could well get his full debut.

Anonymous said...

Would you recomend switching out one of Torres, Drogba, or Rooney for Tuncay to free up money elsewhere if you have all three at a discount?

Jamie said...

@ 2.27.
I personally would drop none of them. They are three top quality strikers. However, if you really wanted the tuncay money I would drop the one with the smallest discount as you could buy them back if you change your mind.

Anonymous said...

@ *EVERYONE* -

Would it be good to have Nando AND StevieG AND GlenJo in one team???... i already have Verma and Mtay and Drogba.. i can accomodate all 6 of the above players with just 2 fillers...

would it be TOO risky by relying on 6 Premiums??

Am i thinkin TOO big??

Please suggest..

Cheers,
~ Sam

Anonymous said...

Keep in mind Kenwyne Jones is in CONCACAF and he'll be playing the US in T and T on Wednesday. So if anyone wants to pick a Sunderland striker I'd go with Bent. This goes for anyone who you think might have jetlag due to World Cup Qualifiers (i.e. Jozy Altidore, though I don't think he'll start, etc...)

Anonymous said...

Sam..

YES, DO IT!

then come back and tell us if it worked!

read all the content and insight.. then hit submit..

but just make a decision and stop asking EVERY THREAD, every day about who you should pick!

this is fantasy.. so just go with your GUT.. thats usually the best course of action..

8 )

ps.. i think if you can afford Premium.. then thats what you get! they pay off in the long term, thats why they are PREMIUM.. if you can get them, do it! : ))))

~cheers

Anonymous said...

@ 5:57 -

Am sorry if u took it badly... its just that i wanted to know as i took my "GUT" picks 3 weeks in a row and i have a total of only 160 points!!!
thats why i just asked..
again... im sorry if i troubled you..

Cheers,
~ CrazyEyed Sam

{this EPL-less week is KILLING me!!}

ToffeeDave said...

Taking a huge agmble. As so many people are picking up tuncay in these groups and even my local group im sure the better managers have picked up tuncay, im gambling against tuncay to score points and I will simply barndoor him. I have also sold Gerrard to fit Torres in my team leaving only Mtay as my only premium midfielder. I have 4-5 picks that no one else will have and therefore if they score big, I will jump up some spots. Finally, the only reason I picked Torres over Gerrard is because I want to cancel out everyone else's points who have him in their team.

Anonymous said...

Hey guys

Just wondering your thoughts on Kieran Richardson on the weekend? At the moment my team looks like this...

Gordon
Verm, G Johnson, Wilkinson
Milijas, Gomez, Gerrard, Richardson
Drogba, Torres, Tuncay.

Also, do you think keeping Milijas is risky? Got him in for 5.5 when the season started. Thanks in advance for any advice.

David

Anonymous said...

Crazy Eye Sam...
OYE VEY! 160 in 3 weeks?! i would be crazy eyed too! : )))

LOL>. i am alittle tense myself!! i am having to do work on the house in 94 degree heat.. so i am a little short temp. rite now!!

but i stand by what i said about prem. players..

i have Lamps, StevieG, ROONEldo and Drogs.. Myhill GK.. this is my core.. i won't change them unless injury for more then one or two weeks.. i looked at it as a long term investment that pays off over time..

i am not a big fan of changing entire time from week to week.. i only have 365.. but there are guys that do and are much more successful then i am .. i have looked around the internet for EPL info.. since i am on the Far side of the pond.. and these guys discussions are the best i have found.. best of luck!! i need to get back to work! : ))))

i had Gjohn at 8 for the 1st week.. then sold him off.. ooops!! oh well.. i personally feel that MF are more consistent in the points department.. and GK/FW are feast/famine.. don't like that.. hence lamps/Steve! : )))

bean said...

if anyone has drogba, torres, rooney (or other premiums) at discounts i would certainly NOT drop one for tuncay. it was easy for me to bring tuncay into my squad because I was running 4-4-2, so he just replaced another filler midfielder. a filler for a filler (even though tuncay has performed much better than filler in the past).

Anonymous said...

Bean.. it was easy.. i traded in MOKO for TUNCAY.. as my 3rd forward.. with Drogba and ROONEldinho

as long as he starts!! i will be very satisfied! : )

Anonymous said...

Glen Johnson started the game at +11mil, you'd never have gotten him at 8mil.

Anonymous said...

Someone have a thought? Nani/Hunt. I have both at discount but I would like to drop one to up grade Sonko and bring in Gomez. Thanks!

ToffeeDave said...

Drop Nani. Hunt is a permanent starter on Hull now and I wish I didn't sell him last week. But I am trying something crazy to get some points back this week

bean said...

tuncay has a midweek match for turkey @bosnia

Anonymous said...

@11:04.. i stand corrected.. but what i was trying to say.. i had him first week then sold him off.. now he is too expensive for a defender to buy up now..

Anonymous said...

just a thought guys now that kranjcar has gone to spurs who takes the set pieces over at portsmouth?

cheers,
mark

Anonymous said...

Trying to go against the grain to make up some points:

Given
Givet, Vermaelen, Kyrgiakos
Arshavin, Pienaar, Hunt, Dunn
Torres, Drogba, Tuncay

Any thoughts?

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