Thursday 15 April 2010

Week 31 - Player Picks

An Aston Villa double week...how many times have we seen that this season?

It's been strange - I can't remember another a YFF season which has brought so many double weeks in general, never mind for 1 team in particular, but with only a few weeks to go it's time to take full advantage.

Villa face Portsmouth & Hull City away from home, 2 of the worst sides in the league. Portsmouth have completely given up in the league now, resting everyone in preparation for the FA Cup Final, so that should be a banker away win. Hull (also with a double) need to win their home games, meaning they'll have a go, but that should leave them open to the Milner/Young/Agbonlahor counter-attack.

My plan is simple - load up on Aston Villa. At this stage of the season I'm going to be dumping my discounts left right & centre to get as many Villa players in my side as possible. I've mentioned Hull also have a double, but (apart from Jimmy B) it's very difficult to get excited about a team that has just lost 4-1 at home to Burnley & travel to Birmingham in the first game.

It's tempting to keep players like Tevez & Malouda at discount; they're in great form & have more games to come after the double week, so it would certainly be the safe move. However, the risk taking of recent weeks has led to a surge up the rankings for many of us, so I'm reluctant to stop this approach now with just 4 weeks to go.

The Week 31 Fixtures in full

Saturday, 17 April 2010
Birmingham v Hull, 15:00
Blackburn v Everton, 15:00
Fulham v Wolverhampton, 15:00
Man City v Man Utd, 12:45
Stoke v Bolton, 15:00
Sunderland v Burnley, 15:00
Tottenham v Chelsea, 17:30

Sunday, 18 April 2010
Portsmouth v Aston Villa, 16:00
Wigan v Arsenal, 13:30

Monday, 19 April 2010
Liverpool v West Ham, 20:00

Wednesday, 21 April 2010
Hull v Aston Villa, 19:45

I've told you my plans, but not everyone will feel the same about the double gamers, and will be looking at strong single gamers instead, so aside from Aston Villa & Hull...

...the stand out fixtures are Sunderland home to Burnley, Arsenal @ Wigan (seriously, if they can't beat Portsmouth's reserve side at home, they're in trouble), Birmingham home to Hull, Liverpool home to West Ham & Stoke home to Bolton.

The other 4 fixtures are all very tough to call & could easily all end up as draws - Blackburn v Everton, Fulham v Wolves, Man City v Man United & Tottenham v Chelsea...I'd avoid these games if possible.

With that in mind, here we go...

KEEPERS
Friedel
Gordon

I'm offering just 2 choices this week as none of the other keepers tempt me in the slightest, espcially Boaz Myhill, who I'm starting to believe could be the devil reincarnated.

I feel you should either be spending £10m on Brad Friedel for the double, or £6m on Craig Gordon for a near certain clean sheet for Sunderland at home to Burnley & spend the spare units on outfield players.

I fancy Villa to win both games, so it will be the American for me.

DEFENDERS
Dunne
Warnock
Cueller
Collins
Mouyokolo
McShane
A Dawson
Jagielka
Agger
Campbell

Faye
Konchesky
C Gardner
Hutton
Carr
Mancienne
Elokobi
Vanden Borre

I'm not going in to too much depth about the Villa defenders - we all know what they can do, they're expensive, but if you can afford them then you should be getting at least 1 of them in to your defence. Because of prices, my order of preference would be: Dunne, Warnock, Cueller, Collins.

I know I slagged Hull off earlier, but if you're going to have any of their players then it would be to fill a spot in defence. Rumours are abound that Andy Dawson will return from injury, so he's a bargain at under 5, while McShane & Mouyokolo will both do a job at around 6.

From the single gamers, Phil Jagielka is screaming to be picked after his own goal last night saw him drop to just a shade over £6m & Daniel Agger has been performing superbly at left back for Liverpool - forward runs, crosses, corners won etc...kinda like a poor man's Gareth Bale, but more expensive...

Campbell, Faye, Konchesky, C Gardner, Hutton & Carr are other decent options with winnable games, while on the cheaper side of things you have the Wolves duo of Elokobi & Mancienne or Vanden Borre who should get a game for Pompey.

MIDFIELDERS
Milner
Young
Bullard
Downing
Petrov
Malouda
Gerrard
Walcott
Henderson
Malbranque
Benayoun
Etherington
A Johnson
Gera
Rodwell
Kilbane

Milner, Young, Bullard, Downing will be the midfield many DG chasing managers will be aiming for this week, & it's the one I would like if I could afford it. You have 4 players who are integral, will take set pieces, get crosses in, take shots & have 2 games. Petrov is a good alternative to Downing if you can't quite afford the original Villa trio.

As far as single gamers go then Gerrard, Malouda & Walcott are 3 players I would have my eye on. Despite the fact I've already mentioned I'm probably getting rid of FloMo he's still likely to do very well at Spurs, no Torres means Gerrard will need to do everything, which normally means points & Walcott should start at Wigan after coming off the bench last night.

Henderson & Malbranque will relish the space they'll be afforded by Burnley, set piece king Etherington faces Bolton & Adam Johnson will be looking to continue his great form & play himself in to Capello's plans in the massive Manchester derby.

Benayoun is a cheaper option for Liverpool after he was on the bench vs Fulham, Gera should return for Fulham, Rodwell should start in midfield for Everton with Heitinga injured & Kilbane is mearly a two game filler.

STRIKERS
Agbonlahor
Carew
Bent
Tevez
Rooney
Drogba
Jerome
Bendtner
N'Gog/Torres
Fuller/Kitson
Zamora
Van Persie
Altidore

You should have at least one from Gabby or Carew this week, possibly both as they're sure to get plenty of chances versus two of the leakiest defences in the league. If you're looking to fill a space with a Hull striker then Altidore is the only one who remotely interests me.

The stand-out single gamer is Darren Bent at home to Burnley, where I'd expect at least a brace & then you have the big 3 of Drogba, Tevez & Rooney who need no introduction. I expect Rooney to return & could see both he & Tevez getting on the scoresheet in what's sure to be a cracker.

Torres would've been right at the top of this list if I could be sure he'd start, but after the goose egg he laid last week I'd suggest you stay clear, with N'Gog a possibility if you're desperate. Cameron Jerome has had a great season for Birmingham & will be licking his lips at the prospect of Hull, while Fuller could return vs Bolton (if not Kitson could act as filler) & Zamora vs Wolves.

Despite Van Persie's cameo last night I doubt he'll be ready for 90 minutes at Wigan, though we saw what he can do in 25 minutes so if you're in a risky mood then I won't try to stop you. If he were to start I still think Bendtner would continue (for his height in defence as well as attack) so I'm tempted to keep him at 5.80.

That completes my Week 31 player picks. My team page currently looks like...
Friedel

        Bale  Warnock  A.Dawson 

  Bullard  A.Johnson  Milner  A.Young

 Carew  Bendtner  Agbonlahor

8 double gamers, 6 Villa, 2 Hull, with Bale, A Johnson & Bendtner still there at huge discounts.

I'd like Downing but can't find a way to fit him in. I still hold Tevez & Malouda behind the scenes, but I'm expecting to have the guts to hit the 'save' button come Saturday morning. I'll wait to hear news on Andy Dawson's injury, if he's not going to make it I'll switch him to Mancienne which would allow me to upgrade Warnock to Dunne.

What do you think? Let me know if you think I've missed anyone from the lists above. How's your team shaping up?

Please remember to join the Facebook Group if you haven't already. You'll get notifications whenever I post something new on the blog, I'll be able to alert you about new cup competitions planned for next season & it's also nice for me to put some faces to names...we're approaching 600 members - join us!  

Cheers,
AM

90 comments:

Anonymous said...

First! Great team.

Anonymous said...

great post as usual . be afraid, very afraid AM ,your team is looking very similar to mine for the 2nd consec week. hope they do better than last week :) . identical m/f. i abandoned my crazy plan of keeping myhill ( brum aren't great scorers and if they're a bit disinterested he might get away with it. plus if hull performed vs villa like they did at home to chels or ars etc etc.. but i just can't risk it at this stage ) so got friedel after the handy price drop. can't afford villa def's . got mouyo. will keep an eye on A.Dawson's fitness. up front, i've got carew & agbon & keeping altidore after he did well for me last wk.

S.P.

mags said...

Petrov/McShane or Downing/Sylvinho I currently have the former but wonder which is the better choice. Another option is to drop Friedel to Gordon then upgrade Petrov to Downing

Team right now is
Friedel
Bale/Hutton/McShane
Jummy/Milner/A Young/Petrov
Bendtner/Carew/Gabby

gutted to have dropped Verm and I have Hutton at full price. Only discounts I hold now are Bendtner and Bale. I don't see Bale going anywhere for the rest of the season.

Fidan said...

AM - Great post. I love it...!!!
But, I think you may add DJames to the GK spot ,and hope he doesn't start ;), but if he does start, well, Pompey somehow finds that motivation to perform against top sides (ok, if Villa is such)...!!!

My team, for now, looks like this:

DJames
Bale,Warnock,Dawson
Bullard,Young,Milner,Downing
Tevez,Carew,Agbonlahor

I strongly believe DBent WILL be in my team. I just don't know in whose place he'll be...!!! And I'm still holding Faye on dc...!!!
We'll see...!!!

Cheers

KPM said...

Here is where I stand with $17.51 still in the bank. Considered swapping Bendtner out for somebody. I know the Myhill thing seems crazy but at this point why not.

Myhill
Mancienne Elokobi Dawson Dunne
Bullard Adam Johnson Ashley Young
Bendtner Altidore Gabby

Any suggestions, especially relating to upgrades? Thought about giving up my huge Bendtner discount for Darren Bent.

Anonymous said...

Another great post AM.

Currently sitting on:

Freidel
Jagielka/Elokobi/Carragher
Bullard/J.Cole/Downing/Mokoena
Tevez/Bent/Agbonlahor

I will likely move to this:

Freidel
Jagielka/Elokobi/Dawson
Bullard/Young/Downing/Mokoena
Tevez/Carew/Agbonlahor

I really don't want to drop Tevez. He is scoring goals for fun, and he seems to like to stick it to United this season. I don't see anyway I can avoid having Mokoena this week as I want too many expensive players so I'm just going to embrace it!

Not having Bale is getting worse and worse by the week. What a mistake to drop him when BAE was to return. I could have Bale in place of Mokoena!!!

Good luck this week.

-lfcinpa

Anonymous said...

is adebayor unavailable?

Mèo Ko Ăn Cá said...

my team :
gordon
Cuellar- Dunne- Salgado
Arteta-AJ-Downing-Milner or Young- Digakoi(filter)
Tevez-Carew

rate my team,plz
and Milner or Young :-s

Unknown said...

man i got rid of bendtner so my fwd line is tevez, gabby, carew...i lookin to get van persie on the BD...cuz he does look "sharp" as arsene said he wud b...

Anonymous said...

I'm going all out on Aston Villa and double gamers this week. I think Aston Villa is still playing for an outside shot at that 4th spot in the league. The last time I loaded up on Villa players, I got burned. I'm hoping for glory this time around.

Friedel
Bale, Dawson, Dunne
Bullard, Milner, Downing, Petrov
Agbonlahor, Carew, Altidore

That's 10 double gamers, 7 of them from Villa. It's pretty much all or nothing. I haven't saved the changes quite yet since it's taking a little convincing to give up huge discounts on Tevez, Bendtner and Malouda.

Cech's Mates

Anonymous said...

i've load majority villa player.. my team:
myhill
dunne,cuellar,warnock,bale
downing,young,milner
carew,gabby,altidore

all dg, except bale

Unknown said...

@cusut07 - i prefer young over milner becuz he will get more crosses in and take corners...milner will take more shots on goal...so that is where the diff will b...

why do u still hav arteta...he injured...

Anonymous said...

Current Team (Not saved yet):

Gordon
Sylvinho/Mancienne/Warnock
Bullard/A Young/Milner/Downing
Agbonlahor/Carew/Bendtner

Possible 18 games out of that lot, with 7 DG's.

Am having to gut my team to do it and have to lose massive discounts on Tevez, Verm(injured anyway), A Johnson & K Foley. But I have 205pts to make up in my Private League to take 1st place.

Is it worth it to try and go to a 3-5-2 and fit Tevez back in there somehow ? Drop Bendtner & Downing for Tevez & Petrov/A Johnson ???


HELP !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

@CUSUT07 - It's a risky call having Arteta in there, even on a big discount. I sold him 2 weeks ago with a 6-7m discount as zero every week just doesn't cut it at this stage in the season (unless it's a filler!). Just my $0.02.

Superfly Jim

Backcountry Dave said...

Just a thought but the last time we were told that Verm would be out for weeks with a leg injury, he returned the very next game to score a goal. I think I will wait until the last minute to swap him out.

Backcountry Dave

Shiv said...

AM. Why no love for Yuri? I know its a tough game but he's been fantastic running up and down at a phenomenal rate. I have the same midfield as you but with Yuri in there instead of Johnson. I have Darren Bent instead of Bendtner and Jagielka instead of Warnock with Gordon in goal. Apart from that, identical teams. Best of luck

Anonymous said...

One other worthy of a mention is the "Poor mans Darren Bent". Frazier Campbell has finally started to repay the manager for saving him from another spell with Hull & has done particularly well against weakened defences. At under 6 mill he`s a decent single game alternative to Josy of Hull.

Assistant Manager said...

F.Campbell's a great call anon - I've recommended him almost every week recently but for some reason I missed him this time

Anonymous said...

@Anon 6:51 - I have both Campbell/Josy in my team...

Friedel
Bale/Collins/Jagielka
Bullard/A.Young/Downing/Milner
Campbell/Bent/Altidore

I know my forward line looks weak but I fancy Sunderland to demolish Burnley and bring them back to reality from the Hull game. I quite like it and don't see myself changin it, 7 double gamers is good enough with 4 single gamers with great match-ups. Good luck to all!

Saul(sorry I'm having trouble login into gmail account)

Anonymous said...

Thanks A.M.
This is my set-up so far. Josy may be swapped for Frasier & the AV & Hull defenders can also be modded.

Goalkeeper
C. Gordon Sunderland Sell at 6.56
(market price 6.56)
Defenders
G. Bale Tottenham Sell at 2.80
(market price 14.67)
P. McShane Hull Sell at 5.71
(market price 5.71)
C. Cuéllar Aston Villa Sell at 10.80
(market price 11.48)
Midfielders
J. BullardHull Sell at 10.98
(market price 12.79)
S. Downing Aston Villa Sell at 10.40
(market price 10.95)
J. Milner Aston Villa Sell at 13.06
(market price 13.65)
Ashley Young Aston Villa Sell at 13.83
(market price 13.83)
Forwards
J. Carew Aston Villa Sell at 8.47
(market price 8.47)
G. Agbonlahor Aston Villa Sell at 12.06
(market price 13.28)
J. Altidore Hull Sell at 5.33
(market price 5.33)

Total 100.00

Anonymous said...

first of all, my season has gone well, overally in top 150, which is quite nice, this is what my team currently :
fülöp
bale a.ferdinand jagielka
bullard milner young petrov
tevez agbonlahor carew

i will go with a goose egg for goalkeeper, spent 1.94, but i just don't trust friedel, 2 times this season on double weeks he's been bad for me for his price, gordon dicent, but to squeeze in aston villa players didn't have the money.
i'm not going to spend 10~ something for villa defender, so defense hopefully cang get something for me, everything else seems to be no-brainer.
what to you guys think about that goalkeeper move, i would also suggest it.

Anonymous said...

Re: goalkeeper move,using fulop....why would you knowingly take a zero from one of your eleven positions at this stage of the season? I know you're keen to load up on villa players,and rightly so,but you've got to take every oppertunity to earn points. it's the same logic that applied when people sold drogba due to the african nations. four gameweeks left,that's forty four player positions left to earn you points this season. why decide to give yourself one less than everyone else?
like superfly jim says,just my two cents on the subject.

at the moment i'm only holding five double gamers,but i'm happy with the scoring chances of my single game players.

Anonymous said...

BREAKING NEWS-MATCHES MAYBE CANCELLED!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/8622438.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/rugby_league/8622315.stm
British sports teams have been hit by travel problems after flights were grounded around the UK because of ash from the volcanic eruption in Iceland.

~Newbie(keep watching!)

Anonymous said...

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/8621407.stm

'All flights in and out of the UK and several other European countries have been suspended as ash from a volcanic eruption in Iceland moves south.'

'Safety group Eurocontrol said the problem could persist for 48 hours.'

WATCH OUT!

~Newbie

Anonymous said...

Week 31 - Pauly's Bargain Basement Top Picks

After last week's 18 top picks returned 138 points for 81.83m invested (168%)- a fine result;
here's this week's barrel scrapers (max 8m)- playing mostly at home with winnable fixtures :

GK
james (Ports) 1.00
Kirkland (Wigan) 3.39 *
Green (Wham) 6.55 **
Gordon (Sund) 6.57 **

DF
Elokobi (Wolv) 5.73 *
Mouyokolo (Hull) 6.22 * DG
Turner (Sund) 7.97 **
Onuoha (MCity) 7.79 **
Konchesky (Ful) 7.59 *
Gardner (Bham) 7.47 **
Salgado (Bbn) 7.45 **
Campbell (Ars) 6.46 **
Hutton (Sund) 5.28 **
Jagielka (Evert) 6.18 *
Ferreira (Chels) * 6.31 ?
da Silva (Sund) 6.39 *

MF
Henderson (Sund) 7.71 **
Petrov (AVilla) 7.84 ** DG
Aquilani (Lpool) 7.73 **?
Zenden (Sund) 7.34 **
Benayoun (Lpool) 7.08 **?
Geovanni (Hull) 6.62 ** DG
Babel (Lpool) 6.26 **
Fahey (Bham) 5.44 *
Whelan (Stoke) 5.85 **

FW
Benitez (Bham) 6.89*
Kalinic (Bburn) 2.61 ** ?
Altidore (Hull) 5.35 ** DG
Campbell (Sund) 5.23 *

* - filler
** - top picks
? - check team sheets
DG - Double gamer

Good luck AM with your team - I'm a little worried to see so many Villa players in there, after the experience we had with their double weeks earlier in the season !

Good weekend all

Pauly

Anonymous said...

@Pauly - It shouldn't be a surprice since this tiem around Villa are playing the 2 bottom teams of the league, one of them with their season being over. I'm thinking if Villa can't put up a big win vs. 1 of their 2 easy matches they don't deserve a european chance.

My team is definite...

Friedel
Bale/Jagielka/Collins
Bullard/A.Young/Milner/Downing
Altidore/Bent/Campbell

I think each one of my players has a great chance to score big due to match-ups but we all know averything can go wrong in Fantasy footie, I'm just hoping that's not the case this time around.

-Saul-

Kellz said...

@Newbie: Looks like teams will have to bus it :D

Pop Thy Collar said...

Ah what I meant to say was.

Great team, Villans all the way this week.

Top 1,000 here I come

Assistant Manager said...

Newbie - Thanks for the updae.

FWIW, teams that were planning on flying (some teams do) will go by coach instead. You can be at most Premiership grounds in 5 hours from any other ground, I can't see there being any risk of any games being postponed.

p.s. Jeremy & Neal are reporting Warnock could be an injury doubt. One to keep an eye on for sure.

AM

greginho said...

tevez at 15.46, my cost, will outscore agbonlahor over his two games. i am not dropping tevez, he will score 2 against manure. he has had great matches against the big teams 2 goals at chelski, 3 vs manure in the fa cup, 1 at home to chelski, 1 vs arsenal in the carling cup and 2 assists at manure. carew is the better pick for villa forwards. i have him and bendtner. i am only using 4 Double Gamers. carew, warnock, young and milner. i really want bullard, but his score last week for me, was a bummer.

Anonymous said...

HULL City will have defender Andy Dawson available for Saturday's trip to Birmingham.

The defender was a doubt after being stretchered off in the 4-1 defeat to Burnley last week.

However, boss Iain Dowie today said he expected him to be available for the trip to St Andrews this weekend.

Anonymous said...

HULL City will have defender Andy Dawson available for Saturday's trip to Birmingham.

The defender was a doubt after being stretchered off in the 4-1 defeat to Burnley last week.

However, boss Iain Dowie today said he expected him to be available for the trip to St Andrews this weekend.

JT

Anonymous said...

# Garcit out with knee injury, doubts over Boateng and Dawson at Hull http://bit.ly/depWoC about 7 hours ago via web

Anonymous said...

Ace post AM!(as usual)


THE TOPIC
Bendtner VS Bent

THE ISSUE
I have one serious headache....keep Bendtner at discount(5.80) or go for Bent who is sure to get a hatrick this weekend.

RATIONALE FOR KEEPING HOLD OF BENTNER FOR SO LONG
I've had Drog since week one so that's one heavyweight in my team I need not worry about. I'm able to rotate the second choice forward.
This week Gabby will be the rotating forward. Bendtner has merely been a filler(and a useful one too) due to Arsenal's injury problems. Now RVP is back, circumstances have changed considerably.

HELP NEEDED
I need a logical conclusion to end this on going turmoil that has been eating away at me!(well, since last Wednesday)

AM, Pauly,Greginho,Saul,Backcountry Dave,Ruth,KPM... what would YOU do????



ThatsEntertainment81

greginho said...

i can't legally put bent on my team, because he is on my "dead to me list". the paperwork to fill out, to be able to put one of those players is atrocious. it is like a premier league team trying to get a work vise for a player that doesn't play regularly for the national team.

my forwards are bendtner, tevez and carew.

Mike B said...

Excellent player picks, as per usual!

I have a team constructed of many of them, with a bit of risk thrown in.

I haven't been posting much of late, due to being in the middle of moving from the UK to Mexico, and having no internet connection. I'm sat in Starbucks as we speak, making a few changes.

After witnessing a few Villa games recently, i don't trust them to keep clean sheets. So Friedel is now not an option for me. Gordon is definately in, as he allows me to be stronger elsewhere.

So here it is (pending injury news).

Gordon
Elokobi, Dunne, Bale
Young, Bullard, Geovanni, Downing
Tevez, Agbonlahor, Altidore

I know i know, Geo is probably a silly pick... but i think Dowie will ring the changes after the last performance, and Geo will benefit.

Altidore is just there as i don't have the money for anyone else.

Milner is being purposely left out, as like Greginho with Bent, he is on my definately dead to me list. I don't care if he gets 50 points, he will be rubbish if i pick him.

Good luck everyone, and if you want to give me any advise, i'd be happy, as i have no time to research properly lately.

It's a good job i have the player picks here on the blog to help me out!

Cheers AM, and everyone :)

Anonymous said...

Sitting on

Howard
Bale, Dunne, Jagielka
Bullard, Maxi, Downing, Henderson
Tevez, Gabby, Jerome

Dropped Malouda (who I held at 10) and Verm. Just have a feeling about Jerome this week and didn't want to cut him. (Writing this as I watch Philly vs Toronto MLS game, PK by Toronto, 2-1, 82nd min).
Obviously, the quality in MLS is not as good as Europe, but it is improving which is very encouraging for soccer (or football) to finally take off here in the States.
Anyway, pretty satisfied with my team, so I'll just check the injury report tomorrow.

STLRam01

KPM said...

ThatsEntertainment81

Not sure what I am going to do re: Bendtner vs. Bent. Probably will do a little reading tomorrow evening and see what they say about RVP. I can't help but think that his (RVP's) performance the other night will earn him a starting role on the weekend. Having said that, Bendtner will probably be in the starting lineup as well so I may stick with him and use my money else where. Once I see what BBC, the Guardian and Sky Sports has to say I will probably make my final decision (and will post it here).

It is actually a shame (for me) that the UK changed their clocks by an hour a few weeks ago. I live in St. Louis, Missouri and after the US switched to daylight savings time I had until 7am to jiggle my lineup. Now that the UK did their equivalent of DST I have only until 6am to make final changes.

Anonymous said...

@ThatsEntertainment81 - Arsene will hose you by limiting Bendtner's time on the pitch, plus (as pointed out on Neal and Jeremy's site) with Bent you get Hull next weekend but Bendtner gets Citeh.

Anonymous said...

Hi People! few games left! interesting. For the last 1 month I've been outperforming the members in my group and chase over about 100 points of more then find myself on the 3rd pos from 5th (which is the lowest)

Aiming for 2nd place now.

Anyway,

My team so far is:

Friedel
Bale/Elokobi/Dawson (waiting for confirmation)
Walcott/Maxi/Milner/Babel (not sure if he plays, any suggestion?)
Carew/Altidore/RVP!!

Gutted myself to drop Tevez @ 15 and getting RVP in which i'm sure if he plays, Wigan will be dead.

How's everyone doing?

Any comments? AM? Kellz?

Great blog, helped me alot! will join the AM Challenge cup next season.

Cheers,
DarkZero

FLScott said...

@ ThatsEntertainment81

Keep Bendtner. Has anyone other than Bale (possibly AJ) put up SO many points for the price? I'm holding on to him for sure.

Good Luck.

Caleb said...

I have shuffled my team for hours and still cannot think if I should drop Tevez @ 15.17 or not. Since my midfield will be AJ and the Villa trio for sure, here are the options:

(a) I keep Tevez, in defense I need to go with McShane, Dawson and ...... Mancienne or Vanden Borre, which I do NOT want (but no other good choices).

(b) If I drop him, I will go with Altitore. This will upgrade my defense to Dawson, Dunn and Warnock, which I will be happy.

(c) If I drop him, I can go with Bullard (352), then my defense will be the Hull trio (Dawson, McShance and Mouyokolo), which I will also be happy.

How....however..... it is a VERY big risk to drop Tevez. Yes I know he is @ home to Man U, not great match up. I know he is visiting Arsenal next week (week 32), also not great match up. However, in week 33, he is having a double match: home v Villa and away @ Spurs! I knew that if I dropped him this week, I will never afford him again this season so I will have to go for K2 or Bellamy in week 33 for their double match.


OK guys, should I drop him? a, b or c?

Anonymous said...

@ Caleb

I think you should rule out c)for starters.. Considering im facing a similar problem I cant tell you what to do between a) and b)..

I have a similar problem because I have BOTH Drogba and Tevez! If I sell Drogba I can afford Dunne and Downing.. Then im left to choose between Frazier Campbell and Altidore.. If I keep Drogba i will have Dikgacoi/Mokoena, and C Gardner.. On paper its so obvious but any time
I went for Aston Villa double gamer it didnt work out for me and besides that Drogba is a consistent point getter, even off the bench.. Then I have the issue of selling downing or Dunne and going for Bent instead.. What to do????

RonaldoReturns

Anonymous said...

BTW Drogba at 18.50 and Tevez and 16.93

RonaldoReturns

Anonymous said...

@10:40 PM, April 15, 2010
Football is the only religion here.

Caleb said...

@RonaldoReturns

My option C is also all starters. I am pretty sure the Hull trio defense will start, except there might be a chance that Dawson will be injured (wait for tomorrow team news).

How much did you pay for Drogba? If it is still 10.XX, I will keep him. If it is 20~, I will drop him instead. BTW, just to let you know that I decided to drop Malouda @ 10.90 this week as well. Hopefully this may give you a boost to drop Drogba.

Gasper said...

Gordon
Bale, Dunne, Mancienne
AJ, Young, Delph (DG filler), Yummy
Bendt, Tevez, Carew

What do you guys thing about Delph? I know O'Neill doesn't rotate much, but he's the 5th Villa MF, and might get some minutes.

Caleb said...

@ Gasper,

If I were you, I will not take Delph as filler. I would rather downgrade Dunne to one of the Hull defenders and upgrade Delph to Downing/Milner instead. If you can't afford the two, I would take Petrov.

Gasper said...

Thanks Caleb.

I can put Delph and AJ out and replace them with Mendy (can he play??) and Milner.

Kendo said...

No one fancy Robinson between the sticks?

Goin with

Robinson

Bale Baird A. Ferdinand

Petrov AYoung Henderson A Johnson

Drogs Agbon Carew

Anonymous said...

First of all a big thanx to: Greginho, Mike B, KPM,Anon @3:57 and FLS Scott.

I have taken all your remarks into deep consideration and will make my decision after scrutinizing tomorrow's team sheets and consulting my lawyers. Though I must add that Anon @3:57's remark about Sunderland's fixture next week against Hull might just have swung it for me.

All the best.

ThatsEntertainment81

Anonymous said...

great post AM

my team at the moment

Friedel
Bale-Manciene-A.Dawson
henderson-young-petrov-etuhu(filler)
teves(16.xx)-bent-agbon

with 3mil to spare

should i downgrade friedel and improve midfield and def?

flitz

Anonymous said...

Hi AM,

Warnock not playing, need to switch

SL

Kendo said...

Etherington and Fuller are doubtful according to Sky Sports

Anonymous said...

Fulop (1.94)

Bale (2.65) Foley (6.24) Dunne (10.62)
Milner(13.04) Petrov(7.83) Young(13.83) Walcott(9.78)

Tevez (15.06) Bent (13.46) Altidore (5.33)

How does my team look? It's make or break time with the season drawing to a close.

bengoh91

Anonymous said...

is no one thinking maxi? not at a bad price and does ok?

Anonymous said...

also is no one thinking maik taylor?

Anonymous said...

hi, my 1st comment in this wonderful blog...

my team:
friedel
foley,elokobi,dunne
arteta,rosicky,j.cole,a.young
bendtner,carew,agbonlahor

pls give ur comment on my team this week...

JO

STM said...

Looks like Salgado will likely outscore Arteta again for the next round of matches. In fact, he may outscore Torres as well.

Sorry, just having a bit of fun while providing some injury news. :-D

@SL: Where did you hear that Warnock has been confirmed not to be playing? According to O'Neill, he is still just a doubt and has not been totally ruled out.
http://www.avfc.co.uk/page/FootballNewsDetail/0,,10265~2026383,00.html

@Anon 1:02 PM: Looks like you don't follow football that much. Clue: Birmingham's first choice keeper is not injured, will return between the posts for the next match and he is not Maik Taylor. :-)

@JO: Surprised that people are still holding Arteta. Moyes said that the next game comes too soon for him to be back.
http://www.evertonfc.com/news/archive/2010/04/16/heitinga-in-rovers-return-

Anonymous said...

is tevez @ 15.17 worth dropping to fit in friedel? with altidore being his replacement?

Ian Sanderson said...

anon @ 2.10

no

Anonymous said...

anon 2:10 - Keep Tevez, he has a double gameweek coming up...you don't want to pay premium price to get him back. Besides, in the form that he's in the kid will score good points.

-Saul

Anonymous said...

My team this week.
friedel
bale sonko dawson
young milner bullard mendy
agbonlahor carew tevez

wat do u think about mendy? cheap starter at 1.25, also dawson seems to be fit.

Tosh said...

Hows my team guys? please comment :)

gordon
Bale Dunne sylvinho(filler)
mALOU Spetrov Milner Downing
Drogba tevez carew

Anonymous said...

Okay I know I said that my team was complete but someone showed me the below link which states that Campbell is suffering from an illness...

http://www.safc.com/news/20100416/match-preview-sunderland-v-burnley_2256213_2026667

My team is now...

Gordon
Bale/Jagielka/Collins
Bullard/Young/Downing/Milner
Altidore/Bent/Carew

Went from Friedel/Campbell to Gordon/Carew as I feel it's a fair trade...Gordon should get a clean sheet and Carew could/should score. What do you guys think? Should I go back to Friedel and choose someone to replace Campbell @5.36? If so, any recommendations? Thanks alot,

-Saul

Anonymous said...

That's my team so far:

Gordon
Bale Hutton Warnock
Malouda Milner AYoung Downing Nasri
Bendtner Agbonlahor

Well, of course the thing that worries me the most is the doubt over Warnock. I can't replace him for Dunne unless I downgrade someone. I can drop Nasri and get Carew, which will give me a certain starting defender for both of the Villa games, and also a double-game striker. But...
I just have this feeling Nasri can do another a la Porto (or a la Brum for that matter) against Wigan, the weakest team outside of the dropping zone in my opinion. And Carew's scoring form has cooled a bit, and that's and understatement - I can see me picking him for 4 points over the two games, really.
I can't drop anyone else for Dunne, really, so I might stay with Warnock and face the doubt. They're optimistic about him, but where did we hear that before (Hint: Gabby)? And yet, I'm taking risks. In the last couple of weeks it worked out well, and I'm not going to leave the risks now.

Advices?

SF

Anonymous said...

What the hell!!! One second I have .36 more to spend on my team; another second .97, without making any changes, and another second back to .36.

I was planning on using that ghost cash to upgrade Altidore to Babel but was too slow to do it and it disappeared. Anyone know why this happens? Glitch maybe?

-Saul

Kellz said...

decisions decisions:

Contrary to BBBF support here, I can't imagine Hull or Pompey will be firing many chances on target meaning very low chance for Friedel to make saves. My worry is Villa slip up and a silly goal in and BOOM no CS with maybe 1-2 saves and a win (probably), meaning we can worry his pick might only net us 10 pts over 2 games, or I am completely wrong :D

So I am looking at:

(Gordon, BBBF, Jussi)
Bale, Dawson (Foley, Warnock, Dunne)
Milner, Downing, Bullard, AJ
Bent, Gabby, Bendtner

Basically this comes down to my defense and GK situation. If I go for Gordon I have to take someone under 10mil, if I go BBBF I will go Foley, if I take Jussi I can have Either Warnock or Dunne.

I am set having Bent @Home to Burnley, I expect 2 goals here, Bendtner at 5mil? Still scoring above his price and away to Wigan, and Gabby who is the sure starter for two matches over Carew who could be rotated for Heskey at some point.

Sad to drop Malouda discount, but like he said, this late in the game, you have to take advantage of the doubles, and if Villa can't get a CS + Win and score more than 3 goals on 2 of the bottom 3 teams, then they don't deserve Champions League. (knock on wood)

Good luck everyone!

Anonymous said...

Kellz my two cents is, I'd go with Gordon and Foley and then use the spare cash to up Downing to Young.

I'm looking at:

Freidel
Jagielka, Elokobi, Carr
Bullard, Young, Downing, Mendy (filler)
Tevez, Gabby, Carew

I'm thinking of switching out my keeper, my defense and Ashley Young for Gordon, Hutton, Dunne, McShane, and Milner.

I'd still have the Villa CS covered. I'd add an additional double gamer in McShane. I like Hutton's chances of a CS better than either Jagielka or Elokobi.

What does everyone think?

-lfcinpa

Kellz said...

@Ifcinpa: The problem with Young over Downing is your taking out a FK taker for a winger. While both have many positives, I always tend to take the FK taker. Its true, Young has the ability to score more points than Downing, but if you compare their stats, Downing will usually come up with corners and the odd direct FK here and there, meaning in a week Young goes missing (i.e 5pts) Downing still comes up with 8.5pts. I am also remembering the Villa v Burnley match in which Downing got his first 2 Villa goals, see as Downing is now facing 2 of the bottom 3, I just have a feeling he will get atleast 1 goal. However I feel Young has just as good of a chance if not slightly better to score, but in case he doesn't I think I'll stick with the FK taker.

Thanks for the advise!

As for your team, I think your leaning the right way. BBurn has proven to be very tough at home and Everton have been letting goals slip in. Your probably right on Hutton over Jags, but for Jags price he doesn't need to do much to score high and BBurn aren't exactly a threatening team going forward.

Dunne is a pick I desperately want, I just have a feeling he is going to pop up with a goal, so I will most likely try and fit him in. I'd say your front line could prove to be devastatingly good if Tevez can keep his form, and Gabby/Carew do what they are supposed to and score big on weak sides. Elokobi and Carr should be bets for a CS, Carr more so than Elo, but Fulham have really poured all their strength into the Europa League.

I myself opted to stick with Bendtner just for variation and his opponent. I don't believe RvP will be started, he doesn't have 90min match fitness and Arsenal's title challenge is virtually over (although I still hope for Liverpool 4th and so should Arsenal hope for the title!)

Just remember, go with your gut!

Kellz said...

@Ifcinpa: I have heard from AM that Ashley Young is taking most FK if not all, so therefore I will listen to your advise and get him in :D

Anonymous said...

Great post again A.M

I am taking your advice and loading up on Villa players.

My team

Gordon
Bale, Campbell, Warnock
Milner, Petrov, Downing, Young, G.Boateng
Gabby, Carew

To all who hold Tevez. Yes he is in great form and you all probably have him at discount but his next 4 games are Man U, Arsenal, Villa and Spurs. A tough fixture list for any in form player.
If you are going to drop him, do it now.

My tip for a good filler will be G.Boateng for Hull, as long as he recovers from his concussion, which he should do and at 4.23 he should earn his points.

Good luck to all.

Kitmyster

Anonymous said...

Thanks for the tips Kellz. I think I'll go with my second option and then quickly snatch Jagielka back up on the BD at that great low price.

Kitmyster - Tevez is a big game player. Yes they are tough fixtures, however:

United - Tevez performs well against as he's got something to prove

Arsenal - Desperately thin/weak in central defense with Verm and Gallas out for that game

Villa and Spurs - two tough matchups, but they will be coming in a double week if I'm not mistaken. I'd take two games for Tevez against difficult sides over one game for most other players

We'll see how it plays out, but as of now, I'm looking to keep him at 15xx for the rest of the season.

-lfcinpa

Anonymous said...

bullard or milner???

mk

FLScott said...

@ Saul

I'm going with BBBF and would suggest that route. Here's another option I'm taking that you might consider.

Why not grab Kilbane as a midfielder? He could show for two games and he's only 4.59.

Cheers

Anonymous said...

gordon
bale/dawson/mancienne
downing/johnson/young/henderson
tevez/bent/carew

that's enough of that for this week...

Nuno

Anonymous said...

as usual great post, thx AM!!!
my team;
Gordon
Bale A.Dawson Warnock
AYoung Downing Milner G.Boateng
Drogba Bendtner Agbonlahor

3 Villa midfielder cost me dropping tevez&malouda, hope itis worth...
and 0.2 left on bank, cannt find a way to upgrade warnock to dunne

any comments, suggestions???

KC

Anonymous said...

my current team:

Gordon
Dunne Mancienne Emerton
Bullard Milner Kilbane Dikgacoi
Tevez Bent Agbonlahor

Still unsure of milner or young..any suggestions?

Anonymous said...

my current team:

Gordon
Dunne Mancienne Emerton
Bullard Milner Kilbane Dikgacoi
Tevez Bent Agbonlahor

Still unsure of milner or young..any suggestions?

PJ (apologies for the double post)

Anonymous said...

Which pairing is better:
Sol Campbell/A. Dawson OR
Jagielka/Mouyokolo?

Ange

FLScott said...

@ PJ

I had Young, but my gut said Milner so I switched. No real rational for this, just going on instinct. Honestly though, I don't think you can go wrong either way.

Anonymous said...

Simple Question:

Dunne or Cuellar?

I have Cuellar at 10.75 and no leftover money. I already have Gabby, Petrov and Young. So, who would you choose. Dunne or Cuellar? Anyone?

FLScott said...

I've got both Dunne and Cuellar, but if I had to choose I'd go with Cuellar. See above about instincts. Good luck.

Anonymous said...

@FLScott

Thanks for the feedback. I think i will stick to Milner as well. Cheers

PJ

Anonymous said...

I've noticed Dunne doesn't get forward for corners as much as he used to. It seems to be Cuellar and Collins going up for them, so I'd probably stick with Cuellar.

Who is a better defensive selection from Hull: McShane or Dawson?

-lfcinpa

please said...

hutton, carr, young
or
dunn, mancienne, downing

Mèo Ko Ăn Cá said...

Gordon
Cuellar-Dunne-Salgado -Mancienne
AJ-A.Young-Milner- Mendy(filter)
Tevez-Carew

Unknown said...

Here's a question... Defensive points with Friedal or offensive points with Carew?

Freidal=Atidore
Carew=Gordon

Which combo do you reckon will score higher?

Anonymous said...

wow!!

it seems the Gabby n Carew are on everybody teams..

for me i'll take only gabby from villa attacker n add Bent n Zamora..

yes..Zamora..he surely wants to show the Don Capello something..

DJames
Bale Faye CGardner Konchesky
Downing Duff Wallcott
Bent Gabby Zamora

MBasil

Anonymous said...

I have to go out, so that's my final team. I thought about a last minute switch to Carew+Dunne from Nasri+Warnock, but decided not to. I can't go against my guts, I'll feel bad all week.

Gordon
Bale Hutton Warnock
Malouda Milner Young Downing Nasri
Bendtner Gabby

Good luck!

SF

Anonymous said...

settled on..
gordon
bale,dawson,hutton
bullard,young,downing,a.johnson
tevez,carew,bent.

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