Week 5 - Update

Wow, this is a tough one. We have almost no decent news from the manager's press conferences today; there's loads of uncertainty over who will/won't start so it makes it difficult to give you decent advice. I'll just go with what we have been told and make a few assumptions, and maybe we can discuss things in the comments section/chat-room.

First up, it appears that Steve Fletcher is really struggling to make it for Wolves game vs QPR - he hasn't trained all week, so that means Kevin Doyle will need a new partner. As I mentioned in my Player Picks, Stephen Ward is the favourite to be that partner and as a midfielder listed below 6 he could be cracking value. It's not 100% but I may take the gamble as he'll definitely play left-back if he doesn't start upfront and he has scored already from that position this season. Jarvis it fit to start so he'll join a strong midfield including Hunt (who has trained without issue this week) and O'Hara.

There's a decent chance we'll get the Arsenal team news before tomorrow's deadline (Twitter is our best bet from around 11:45am) but we can already take an educated guess on the line-up. I think Gibbs may keep his place as he's done nothing wrong, but Santos is a real option for Wenger now he's made his debut in the Champions League. Ramsey is a big doubt so Benayoun should get a start (bargain @ 3). Gervinho and Alex Song are back from suspension but Verm & Wilshere are out.

Manchester United are likely to field their strongest teams against Chelsea as they look to keep their excellent start to the season. This means DDG in goal, Young, Nani, Rooney & Hernandez all starting. News on unclear on the Smalling/Evans decision and Ferguson must decide whether he goes with Fletcher or Carrick in the middle with Tom Cleverly ruled out.

Across the road, Manchester City will be recovering from a tough debut game in the Champions League, so once again there is a rotation fear. However, an away game at Fulham is much tougher than a home game against Wigan, so I'd think Mancini would go full strength and make substitutions once the game is won. I can't see Dzeko or Nasri starting on the bench for two league games in a row, and I'm sure nobody will be dropping Aguero after last week.

Chelsea will still be without Didier Drogba who is suffering with the effects of concussion. John Terry and Frank Lampard will come back into the side after missing out against Bayer Leverkusen but I don't think I'll be going near any Blues player's this week, given the fixture they face.

Bolton could hand debuts to N'Gog, Tuncay & Kakuta after good performances for the reserves in midweek, but Holden is unlikely to be risked just yet. This news about the new boys does have me slightly worried about Martin Petrov, so that could mean I make a change. Coyle has also revealed he could make defensive changes after their recent run of heavy defeats, but provided no specific details on who could might make way.

Absolutely nothing useful coming out of Everton - Drenthe could start after scoring for the reserves, but might not, Cahill could play upfront, or he might be dropped in to midfield to accommodate Saha. The only sure things are probably Howard, Osman, Baines, Distin, Jagielka & Cahill - all others are a risk.

Spurs have had some good news - Rafael van der Vaart has a chance of returning from injury against Liverpool, but William Gallas and Aaron Lennon are still doubts, King could play but Michael Dawson is definitely out.

For Liverpool, Glen Johnsn is out and Steven Gerrard is likely to make the bench at best. He couldbe joined by And Carroll, with Suarez set to lead the line again.

That's everything useful I could find.

Here are two possible teams I'm considering.

DDG, Boyata, Gibbs, Baines, Ward, Wright-Phillips, M.Petrov, Silva, Adebayor, Aguero, Rooney

Or

DDG, Rangel, Gibbs, Baines, Wright-Phillips, Benayoun, Hunt, Silva, Adebayor, Aguero, Rooney

Obvious fears about Gibbs, Petrov & Ward in the first team; Gibbs & Benayoun are the worries in the 2nd team. I had considered bringing in Van Persie for Adebayor instead of spanking 18+ on Baines, but that thought has left me now as I want to keep Ade at 5ish. As I type this I realise I'm not convinced by either of the teams above, so I think it's back to the drawing board.

Tough week! How's your team coming along?

Cheers,
AM