MMM Substitute...

Sorry to disappoint those used to checking in after the last Premiership match of the match week expecting to find Jeremy's insights but my blog partner is at the hospital with his wife awaiting the birth of their second child so I'll have to do for the occasion. If you have a chance, wish Jeremy and Laura your best in the comments area...Since I'm starting the column with shout-outs, I'll add a congratulations to charter member of our private group Jon on his recent marriage and Doug on celebrating his 30th birthday this past Saturday.

OK, back to the week that was in the Premiership and in our little fantasy world...

First, I have to say something about my team (Arsenal, that is, not my fantasy team although they didn't do too well this week either). Let me be the first to forward the notion that a "Curse of Highbury" is developing. Arsenal are undoubtedly talented and they have been the better team in each of their matches this year. In years past, they found ways to get the ball into the back of the net. Would Henry have missed wide when taking his free kick early at Highbury? I can't remember it happening... This week they heeded the advice of the media and shot from deep more frequently and even when they did, nothing good came of it. With a trip to Old Trafford looming, they'd better get this worked out or they're in deep trouble.

From a fantasy standpoint, my major observation from the match is that Cesc is quietly developing into a very good fantasy option. He takes at least some free kicks and corners and is producing 8-10 "phantom points" per week. Once Arsenal are scoring - and it will happen sooner or later - and he adds some goals and assists to his point totals, he'll be a must-have given his status as a starter every week.

The new guys...after all the drama over the inability to add the big names from the transfer deadline, it turns out that Yahoo probably did all of us a favor. Among the big names only Stilian Petrov of Villa managed to have a good match. Anelka, Martins, Rossi, and Kuyt were largely anonymous and didn't appreciate much while they were unavailable to fantasy owners. This comment wasn't meant to absolve Yahoo - they had no way of knowing - just worth noting that none of them were spectacular in their first outing.

Trends...After four matches (for most teams), we can start to look at some player performance trends and...

It seems that Ryan Giggs has been reborn, he's scoring and generally looking like United's best player, we'll see if this continues when Rooney comes back but something that Fantasy Managers who wrote Giggs off as too old should keep in mind.

Early favorite Seol has cooled significantly since the first week as Premiership defenses have paid more attention to him.

It's official, AJ and Everton are on fire - with a light schedule through the end of October, it's time to get on the bandwagon if you're not already there. Howard and AJ are the only guys really performing at a high level for fantasy managers but Arteta and Cahill are worth considering when they have good match-ups as well.

Speaking of on fire, Bobby Zamora has continued his flying start in the face of the news that Tevez has arrived. Looks like we'll be looking at a Zamora/Tevez partnership once Tevez is ready to go. At this point, it's hard to call Zamora's streak just luck. We may be starting to get an idea of what Spurs saw in him a few years ago. If Tevez attracts attention, Zamora might be even more valuable assuming he doesn't lose time to rotation.

The AY bandwagon - Ashley Young continues to be the fantasy find of the season (remember you heard it here first). He has produced every week no matter who the opponent nor how well his own team has played. He's still not THAT expensive so go out and get him...

Bullard Replacement - Fantasy managers must be sorely disappointed that Jimmy Bullard has gone down with a serious injury (OUCH). Given Villa's performance so far and the results of his first match, you have to put Stilian Petrov at the top of your list to replace him. Other options include Scott Parker, Steve Sidwell, Damien Frances, and Cesc.

Drogba - He continues to be a source of frustration to Fantasy Managers. He's scored as many points as Henry this season so far in about the same number of minutes but he's definitely a source of frustration as he tends to miss starts and be very much hit and miss with his fantasy points. If you're willing to live with the ups and downs, you'll probably be happy with him at the end of the season but I know I'd go crazy if I were trying to figure out what weeks he's going to produce and when he's not.

America, F*ck Yeah...Not a headline you'll see associated with the beautiful game (or fantasy footie) too often but with Tim Howard, Brad Friedel, and Marcus Hahnemann coming away with clean sheets, Bocanegra and McBride scoring for Fulham and Convey assisting on Reading's goal it was a nice weekend for the American contingent in the Premiership. Probably not a trend outside of Howard and the possibility that Convey is starting to get acclimated but worth mentioning because, well, I'm American and still hurting from the World Cup smackdown that I spent a lot of money to see in person.

Best of luck Jer, we look forward to the pictures as well as a big weekend of matches with ManYoo/Arsenal and Liverpool/Chelsea coming up...