Matt Jarvis Fit for Wolves

Needless to say, they're all very happy with the news.

Matt Jarvis declared fit for Wolves

[Matt Jarvis], who came off the bench for the last 14 minutes against Spurs, revealed how an injection has now solved the problem [ankle injury].

He said: "It’s been managed well and the injection has sorted it now, so I just want to carry on training and try to get back into the team.

"I’m 100 per cent fit and I want to carry on where I left off after a good start to the season.

Tasty matchup, decent price. He'll be competing with the likes of Theo Walcott, Mikel Arteta, and Leon Osman in that 12 range. But his taking set-pieces could see him get the nod in my fantasy team.

Season Preview - Wolves

Quick Reminder, Real Life

Despite a load of money spent on transfer window signings, Wolves found themselves in the relegation zone on the last day of the season but miraculously survived - finishing the season with 40 points - only one more than both Birmingham and Blackpool. Despite a -20 goal difference on the season, Wolves had some memorable wins at home (they beat Manchester United and Chelsea) and the form of winger Matt Jarvis and (when fit) striker Steven Fletcher went a long way in cementing the club’s Premier League status for one more year. The likable Mick McCarthy has won more games than he’s lost at Wolves - dating back to his time managing the club in the Championship, and despite the poor results for a majority of the 2010-2011 campaign, always displayed a sense of calm and confidence in his players.

Quick Reminder, Fantasy

Starting at the back, George Elokobi was a decent 5th defender in the Official PL game - coming in at a bargain basement price and chipping in with a few goals and assists but it was further up the field - specifically Jamie O’Hara on loan from Tottenham - who really provided the fantasy spark. When fit, O’Hara was instrumental in creating chances for his Wolves teammates and his delivery from set pieces earned him much praise. His strike against West Brom was a ‘goal of the season’ contender. The well-known forwards Kevin Doyle and Steven Fletcher combined to score 15 league goals but lacked the season-long consistency necessary for prolonged fantasy investment.

Summer Changes

Wolves close to Johnson signing

Wolves close to Johnson signing - Yahoo! Eurosport

Wolves are closing in on the signing of Birmingham defender Roger Johnson after agreeing a fee approaching £7million, Press Association Sport understands.

Johnson held talks with Wolves officials at Molineux on Monday morning and was set to undergo a medical later that day.

Sources close to Wolves anticipate the deal being completed sooner rather than later.

This is a big statement of intent from Wolves. For a scrappy, competitive side they were too often a mess at the back. Hopefully Johnson can sort them out. And he's wont to put some in the back of the opponents net too. He'll be a nice target on set-pieces.

Jamie O'Hara Signs for Wolves

Hazing the new guy

Note: This was written yesterday, but didn't post for whatever reason.

Sky Sports is reporting that Wolves have finalized their long-expected signing of Jamie O'Hara from Spurs.

Owner-chairman Steve Morgan has revealed Wolves still have other targets in mind this summer after completing their move for Jamie O'Hara.

The Midlanders wrapped up a £5million deal for the midfielder on Tuesday, signing him from Tottenham on a five-year contract.

Reading centre-back Matt Mills, Wolves central defender Roger Johnson and Liverpool left-back Paul Konchesky are also thought to be on manager Mick McCarthy's wishlist.

This is a great move for both club and player. O'Hara finally knows where he will be playing - and that he will be playing regularly. And Wolves get a player that fits their style and their ethos, and who brings real skill to the midfield.  When healthy, Hunt, O'Hara, Henry, Guedioura and Jarvis - assuming Mick sticks with five across midfield - could be a real handful for opposing teams. There's a little speed, a lot of bite, and some talent in that group.

I wonder if this move spells the end of Milijas' time at Wolves. Aside from a good run mid-season, he hasn't even played regularly for McCarthy. I hope he could find a better fit somewhere else in the Premier League, though I suspect he'd find himself somewhere else. Turkey or Germany, perhaps.

Barn Door Team

Not that sticking with my Barn Door team last week was very successful -- or successful at all! -- but here's this week's version:



Concerns:

• Howard. What's the opposite of what you are looking for in a fantasy keeper?  That would be THo this season.  Everton haven't been consisten winners, which hurts your keeper's value.  But even when they win, Howard has a knack for letting in the soft goal.  Or more than one.  He's been in the red (minus points) more weeks than he's earned points.  Of course, that's why he's cheap.  And cheap is very attractive in a keeper.  And he's playing at Wolves, who have lost their leading scorer and just got hammered by Newcastle United.  So hope springs eternal, but I'm really not sure that this is a good pick
• Valencia and Hernandez.  Am I buying a false view of these players based on West Ham's ineptitude?  I'm probably only owning them for a week as they have an FA Cup semifinal the following week instead of a league match, but they are home to Fulham.  They are also in Champions League action against Chelsea on either side of this match, which could easily become a trap game.  Valencia's barn door price makes him an attractive midfield option, and the other best opition at Hernandez's price range is Sturridge who also misses the following week for an FA Cup semi.
• Lampard.  See above re: the Champions League.
• van Persie. Have Arsenal just collapsed?  Is it redeemable?  If so, it's going to be against Blackpool who are increasingly vulnerable.  At 9, returning 7 per week would be acceptable.  At 18 it really isn't.  He's probably staying in the team because the matchup is just too good, but also because I can't quite get to Nani without making other sacrifices.  But I will admit to have looked at what to do with the $10 that RvP to Sturridge would net.  For instance, maybe a real goalkeeper.

FA Cup Causes League Postponements

Bolton Wanderers | News | Latest News | General | New Date Set For Fulham

Bolton Wanderers can confirm that due to the club's participation in the semi-finals of the FA Cup, the trip to play Fulham at Craven Cottage in the Barclays Premier League will now take place on Wednesday 27 April.

The game had originally been set to take place on Saturday 16 April but following Wanderers' progress in the FA Cup the league game against Fulham has now been put back to Wednesday 27 April.

So Bolton, Fulham, Stoke City, Wolves, and Manchester City will all be idle the weekend of 16 April. I think it's possible that Newcastle and Manchester Uniteds could still play their match on that following Tuesday. I think the NUFC/MUFC match was rescheduled to that Tuesday from Saturday. But definitely a fluid situation.

Oh, and two-gamers!

UPDATE:

Stoke vs Wolves has been rescheduled for Tuesday 26 April.
http://xrl.in/8cw0less than a minute ago via webfantasyfootballscout
FFScout

Helpful Insight from Wenger

Image courtesy: Paul Blank/http://www.postproduktie.nl

Football365 | All The News | Football News | WENGER PUTS WOLVES CLASH FIRST

Looks like he's focusing on the league and will worry about Barca next week.  Good news for those betting on RvP, Cesc, Walcott, Djourou, and/or Szczesny.

Ebanks-Blake Out

And the injuries keep piling up. Too many games in too few days? Does the Premier League need a winter break? Or is the the FA Cup equivalent of Giggs' getting "hurt" before the international break?

Ebanks-Blake out of action for three weeks. Zubar and Foley out of the Doncaster FA Cup tie with minor ankle injuries.
http://bit.ly/ij3wXxless than a minute ago via webfantasyfootballscout
FFScout

He'll seemingly miss three of the league's big guns in @Manchester City, Liverpool, @Bolton, and Manchester United. And yes, I'm counting correctly.

Liverpool-Wolves Fancast

Evidently Wolves are quite welcome in Liverpool.

Anyone watch Liverpool-Wolves yesterday? I haven't had the courage to do it yet but I'm morbidly fascinated. This was Liverpool's full-strength side minus Carragher. What happened? Meireles wasted on the right? Gerrard not 100%? Or is this more about Wolves?

Drogba fit to face Wolves

Premier League - Drogba fit to face Wolves - Yahoo! Eurosport

Didier Drogba looks set to return to lead the Chelsea attack against struggling Wolves on Saturday, but Frank Lampard will have to wait a bit longer for his comeback - much to the frustration of the England midfielder.

Ivory Coast international Drogba has missed the Blues' last two matches because of a virus but has now resumed full training ahead of the visit of Mick McCarthy's side, third bottom of the Premier League.

Lampard, though, is expected to need more recovery time following his hernia operation which has seen the 32-year-old out of action since August 28.

Ramires Returns to England

RAMIRES JOINS THE INJURY LIST | Latest Chelsea News | Team & Transfer News | Chelsea FC | Chelsea

Carlo Ancelotti will be without Ramires for the Spartak Moscow game, after the midfielder picked up a knock on his ankle in Saturday's goalless draw with Aston Villa.

The Brazilian travelled to Russia but will not be fully recovered in time and will return to England for treatment, where he will join Alex, Jose Bosingwa, Didier Drogba and Frank Lampard.

Despite these absences Ancelotti feels he will be able to field a strong side against Spartak in the Luzhniki Stadium, and is buoyed by the return of Salomon Kalou, who trained with his team-mates on the artificial surface on a chilly Moscow Monday.

This doesn't sound like a serious injury, and if Lampard can return for the Wolves match it won't be a serious loss for Chelsea. However, should neither player recover in time it might be a boost for fantasy managers. Next in line would be Yuri Zhirkov, who in the Yahoo! game is listed as a bargain basement defender.

For me, this is especially interesting as my current cheap defender is Jerome Boateng who limped out of the match as City limped past Blackpool. We'll have to see how severe the injury was - or it might have been whiplash from tracking Blackpool's runners all match - but either way his place looks to be in doubt with Richards returning and replacing him.

Matchday Open Thread

photo courtesy mirror.co.uk

Sunderland v Chelsea

Wigan Athletic v Wolverhampton Wanderers

After our grand experiments at the weekend - by the way, please let us know what you thought of the Cover It Live application - we're back to an old-school matchday open thread for today's midweek matches. Will Ballack get the start? Will KRich make the game for Sunderland? Do Wolves have any players left? Other than Milijas, does it matter? Can Kirkland shake a dead leg (sounds like a terrible dance craze) for Wigan? 

Follow along with us in the comments.

Wolverhampton Wanderers Season Preview

Wolves finally get second crack at the Premier League, but it remains to be seen if their squad is anything but one for the Championship.  To be honest Wolves is probably the team I'm least familar with.  I don't know why really.  They've been on my radar for a while thanks to an old friend who was a rabid Wolves fan (Hi, Steve!) and their prior, um... gracing of the top-flight.  But I just don't have a sense of the team.  They seem to be a very good attacking squad with buzz around their young strike force, especially Sylvan Ebanks-Blake.  However, to my eye the defence looks unready for this level and the fact that they are already dealing with injuries to key players and that some of their summer signings aren't likely to be ready to play come opening day... it just doesn't sit well with me.  That being said, I think there are some fantasy opportunities with Wolves, particularly with Milijas.  If McCarthy can build a team around him - it would be hard in such a short time, but I'm thinking of precedents like Izzet at Leicester, Dugarry at Birmingham or Okocha at Bolton - there might really be something there for fantasy managers for sure, and for Wolves fans (Hi, Steve!) as well.

Possible Starting XI: Hennessey, Foley, Caldwell, Zubar, Elokobi, Kightly, Henry, Milijas, Jarvis, Doyle, Ebanks-Blake

Players to watch:

Michael Kightly - The flying winger.  Injured now, and frankly all too often in his still young career, Kightly is expected to be a big part of Wolves attack chipping in with goals and creating from the flank. 

Nenad Milijas - Along with Wigan's Jordi Gomez, Milijas was the Premier League newcomer I was most excited about.  A tall, skillful attacking midfielder, Milijas should be the fulcrum of Wolve's attack.  He will take responsibility for their set-pieces.  And McCarthy will likely play him as a support striker, "in the hole", when they go to a 4-5-1 against the bigger clubs or on the road.  He scored tons of goals in the Serbian league, albeit that was the Serbian league.   Still, he was the first name on my team sheet for the new season.

Kevin Doyle - Which Kevin Doyle did Wolves buy?  The one who scored 13 for Reading in a Premier League season and 18 in each of his two Championship seasons with the club, or the one who slumped to six goals in a forgetable (and doomed) 2007/2008?  Of course Wolves will be hoping that it is the former, and that all of his top-flight experience (such as it was) will help their other strikers make the leap as well.  I'm not convinced, and he's hurt to begin the campaign.  But If Wolves are to get it going, Doyle will likely be a key part.