Tottenham - Bolton
| Bolton | Shots On | Shots Off | Blocked Shots | Fouls | Fouls Won | Offsides | Saves |
| H Nakata | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
With apologies to Wesley Snipes
While you should "Always bet on black", you should "Never bet on Bolton".
Tottenham - Bolton
Tottenham - Bolton
Well, that didn't work very well...
The end of the season tends to be a funny thing. For those of you at the tops of your private leagues, you are in an excellent position. You can look at players and match-ups and choose the strongest group you can afford and hope for the best in good conscience. For those of us trying to make up ground (I'm about 100 points behind fellow-blogger Jeremy in 2nd place in our group) the task isn't so easy.
Last week, for instance, my first instinct was to go with Solano - he's been hot, the match-up was a good one for him, and he wasn't terribly expensive. In fact, I had him in my squad for the majority of the week. As the deadline approached, I realized that to make up the gap, I had to go high-risk/high-reward. On the report that Amiobi and Shearer were likely out, I went with Luque who scored recently and has something to prove going into an off-season of uncertainty. Solano had a nice match, Amiobi recovered from having his teeth knocked out, Luque sat - not good times.
In honor of such situations, I'm going to make two sets of recommendations. One will be the traditional "best players available" recommendations and are generally intended for those looking to keep leads over friends, related to side bets (ahem, not that these things ever happen), or win private or public leagues. The second set will be for the rest of us who are trying to make up ground and should be taken in the spirit they are intended - high risk, high reward. They have the potential to turn out great but may yield you nothing instead. Here goes...
For the Leaders...
This may reek of my Arsenal bias but they need the points and they do have Sunderland this week...
Striker
There aren't too many surprises here to be honest. I'm sure most of you have K2 (that's Adebayor to you) at a pretty cheap price and you should probably stick with him. Henry and Rooney are probably the best two candidates to partner him if you can scrape together the money. Rooney has a tough one against Chelsea but he's a big game guy and he follows that up with a home match vs. what is sure to be an exhausted Boro squad. The streaky option up top is Luis Boa Morte, he generally scores in bunches and it looks like he's hitting a hot patch - never a bad thing with Sunderland on the schedule.
Midfield
This is the weekend to go old school. Arsenal look to be without Hleb and Reyes meaning that Freddie Ljungberg and Robert Pires are very likely to start and play most if not all the time in both matches this week. They're also relatively cheap (both under $9). Throw in an injury to Gilberto and you may want to go with Diaby as well who is extremely cheap (under $4). As far as non-Arsenal midfielders go, Malbranque, Ronaldo, and Lampard are the three best bets in my eyes. Ronaldo and Lamps because, well, they're Ronaldo and Lamps and Malbranque because of Sunderland being on the schedule.
Defense
More Arsenal here with Eboue and Clichy being affordable and almost guaranteed to play given that there are few options for Arsenal at right back and Cole is unlikely to start in his first match back and unlikely to go the full 90 in either match even if he does feature at some point. Wayne Bridge is another good, affordable bet here due to match-ups and his propensity for going forward.
Keeper
Niemi, Niemi, Niemi - he's cheap and he's been great since his return to the Fulham line-up. It's sort of the perfect situation for a fantasy keeper - the Cottagers are bad enough on defense that Niemi gets a lot of save chances but not SO BAD that he let's in too many goals. Even when he doesn't get a win/clean-sheet, he tends to get a lot of points off of saves. When he gets a win/clean-sheet, he's huge.
Swinging for the Fences...
Where the "safe" strategy features a lot of Arsenal and Fulham players (all of whom are very likely to start both team games while both teams face Sunderland), the high-risk strategy focuses on Boro.
Striker
It looks like JFH and Viduka are injured to at least some extent so it is likely that UEFA Cup hero Maccarone will get a lot of playing time over the three matches Boro has this week. He's obviously hot and as a bonus, he's dirt cheap ($6.56). Yakubu is also likely to get some PT in the absence of Boro's other strikers but he hasn't been what you'd call hot lately so I'm not particularly inclined to take that risk despite previous years' late season heroics from the Yak. The other part of the strategy is to take strikers who have quality but aren't necessarily facing the best match-ups and hoping they overcome those match-ups - Bellamy, Drogba, and Samaras come quickly to mind. Or take a flyer on someone like Brian McBride who hasn't been great lately but has good match-ups and isn't too terribly expensive.
Midfielders
I've been a big Stewart Downing fan since his arrival in Boro's starting XI. Boro are scheduled for three matches this week (and three tough ones at that) and while I'm sure he won't play in all three - the chance that he'll play in most/all of two should be sufficiently interesting to make him worth the risk. Slightly less attractive but in the same boat are his teammates Rochemback and Morrison. The only other non-obvious choice that is appealing to me in any way is Joey Barton who is due for a decent match or two.
Defenders
This is a tough one - certainly Ashley Cole represents a huge risk but I can't see him getting THAT much time combined in Arsenal's two matches. The best I think you can expect is 1 start and 1 substitute appearance. Upside of 20 points if he has a great game in the start and a clean sheet in the substitute appearance. Parnaby from Boro isn't a bad bet given their injuries in the back and his 3-game status - not really who you think of when you think fantasy defenders but he's solid (but a bit pricey). Outside of those two, you might want to be a little conservative here because you don't want to lose points on really bad risks.
Keeper
Either take a risk blowing budget on one of the old standards (Champions League hero Lehmann comes to mind) or go all out on the notion that Schwartzer is hurt and Jones gets three starts for Boro.
Good Luck as the season winds to a close...
Last week, for instance, my first instinct was to go with Solano - he's been hot, the match-up was a good one for him, and he wasn't terribly expensive. In fact, I had him in my squad for the majority of the week. As the deadline approached, I realized that to make up the gap, I had to go high-risk/high-reward. On the report that Amiobi and Shearer were likely out, I went with Luque who scored recently and has something to prove going into an off-season of uncertainty. Solano had a nice match, Amiobi recovered from having his teeth knocked out, Luque sat - not good times.
In honor of such situations, I'm going to make two sets of recommendations. One will be the traditional "best players available" recommendations and are generally intended for those looking to keep leads over friends, related to side bets (ahem, not that these things ever happen), or win private or public leagues. The second set will be for the rest of us who are trying to make up ground and should be taken in the spirit they are intended - high risk, high reward. They have the potential to turn out great but may yield you nothing instead. Here goes...
For the Leaders...
This may reek of my Arsenal bias but they need the points and they do have Sunderland this week...
Striker
There aren't too many surprises here to be honest. I'm sure most of you have K2 (that's Adebayor to you) at a pretty cheap price and you should probably stick with him. Henry and Rooney are probably the best two candidates to partner him if you can scrape together the money. Rooney has a tough one against Chelsea but he's a big game guy and he follows that up with a home match vs. what is sure to be an exhausted Boro squad. The streaky option up top is Luis Boa Morte, he generally scores in bunches and it looks like he's hitting a hot patch - never a bad thing with Sunderland on the schedule.
Midfield
This is the weekend to go old school. Arsenal look to be without Hleb and Reyes meaning that Freddie Ljungberg and Robert Pires are very likely to start and play most if not all the time in both matches this week. They're also relatively cheap (both under $9). Throw in an injury to Gilberto and you may want to go with Diaby as well who is extremely cheap (under $4). As far as non-Arsenal midfielders go, Malbranque, Ronaldo, and Lampard are the three best bets in my eyes. Ronaldo and Lamps because, well, they're Ronaldo and Lamps and Malbranque because of Sunderland being on the schedule.
Defense
More Arsenal here with Eboue and Clichy being affordable and almost guaranteed to play given that there are few options for Arsenal at right back and Cole is unlikely to start in his first match back and unlikely to go the full 90 in either match even if he does feature at some point. Wayne Bridge is another good, affordable bet here due to match-ups and his propensity for going forward.
Keeper
Niemi, Niemi, Niemi - he's cheap and he's been great since his return to the Fulham line-up. It's sort of the perfect situation for a fantasy keeper - the Cottagers are bad enough on defense that Niemi gets a lot of save chances but not SO BAD that he let's in too many goals. Even when he doesn't get a win/clean-sheet, he tends to get a lot of points off of saves. When he gets a win/clean-sheet, he's huge.
Swinging for the Fences...
Where the "safe" strategy features a lot of Arsenal and Fulham players (all of whom are very likely to start both team games while both teams face Sunderland), the high-risk strategy focuses on Boro.
Striker
It looks like JFH and Viduka are injured to at least some extent so it is likely that UEFA Cup hero Maccarone will get a lot of playing time over the three matches Boro has this week. He's obviously hot and as a bonus, he's dirt cheap ($6.56). Yakubu is also likely to get some PT in the absence of Boro's other strikers but he hasn't been what you'd call hot lately so I'm not particularly inclined to take that risk despite previous years' late season heroics from the Yak. The other part of the strategy is to take strikers who have quality but aren't necessarily facing the best match-ups and hoping they overcome those match-ups - Bellamy, Drogba, and Samaras come quickly to mind. Or take a flyer on someone like Brian McBride who hasn't been great lately but has good match-ups and isn't too terribly expensive.
Midfielders
I've been a big Stewart Downing fan since his arrival in Boro's starting XI. Boro are scheduled for three matches this week (and three tough ones at that) and while I'm sure he won't play in all three - the chance that he'll play in most/all of two should be sufficiently interesting to make him worth the risk. Slightly less attractive but in the same boat are his teammates Rochemback and Morrison. The only other non-obvious choice that is appealing to me in any way is Joey Barton who is due for a decent match or two.
Defenders
This is a tough one - certainly Ashley Cole represents a huge risk but I can't see him getting THAT much time combined in Arsenal's two matches. The best I think you can expect is 1 start and 1 substitute appearance. Upside of 20 points if he has a great game in the start and a clean sheet in the substitute appearance. Parnaby from Boro isn't a bad bet given their injuries in the back and his 3-game status - not really who you think of when you think fantasy defenders but he's solid (but a bit pricey). Outside of those two, you might want to be a little conservative here because you don't want to lose points on really bad risks.
Keeper
Either take a risk blowing budget on one of the old standards (Champions League hero Lehmann comes to mind) or go all out on the notion that Schwartzer is hurt and Jones gets three starts for Boro.
Good Luck as the season winds to a close...
Hleb allays injury fears
Hleb allays injury fears
The talented dribbler accepts he may require surgery at the season's close to clear up the problem, but any such plans have now been shelved until after the final.But does this mean that he's rested through the remaining EPL games? Figure K2 (Adebayor) returns and Freddie moves back into midfield?
Wigan boss Jewell resigned to Bullard departure
Wigan boss Jewell resigned to Bullard departure
Odd timing for a transfer with just days left in the season. And an odd move... down the table. But maybe he's a Londoner? Regardless, fantasy managers should note that:
Odd timing for a transfer with just days left in the season. And an odd move... down the table. But maybe he's a Londoner? Regardless, fantasy managers should note that:
Jewell, though, feels Bullard - signed from Peterborough in January 2003 for £275,000 - is on his way, to such an extent the player is not included in tomorrow's squad to face Portsmouth.
Squad Rotation fashionable in London
At Arsenal or Chelsea, sure. But Fulham?
Man City v Fulham preview
Man City v Fulham preview
Coleman is likely to shuffle his front-line after a lack of goals in previous weeks with Brian McBride and Heidar Helguson expected to make way for Tomasz Radzinski and Collins John in attack while Philippe Christanval is bidding for a midfield slot.
Irwin Fletcher?
Chelsea v Man Utd preview
Gabriel Heinze is unlikely to be risked after feeling a twinge in the reserves in midweek but Scotland coach Walter Smith was forced to correct himself when indicating Fletcher was injured as the midfielder is fit and available.
Fool me twice
Roeder's Emre hope
Roeder could also be boosted by the return of Michael Owen, who looks poised to take the field for the first time since breaking a bone in his foot against Tottenham on New Year's Eve.
Someone is going to get the games
Sven concerned over Cole
Gunners boss Arsene Wenger recently hinted that England's first choice left-back would only be available for the last two Premiership games of the season, along with the UEFA Champions League final, due to his fitness problems.Flamini out with a bad hammy? Cole still not ready? Clichy back, but ready for 3 games in a week? Would love to pick up one of these guys for Ars' easy schedule but not sure who is going to be able to play. Or worse, they could end up splitting time.
Buy 38, get 1 free
Looks like Yahoo! has done the reasonable thing and split the remaining "week" in two, putting all the final Saturday's games into a 39th week.
So Boro are 3 gamers, not 4. And ManU and Che lose attractive 3rd matchups (CHA and @NUFC respectively). But Ars and Fulham still play Sunderland and Citeh in what look to be the best matchups of the week.
| Premiership Season | ||||
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| Start Aug 13 | Midseason Dec 24 | End May 7 | ||
So Boro are 3 gamers, not 4. And ManU and Che lose attractive 3rd matchups (CHA and @NUFC respectively). But Ars and Fulham still play Sunderland and Citeh in what look to be the best matchups of the week.
Another mystery solved
Scotland without injured Fletcher for Japan trip
However, the Scots are missing influential Manchester United midfielder Darren Fletcher due to a knee injury.
"Fletcher is not available to us, he dislocated a knee cap playing against West Ham so that puts him out and he will not be there," Smith told a news conference at Hampden Park.
Cone of Silence
As I did last week, I'm taping the Arsenal/Villareal match to watch later. So I'm COS.
I will, however, be following Villa/Citeh out of the corner of my eye/browser. Neal has Milner in his team this week, so naturally I'm rooting for Citeh. Feed the Goat... er, the Greek!
Benitez plans to rest players against West Ham
Benitez plans to rest players against West Ham
Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez plans to rest some players for Wednesday's Premier League match against FA Cup final opponents West Ham United.BUT WHO? I'm still thinking (and hoping, as he's in my team) that Robbie Fowler, cup-tied for the FA Cup, will start. And hopefully he'll continue his goal-a-game streak.
"We will try and rest some players that will need a rest," Benitez told reporters on Tuesday.
"Maybe they will rest some players as well because they will be thinking about the final.
"This game will not be the most important result of the season as we will be thinking of the final," he added.
Brad Jones x4?
Schwarzer eyes return
Mark Schwarzer is confident of returning to training within two weeks, despite the fact he is having surgery on his broken cheekbone.B. Jones (MID - G) @BOL,@MAN,EVE,@FUL [ BUY ] 10.12
The Middlesbrough number one was caught by a stray elbow from Dean Ashton during the FA Cup semi-final defeat to West Ham on Sunday.
If Schwarzer progresses as he expects, then he would be available for the Uefa Cup final in May - should Boro navigate their way past Steaua Bucharest on Thursday.
Live on Pay-per-view!
The day fair play died
'All I can say is that when Wenger squared up to me on the touchline, I had to hold myself back because he doesn't know how strong I am.'The Professor v The Dutch Strongman in a "loser leaves Europe" match!
How many games?
Fantasy Football | Premiership Fantasy Football Game - Yahoo! Sport UK
3 gamers? 4 gamers? Yahoo! stretching the meaning of "week" here as we enter the last round.
Boro play 4 games, but will any of the players get more than 2?
3 gamers? 4 gamers? Yahoo! stretching the meaning of "week" here as we enter the last round.
Boro play 4 games, but will any of the players get more than 2?
Desperately Seeking Danny
Jenas blow for Spurs
So Jenas, Tainio and Davids are out or doubtful. That leaves Carrick and Lennon certain starters. Does Jol keep his diamond with Murphy at the point and Reid on the left? Does he throw Huddlestone in a holding role despite his inexperience? Or move Lennon to the left, push Stalteri into midfield and bring Kelly in as fullback on that side?
Regardless, it looks a good chance for Danny Murphy to step into (and up in) a BIG game. While he probably won't be at the top of your 'must buy' list tonight, it does raise questions about Tot as a whole in this match. I have Keane in the squad as he's been unstoppable for the last month or so. Is this the weekend he's stopped?
Tottenham Hotspur have suffered a blow with the news that Jermaine Jenas is out of their crucial derby clash with Arsenal on Saturday.It's amazing that this news got out today. Normally this is the kind of thing you find out only as the teams take the pitch.
The England midfielder has suffered shin injury during training on late on Friday and he has been forced to pull out of the clash at Highbury.
So Jenas, Tainio and Davids are out or doubtful. That leaves Carrick and Lennon certain starters. Does Jol keep his diamond with Murphy at the point and Reid on the left? Does he throw Huddlestone in a holding role despite his inexperience? Or move Lennon to the left, push Stalteri into midfield and bring Kelly in as fullback on that side?
Regardless, it looks a good chance for Danny Murphy to step into (and up in) a BIG game. While he probably won't be at the top of your 'must buy' list tonight, it does raise questions about Tot as a whole in this match. I have Keane in the squad as he's been unstoppable for the last month or so. Is this the weekend he's stopped?
What a mess...
We're getting down to crunch time (both in the various races in the Premiership and in everyone's private leagues) and what do we have but a week with very few attractive choices. The positive side is that if you guess right, you have a chance to make up some ground in your league or extend your lead if you're so fortunate as to have one. The negative side is that there are few sure things this week and most of the names that we, as fantasy managers, have come to rely on for points when they are absolutely needed are either not playing this week (Chelsea & ManYoo plus some random good players like Bellamy & Pedersen), are playing more important matches this week which may lead to uncertain selection policy (Liverpool & Arsenal), or are playing in a particularly meaningful derby (Arsenal & Spurs). Throw in some key injury uncertainty (LuaLua, Emre, Pennant & Stefanovic) and there's not a lot out there to get excited about.
Never fear, I wouldn't let a little thing like that get in the way of making some predictions and recommendations. So here we go...
1) Adebayor, or K2 as we like to call him here at the blog - he can't play in the Champions League so he'll likely be partnering whomever Wenger decides to play at striker vs. Spurs (of course the "does he play Henry?" question is probably the biggest of the week).
2) Gary O'Neil - he's been hot as has Pompey...and they're playing Sunderland...at home...what's not to like?
3) D'Alessandro - see O'Neil above
4) James McFadden - we've been pimping this guy all year, Everton has been in a bit of a slump but home to a Birmingham side wrecked by injury might be the time the Toffees and McFadden break out
5) Bridge and Niemi - Fulham are at home and both are generally good bets at home...and they're cheap.
6) Naysmith - Always a solid fantasy choice and he's cheap with a good match-up.
Right now, I'm thinking about those guys as the core of my line-up. Around them, I'll be placing some more expensive pieces - the most obvious question is the above stated Henry question. You have to think that Wenger will play Henry given the importance of the tie with Spurs relative to finishing fourth. If the Gunners win, they'll be in the driver's seat for 4th and bunches of cash next year. If they rest Henry, they're in some deep trouble and have to count on finishing off Villareal and then beating Barcalona in the finals (possible, but still a hard road).
Gerrard is another interesting option but I'm not sure why Rafa would play him in the Premiership with the FA Cup still in play. If he plays vs. West Ham in mid-week and gets injured then Rafa will look silly.
Random possibilities for your consideration - Baros, Barton, Samaras, and Luque all of whom should start in relatively meaningless matches...
In defense, I think I'm going to find a way to get Eboue in my line-up - I can't imagine Wenger benching him as there are no other options at right back and he's been great going forward. Always a threat to do something big.
Hopefully, something contained above will be helpful.
Happy Shopping. Go Gunners!
Never fear, I wouldn't let a little thing like that get in the way of making some predictions and recommendations. So here we go...
1) Adebayor, or K2 as we like to call him here at the blog - he can't play in the Champions League so he'll likely be partnering whomever Wenger decides to play at striker vs. Spurs (of course the "does he play Henry?" question is probably the biggest of the week).
2) Gary O'Neil - he's been hot as has Pompey...and they're playing Sunderland...at home...what's not to like?
3) D'Alessandro - see O'Neil above
4) James McFadden - we've been pimping this guy all year, Everton has been in a bit of a slump but home to a Birmingham side wrecked by injury might be the time the Toffees and McFadden break out
5) Bridge and Niemi - Fulham are at home and both are generally good bets at home...and they're cheap.
6) Naysmith - Always a solid fantasy choice and he's cheap with a good match-up.
Right now, I'm thinking about those guys as the core of my line-up. Around them, I'll be placing some more expensive pieces - the most obvious question is the above stated Henry question. You have to think that Wenger will play Henry given the importance of the tie with Spurs relative to finishing fourth. If the Gunners win, they'll be in the driver's seat for 4th and bunches of cash next year. If they rest Henry, they're in some deep trouble and have to count on finishing off Villareal and then beating Barcalona in the finals (possible, but still a hard road).
Gerrard is another interesting option but I'm not sure why Rafa would play him in the Premiership with the FA Cup still in play. If he plays vs. West Ham in mid-week and gets injured then Rafa will look silly.
Random possibilities for your consideration - Baros, Barton, Samaras, and Luque all of whom should start in relatively meaningless matches...
In defense, I think I'm going to find a way to get Eboue in my line-up - I can't imagine Wenger benching him as there are no other options at right back and he's been great going forward. Always a threat to do something big.
Hopefully, something contained above will be helpful.
Happy Shopping. Go Gunners!
Owen ready for Newcastle comeback
Owen ready for Newcastle comeback
Newcastle United striker Michael Owen has been included in the Magpies' squad to face West Brom on Saturday.Anyone with a strong enough stomach to gamble on this one?
Has anyone seen Danny Murphy?
Tottenham have injury problems before trip to Arsenal
Tottenham Hotspur are struggling with injury problems before Saturday's visit to Arsenal for their biggest game of the season. There are doubts over striker Mido, central defender Anthony Gardner, midfielders Teemu Tainio and Edgar Davids while captain Ledley King is already out of the campaign with a broken foot.To be honest, the more interesting questions are on the other side of the pitch. How will Arsenal line up knowing that they have to protect their 1-0 in Spain just a few days later? Especially since Thierry Henry is a reasonable (for him) $20 in Yahoo! fantasy.
Soccer-metrics?
Jermaine Pennant has 5 assists on 126 crosses. For comparison, Lampard has 8 from 84. Two and 1/2 times more efficient. Is that the difference between Heskey and Drogba more than a reflection on the provider?
Last year BRM had Gronkjaer, who couldn't get a cross in to save his life. In fact he was called "Dracula" because he was afraid of crosses. Now they have the most prolific crosser of the ball in the EPL and the blame shifts squarely to the strikers. My $0.02.
And just think, what if Chelsea had brought in Pennant instead of SWP? Scary, eh?
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