It feels like a while since we did one of these. Between the FA Cup action over the weekend and our inaugural two-gamer of the season there hasn't been a call for a full weekly preview in a while. Probably a good thing since I'm sure you needed a break from reading long posts after the holiday fixture congestion and I know I needed a break from writing them.
First things first, welcome Edin Dzeko to the Yahoo fantasy game ranks. When points were tallied yesterday, his name appeared as an option for fantasy managers. Nice to have that option with Wolves the opponent and Balotelli out for a month or so. No guarantee that he'll play at this point but given the expenditure, you'd have to think they'll see what they have against modest opposition.
Elsewhere in fantasy news, Jeremy has officially declared that Liverpool are dead to him. My sense is that this is mostly due to the fact that he chose Pepe Reina despite the warning that Liverpool have been TERRIBLE on the road and they were playing two road matches. Hard not to see that one coming. I was pretty upset with the results of my Scott Carson pick in net until Reina made me feel better by being just as bad despite costing more money and squandering two matches of opportunity instead of one. Oh, and as always Jeremy reserves the right to reverse course on declaring Liverpool dead to him. In essence making them the new Bolton - never bet on or against them...unless you do. More importantly, don't spend time watching them on TV, it's hard stuff to watch.
Finally, if you're wondering about the title of the post. Today is the 41st anniversary of my arrival into the world. The first 40 years have been fantastic and I'm looking forward to what the 41st has to offer. For those who have offered birthday wishes on Facebook and in the comments section, thank you very much. I'm sure many of you disagree with my opinions from time to time (and some more often than that) but I'm eternally grateful that you continue to read, comment, "Like" and forward along our posts.
Enough of the sentimentality, and on to your regularly scheduled column
Carson Dropped
Scott Carson has been dropped for Saturday’s clash with Blackpool http://bit.ly/e1Arov
FFScout
Does this make you feel better or worse about spending 1.17 on him?
Fab21 only 50/50
Lukasz Fabianski is rated as “50:50” for the trip to West Ham on Saturday http://bit.ly/f2nyWJ
ArsenalDotCom
Szczesny would be a great deal at 5.84, even with Arsenal's frequent defensive frailties. However, I doubt Wenger will come out with a definitive announcement before we have to set our teams. So it's Carson for a buck, Friedel around 5, or Stockdale at 8 for me. Your mileage may vary.
Bentley to Blues - Official
David Bentley has joined Birmingham City on loan for the rest of the season. http://bit.ly/extyI5
SpursOnSide
Baggies sweat on Odemwingie
When last we met...
The Press Association: Baggies sweat on Odemwingie
West Brom striker Peter Odemwingie is continuing to battle an ankle injury ahead of the crunch Barclays Premier League clash with Blackpool on Saturday.
The Baggies will attempt to end a six-match losing streak at The Hawthorns this weekend but they may have to do so without their leading scorer. Odemwingie needed an injection ahead of West Brom's last league game against Fulham eight days ago and missed the 1-0 FA Cup defeat by Reading last weekend, and he has not trained this week.
Boss Roberto Di Matteo told www.wba.co.uk: "Peter twisted his ankle so he is not training and we will have to see how he develops this week. He played with an injection in the Fulham game, with credit to him."
...West Brom could also be without Ishmael Miller and Pablo Ibanez, who both have hamstring problems, while Jonas Olsson will serve a one-match ban.
This game seems like a high-scoring one, and without Odemwingie the Baggies may turn to Tchoyi (listed as a midfielder) to play center forward.
Aston Villa table increased Adam bid
When last we met...
Aston Villa table increased Adam bid - Fansfc
Aston Villa Football Club have tabled an improved offer for Charlie Adam.
The 25-year-old has made a big impact in the Premier League for Blackpool this season, and Ian Holloway accepts he has a fight to hold on to the Scottish ace.
An offer of £2.5million from Villa was rejected earlier this week, but skysports.com understands Gerard Houllier has now returned with a bid in the region of £3.5million.
Reports also have Birmingham sniffing around.
It would be foolish for Holloway to play Adam against Liverpool with this level of uncertainty surrounding his future. Certainly his head isn't right for the match. Also, he's an asset now and you couldn't risk devaluing that asset to an injury this midweek. Right?
Right?
And certainly I'm not just trying to work the jinx because I don't have Adam in my fantasy team this week. Certainly not!
Balotelli faces another month out
Balotelli out for at least 3-4 weeks with recurrence of knee injury http://tinyurl.com/6ktdcpn
FFScout
Can we get Dzeko listed in the fantasy game please?
Sunderland Injury Worries Ease
Updating a previous post.
Of course this weekend is the Tyne-Wear derby, so the general fantasy rule is "stay away". But Welbeck has been hot, and Sunderland are good at home. Though their home record is predicated on their defence (7 goals allowed - joint best with the Manchester teams and Chelsea), rather than their offense (14 for, with puts them in with ManCity, West Ham, Stoke, and Fulham).
Injury news: Nedum Onuoha, Lee Cattermole and Danny Welbeck could all return for Sunday's derby. Gaffer quotes on safc.com shortly.
SAFCofficial
Of course this weekend is the Tyne-Wear derby, so the general fantasy rule is "stay away". But Welbeck has been hot, and Sunderland are good at home. Though their home record is predicated on their defence (7 goals allowed - joint best with the Manchester teams and Chelsea), rather than their offense (14 for, with puts them in with ManCity, West Ham, Stoke, and Fulham).
Gerrard will miss Pool trip
Gerrard will miss Pool trip - Blackpool Today
LIVERPOOL skipper Steven Gerrard will miss Wednesday's visit to Blackpool after being sent off in the FA Cup defeat at Manchester United.
The England midfielder has been hit with a three-match suspension after receiving a straight red card for an ugly two-footed challenge on Michael Carrick early in the tie, which United won courtesy of Ryan Giggs' controversial first-minute penalty.
Ah, the joys of two-gamers.
Edin Dzeko Joins Manchester City
Edin Dzeko eyes winning title with Manchester City after £27m move | Football | The Guardian
Dzeko has agreed a 4½-year deal, though the 24-year-old has not signed in time to make his debut in Sunday's FA Cup third-round tie at Leicester City. Instead his first appearance will come next weekend in the Premier League fixture at home to Wolverhampton WanderersThis is great news for fantasy managers as Dzeko is a world class player that we can grab for incoming transfer money, hopefully 6-something.
It will be fascinating to see how this affects City - and I almost want to convene another blog roundtable. But here are my initial thoughts:
Mancini has been playing possum for the first half of the season just waiting for this. He knew he would get Dzeko in January and has been putting out his teams to get through the first part of the year with the intention of staying in touch with the leaders. Leading the league was probably never in his thoughts, and the fact that they're so close to the top is probably only gravy for him.
Bentley to Blues
Bentley loaned to Blues: Birmingham City have confirmed that Tottenham Hotspur winger David Bentley is to join t... http://bit.ly/gRItTJ
ThePrem
It seems like our earlier post about Robbie Keane to Birmingham was wrong, though rumour now has Rangers' Kenny Miller joining his former manager. And while this deal is still awaiting a medical, it seems close to done.
For fantasy I think this returns Former BFDB to relevance. He's well-priced at 7.73 and will likely slot right into the team (on the right), ending Beausejour's and Hleb's relevance -- or what there was of it -- while likely vulturing kicks and points away from Larsson.
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?
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.
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/ij3wXx
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.
Welbeck Out for Three Weeks
BBC Sport - Football - Sunderland hit by Danny Welbeck hamstring injury
Sunderland striker Danny Welbeck is likely to be out of action for three weeks with a hamstring tear.Welbeck has been a popular fantasy pick recently as he's scoring for fun. But now he'll miss league games against Newcastle, @Blackpool, Chelsea and possibly @Stoke (5/2/2011).
The 20-year-old forward, on loan from league leaders Manchester United, suffered the injury during the midweek match against Aston Villa.
Welbeck, who has scored six goals this season, could now miss four or five games, according to Sunderland.
Alex Out Another Month
Alex to remain sidelined for three to four more weeks.
http://bit.ly/eOtqBp
FFScout
Just a timely reminder that Chelsea's defence remains thin, as well as fragile.
Keane to Birmingham
Blues confirm Keane talks: Birmingham have confirmed they are in talks with Tottenham about signing striker Robb... http://bit.ly/eSkZWG
ThePrem
I think I approve of this move. McLeish has one striker in Phillips whom he seems to trust, however he doesn't seem to have any faith in Phillip's ability to play for more than 10-15 minutes in a match. If Keane can dove-tail with Jerome, Hleb, et al, and they can find him in dangerous positions, Birmingham might stay up after all. Remember Christophe Dugarry? Or Mauro Zarate?
(And yes, this post was mostly an excuse to try out Twitter's new "Blackbird" feature. Sue me, I'm a geek.)
Barn Door (Almost) Live
How can I afford myself in fantasy? How can I afford not to?
Jeremy Spitzberg: what have I missed?
Neal Thurman: no Rooney :-( but Nani in and with an assist
Neal Thurman: Chicharito goal
Neal Thurman: Brum goal from Hleb
Neal Thurman: WBA lost another defender to injury (Cech)
Jeremy Spitzberg: and thus the barn door conundrums begin
Rooney misses Stoke match?
Not sure how large a grain of salt to take with this, but...
Express.co.uk - Home of the Daily and Sunday Express | Sport | Football
Sir Alex Ferguson said he feared a two-week lay-off for his striker but Rooney, who limped back on to the pitch to help United see out the game after all three substitutes had been used, has told friends he expects to miss only one match.
Helpful Hints
Premier League chalkboard analysis | Michael Cox | Football | guardian.co.uk
A quick note to Liverpool's new manager - or it's current one if need be: Get, and keep, Torres closer to the opposition's goal!
by Guardian Chalkboards
Fantasy football managers and Liverpool fans alike will thank you.
A quick note to Liverpool's new manager - or it's current one if need be: Get, and keep, Torres closer to the opposition's goal!
by Guardian Chalkboards
Fantasy football managers and Liverpool fans alike will thank you.
The (Mid) Week Ahead
So, this week is all about the quick turnaround and I'm sure we'll all continue to experience some frustrations as players are unexpectedly rotated without much warning from their managers. As an added bonus we have the first "double" week of the season featuring the re-scheduled Blackpool vs. Liverpool match from late in 2010. As if that weren't enough, Liverpool teased us into diving in with a quality win against Bolton that saw Gerrard and Torres return to competency if not stardom. The confounding factor in all of this for fantasy managers is that a number of other high quality/low-priced players also returned to form over the weekend. Wayne Rooney, Didier Drogba, Frank Lampard, and Robin van Persie all awoke from long dormant spells with goals (and the corresponding increased fantasy prices). So, what to make of it all?
Here we go with an abbreviated preview...
Here we go with an abbreviated preview...
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