Around the League

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Lampard not worried by Blues' form (Football365) - Lampard isn't worried by his team's form, but fantasy owners should be worried by Frank's. Only one goal this season is a worrying total for a 12.5m player, though 4 assists in 7 games is a nice return. The great asset for midfielders though is that they earn more points per goal than strikers so assists and bonuses are unlikely to get it done and justify his lofty price. I am far from ready to write Lampard off who is still the man-to-beat as the best in fantasy, but at least for now, I will continue to say he is overpriced based on his form and Chelsea's fixtures which are up and down for the next few weeks.

Walcott back in Gunners mix (Football365) - Walcott and Bendtner are back though Eduardo is out for Wenger's men. I would imagine Bendtner will remain on the bench while Walcott has a chance to start in the front 3 alongside Van Persie and Arshavin. This brings into doubt the fantasy future of Rosicky and I would avoid both players until the situation clears up.

Keane eyes top four finish (Football365) - Keane is in hot form and with Defoe out with a hand injury, the Irishman will play again this week at Bolton, likely alongside Peter Crouch. Keane is the natural replacement for Defoe owners who cannot raise sufficient funds to bring in Van Persie or Anelka, and want to cash in on Spurs' good looking fixture list.

Fergie faces midfield headache (Sky Sports) - Ferguson has hailed the performances of Anderson and Carrick in midweek suggesting the pair will retain their places this week. Oh wait, actually, he has also praised Scholes and Fletcher meaning that pair will play. Confused? The United midfield is a fantasy minefield and despite the form of Giggs I would only recommend Fletcher at this point based on his low price tag. At 7.1m and 6.9m Giggs and Carrick are just too expensive to have on your bench and look overpriced until a steadier lineup emerges.

Ade handed suspended ban (Sky Sports) - Good news for fantasy fans as one of the best value strikers returns this week after his 3 game ban. Monday's game at Villa is tough so I would give him that one to get back up to speed then bring him in the week after when 5 of the next 6 games look great. I still like Van Persie alot but Adebayor might jump Drogba in my striker value rankings based on the Ivorian tough fixtures in weeks 12-15. Coincidentally, Torres' fixtures improve from week 12 onwards so a good strategy (and one I will probably employ) would be to free up enough cash by week 12 and then bring in El Nino for Drogba.

Denilson injury rocks Arsenal as midfielder is ruled out for two months (Daily Mail) - While losing Denilson is not good news for Arsenal, it might be decent news for fantasy owners who are on board with Alex Song, a player I have liked for a while. Song was excellent against Olympiakos midweek and with Denilson out he should play every week from now on. Being classed as a defender gives him access to clean sheets (which Arsenal have a decent shot at in the next few weeks) while playing in midfield obviously gets him a bit further forward (though don't expect too many goals and assists). For 5.5, he is great value and I am well and truly on board in light of the Denilson injury.

Stay tuned throughout the day and up until deadline time tomorrow for any breaking news, or check out Twitter for the latest updates.

Comments

The Gaffer said…
Jermain Defoe could be fit to face Bolton Wanderers at the Reebok Stadium tomorrow after suffering dislocated fingers last weekend against Burnley.

In today's press conference, manager Harry Redknapp said: "Jermain has looked ok and trained fine today, so hopefully he could be ok but we will see tomorrow."
October 2, 2009 at 11:56 AM
Chris said…
I'd still fell happy as a Keane owner although Crouch has an increased chance of playing due to his height which some managers deem necessary to play against Bolton. I saw Keane plays either way. I'd start all three if I owned them as they will either play oo you'll get your sub in.
October 2, 2009 at 2:47 PM
Unknown said…
Can anyone tell me what has happened to Jimenez? Why is he not playing?
October 2, 2009 at 4:44 PM
Chris said…
skip - Jimenez did play against City but was pretty ineffective to be honest and was replaced by Hines late on. He had a couple of shots so I wouldnt totally write him off but for similar price I like others like Jarvis and Cattermole ahead of him.
October 2, 2009 at 6:40 PM
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