PLFantasy

Looking back at last season 9 clean sheets last season tied the Potters for 8th in the league. 6 of these came at home, where they conceded less than a goal per game.  Failed to score 13 times, tied for most in the league. This included a league high 10 times on the road. This inconsistency (somewhat fueled by Pulis' tactics) really limits the ability to start Stoke players every week and possibly limits them to spot start status. Stoke keepers provided good value last season ranking 7th in points, 5th in bonus points and 6th in P$ . Begovic is well priced again so there is hope that this will continue this season. Unlike the keepers (who were bailed out by high save totals on the road), the Stoke defense only contributed great production at home. At the Brittania Stadium they ranked 6th in P90 and 2nd in P$ , while on the road they managed marks of just 14th in each category.  The midfield also saw significant splits, leading the league in P$ at home whi...

After another disappointing 41 point week, I have finally pulled the trigger and made a risky play - I am putting my faith in the Mancini's frustratingly inconsistent City side. I have brought in Adebayor to play alongside Tevez in time for their double gameweek this week. I can then add N'Zogbia, Sorensen and Huth to this pair to give me 5 double gameweeks. Do I really trust this City side? No. However, as another Rooney goal hit the back of the net with me not owning him, it was time to make a move before it is too late. United have a double gameweek of their own next week and so Rooney will be a must, so I'm hoping to gain some ground this week on those who can't/won't sell him by hitching my cart to the Adebayor bandwagon. Clean sheets were fairly easy to come by last week with no less than 8 teams keeping the opposition at bay. Six of these ranked in my top 10 and four of my top six were able to keep a clean sheet. Playing the numbers, only Fulham (15th) and Vi...

I've been using my favourite new analysis tool to look at some of the weekends performances to see if we can draw some conclusions on the future success of fantasy players. The analysis and fantasy impact for several key fantasy prospects can be found below: Andrey Arshavin I spoke about Arshavin after the Portsmouth game , where I concluded that despite the lack of shots, the Russian magician was sufficiently involved in the action to still give value for money. However, with zero shots this week and only assist and no goals to his name despite Arsenal scoring 10 in their opening two games, I am a little concerned about his production. His passing analysis from the Portsmouth game is below: Arshavin played very deep - around the halfway line - and only played one ball into the box from his right sided position. His total pass total of 38 is okay as it shows that he isn't running the game as one might expect but is involved regularly none the less. I am far from ready to give...

There were eight games yesterday and two today, in what was one of the best opening weekends in recent memory. Unfortunately I was moving home so I didn't get too see much live, hence the lack of updates throughout the day. Hopefully, I will be around for some live diaries in the coming weeks. Below are a few thoughts and observations on the weekend's games as well as the fantasy impact they will have: Chelsea 2-1 Hull I did manage to see this one and Hull were unlucky to miss out on any of the spoils. It did have a sense of inevitability about it though and Drogba , who had lots of chances throughout got the winner and his second of the game. I have said before that I like the Chelsea target man and I think he could be in for a big season. His picked up all 3 bonus points along with his two goals, giving him a 12 point haul for the day. Lampard didn't look overly threatening at the head of the diamond and he will have more success in the future for sure. Mikel started i...

The second installment of the minimum price squad fillers focuses on defenders, and I have set the limit at 4.5m. As the likes of Figueroa, Cahill and Turner proved last year, a budget defender can prove to be an invaluable sub, with the three aforementioned players being good enough to feature regularly for many teams. Wigan defenders - Bramble, Figueroa, Melchiot, Scharner (all 4.5m). The Latics had the joint 7th best defense in the league last year and notched 8 clean sheets at home (all of which came in the final 14 games). No new defenders have arrived at the JJB to date and so we can assume the back four will remain as it was last year (with perhaps Sharner moving back into midfield and Boyce (4.5m) stepping in at the back). I therefore think all these four players are decent sub options, with possibly Bramble being the best value based upon his 17 bonus points last year. Stoke defenders - Higginbottom, Shawcross, Faye (all 4.5m), Wilkinson (4m). As mentioned in the goalkeeper ...