Fantasy FPL 2014/15 Transfer round up Part 2

Fantasy FPL 2014/15 Transfer round up Part 2

We continue with our look at the major transfers this summer by focusing on another six players and how we feel their moves may benefit fantasy managers, whether they will be worth a look at and some of their key stats from previous seasons. Today we look at four players we are all already familiar with who will be looking to hit the ground running at pastures new and two players who are new to the EPL. At least one of them could prove to be the signing of the season and no we don’t mean Phil Bardsley.

Joleon Lescott
New West Brom manager Alan Irvine has moved swiftly to bolster his defence with the capture of Lescott from Man City. The pair worked together at Everton so Irvine will be hoping he can restore Lescott back to something like the player he was in those days as quite frankly since he left Goodison in 2009 for £22m it’s fair to say that his bank balance and his career have gone in opposite directions. In short he did what is now forever known as a ‘Fellaini’. At Everton he looked like a future England player for years to come. He initially starred as a marauding left back for the Toffees until Leighton Baines emerged to nudge him over to center half where he looked equally as assured, strong and commanding. Flash forward to last season and he could barely buy himself a start, and even when he did, the words assured, strong and commanding were about as far away as possible from describing him. If Irvine can somehow coax him back to his Everton form Lescott could prove to be a canny purchase. He was known as a goal scoring defender of some aplomb at one stage having scored 14 goals in 113 appearances for Everton which is quite healthy for a defender. If he is priced reasonably then he could be a useful 4th or 5th defender for your squads this season.

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Hull is another club which has begun its transfer activity early and on the surface they have traded well by buying Robert Snodgrass and Tom Ince. The  Tigers boss Steve Bruce felt the need to increase the depth of his squad as they embark on not only another season in the Premier League but also compete in the Europa League due to their FA Cup Final loss to Arsenal. Aside from Snodgrass and Ince, who we will look at below, Bruce also captured the permanent signing of Jake Livermore, who spent last season at Hull, on loan from Tottenham.

Robert Snodgrass
The Scottish midfielder has joined Hull from relegated Norwich on a three year contract, with the fee believed to be in the region of £6mln. Having scored seven goals last season and six the season before with the Canaries, Snoddy will be looking to push on with his career in the top flight – he can play on either side of midfield or in a more advanced attacking position and poses a genuine goal-scoring threat wherever he plays. However, his ability on set pieces is expected to be as much of a danger, with strikers Shane Long and Nikica Jelavic hoping to benefit from the Scotsman’s delivery. Snodgrass had been linked with a move away from Carrow Road for much of the season as the fight against relegation and an altercation with home fans led to much speculation that the boyhood Celtic fan would get his dream move. Well, that may not have happened but at least he’s heading in the right direction, geographically at least and I would expect Snodgrass to enjoy a successful time at Hull – pricing will dictate how much of a fantasy prospect he is.

Tom Ince
Finally Tom Ince has found a club – hopefully this should now stop the ridiculous and comical marketing project that Dad Paul has been conducting for his son. Having decided to leave Blackpool, Ince has been linked with moves to Inter, Monaco, Ajax, QPR, Liverpool and Stoke amongst others and spent the second half of last season on loan at Crystal Palace, where he scored on his debut. That turned out to be his only goal for the Eagles before he moved to Hull earlier this month. A winger who has represented England at U17, U19 & U21 level, Ince Jnr scored 31 goals in 100 appearances for Blackpool and was receiving rave reviews until he started being offered around more openly than a brown envelope at a FIFA convention.
Like Snodgrass above, Ince should now be looking to cement his place in the Hull starting eleven and as a result, get people talking about him for the right reasons again. A rapid and skilful winger, he has time on his side aged just 22 and Steve Bruce will be looking to utilise his pace and skill to not only make chances for the strikers but to continue his impressive scoring record.

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Alexis Sanchez
Described by many as the best and most exciting transfer of the window thus far, it is difficult to argue with that mindset. Sanchez should not only be exciting Gooners, but FPL managers the world over. The Chilean forward can play as an out and out striker, in midfield or as a no.10, which will give Wenger numerous options both in the Premier League and the Champions League – versatility that will likely prove invaluable over the course of the season. Often overshadowed at Barca by the likes of Messi, Neymar et al, Sanchez’s stats cannot be ignored – only outscored by Messi, Ronaldo and Costa in Spain last season, Sanchez also provided ten assists during the league campaign, more than Ronaldo. His speed is another of his great assets and arguably, that is a more effective trait in the Premier League than La Liga, where defences can often be found lying deep – it was noticeable how quickly Arsenal’s season disintegrated when Walcott got injured, hence the pace was taken away from the team. As a fantasy manager, we will be very keen to see what FPL price Sanchez at, but would suggest that he should definitely be one on your watchlist.

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Phil Bardsley
One transfer that shouldn’t go under the radar is Bardsley’s move from Sunderland to Stoke. The attacking right back played in only 26 matches for the Black Cats last season, but still contributed a couple of goals. Chuck him into a Stoke defence that has been, historically at least, one of the tightest in the division, it is possible that the ex-Manchester United full back could find a place in your squad. Bardsley was largely frozen out at the start of last season under former Sunderland boss Paolo Di Canio, but returned to the first team under current manager Gus Poyet and was at the heart of the club’s escape from relegation. Often the start of many an attack with his runs down the right wing – the Scottish defender is not shy of taking a shot either. With the Potters having a decent set of fixtures to begin with, Bardsley is well worth keeping an eye on pre-season, to ensure he gets a starting berth in the first team.

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Emre Can
Emre Can became Liverpool’s 3rd summer signing as the Reds activated his £9.75m release clause with Bayer Leverkusen. Can joined the youth ranks of Bayern Munich as a 15 year old in 2009 and in a bid to aid his acceleration into first team football he was sold to Leverkusen in August 2013, although they did insert a ‘buy-back’ clause into his contract. The German would appear to be quite a versatile operator with his favourite position being in the centre of midfield, while he has also been deployed at the back at times both centrally as well as both full back positions. In 32 starts across all completions last season, Can scored four as well as notching four assists, while largely operating in a defensive midfield capacity. Former Liverpool legend Sami Hypia managed Can at Leverkusen last season and he described the youngster as a very dynamic and technical player who does the simple things perfectly. On the face of it, it would appear as though the German will compete with Jordan Henderson, Lucas and Joe Allen for a spot alongside Steven Gerrard so he is possibly one for the future. However, it is quite likely he will be priced at circa £5.0m in FPL and should he start the season impressively he might be one to consider, for now, he’s one to keep an eye on.

Thanks for reading Fantasy FPL 2014/15 Transfer round up Part 2. This article was written by Cookie, Inittowinit and Kop.