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.
So excited to see these articles back up and FPL not too far around the corner again. And good to see the non-WC players emerging from the woodwork
Calvin, don’t forget the doubles mate, i see you couldn’t de-throne Init + myself in the WC fantasy, never mind you can have another go with Chins.
That’s cool elle, I’ll take that one on the chin 😉 We’ll call the WC our preparation for FPL.
I am gathering that the FPL doubles league will have quite a few more entrants than the WC did?
Calvin, i hope so, there were only 4 teams, us, you, shadow/potty + kiwi steelers, all the others were single teams. For the FPL i will ask you to e-mail me team names + team owners, then i will e-mail the code back, stops single entrants, hopefully.
Elle, I am entertaining entering a team into the doubles competition. I have narrowed my search down to two candidates. It is very important that I pick the manager that is the perfect compliment to my management style ( basically not crazy, I got that covered ) but above all, the capacity to talk junk is of great importance as I rather win the smack talk than the game.
Oakeydoakey Mito my friend.
Tick-tick-tick-tock this is like waiting for a kettle to boil!!
Come on put us out of our misery!!
Common mistake you’ve made there Peaky…. The tic toc you hear is actually that big round thing on the wall, not your kettle. If your kettle is making that noise, it might explain why your cups of tea are never hot.
All part of the service my friend. 😉
Got your short list all ready yet or going to wait to see the prices?
Short list? Prices? Part of the service? Big round thing? Peaky? Cups of tea?
Geez can you make the innuendo a bit more subtle?!
:big-lol:
Sorry Mito, i clearly have a problem.
I wonder what you say to those tacos right before you eat them….
Well chins some prices would be handy!! But the plan is to go all in on Chelsea for 2 weeks then wildcard!
Nice article guys, thanks. I had Bardsley in much of last season- he seems to often be quite a popular choice as a 4th/5th defender and I think the move to Stoke only improves that. Lescott is also a tempting option, though he seems potentially one to be a little overpriced.
Anyone have any thoughts on how Wenger will use Sanchez? It seems crazy to have him on the bench, but does this mean Giroud will sit out? Or will they play Sanchez in the 3 behind, with Oezil and Ramsey/Cazorla?
Hi Pippin, best guess is that he plays in the 3 behind Giroud. Cazorla may be off to Athletico from the sounds of it.
Oh dear, that means Monty will need a babysitter, he may cause harm to himself.
That’s bull shite. He is not going.
Shock and denial is the first stage in the 7 stages of grief. Just know that we as a community are here to help you through these tough times…
Where’s the welcome that I was expecting? It has been a long time.
😉
I’m sorry didn’t realize the red carpet was not out there to welcome your entrance. 😉 good to see you mate. I take it your happy with the signings for the upcoming season, even if that means they will have to sell bucktooth.
Anyway let’s cut the crap,it’s great to be on here after a long time. Just can’t wait for the actual action to begin. Sanchez is a great signing. Surely he will bring with him a lot of edge to the Arsenal attack. But yeah,it’s sad for me to see Suarez go. I always wanted him to stay at Pool (wish he had joined us in the previous season).
P.S. Hope everybody’s fine as well. That includes kop,cookie,potty and you as well.
Hellooooo Monty!!
How the devil are you??
Holy shit !! It’s my old friend. I am quite OK mate. How are you?
Just can’t wait for the actual season to start. Sanchez has been a great signing. Not too excited about Debuchy to be honest. Never liked him. I hope Cazorla retains his spot. I guess Sanchez would be our striker with Caz on the left.
I’m very well my friend!! Got a baby gooner on the way!! Bought his first kit on Saturday
Sanchez is a great signing!! He will be my first player in once the PL website goes live!! Not a fan of debuchey but beggars can’t be chosers!! Would of preferred aurier!!
How many arsenal players you putting in?
Sanchez and Ramsey. I would like to squeeze in those two for. Depending on the price of course.
Monty, as Archer would say: phrasing
Pippin,
There has also been talk of Wenger converting Sanchez into a central striker. Would make the smallest centre forward in the league so maybe the plan is to play him alongside Giroud. Pre season games will give us a clue i guess…
Afternoon, yes pre-season is key. Will be essential to see how these new signings are utilised… I am very tempted to start with Özil and Sanchez!
Also hoping Sanchez will be classed as a mid but I doubt that’ll be the case.
Wishful thinking there James!
Although there is bound to be a couple of out of position players so you never know. Technically though Giroud and Sanogo are the only strikers we have with a small army of attacking midfield midgets behind them. So just maybe, we’ll get lucky and he’ll be put in the midfield bucket.
Haha why not
seriously though it’d be very lucky indeed, then I could have RVP Costa and Sturridge *as well* as fitting in Özil… maybe 
((in my dreams))
What do you think we can achieve this season?
James, its going to be a great season. Loads of serious contenders.
i think we’ve got to be serious contenders for top 2. It’s going to be tough with Chelski and City both strengthening but if we can keep players fit (never gonna happen) and avoid our usual Feb collapse (might happen) then we have a good shout.
The fixtures have been a lot kinder to us this year. No back to back games against the top 6 and no death runs of 4/5 toughies.
Realistically we probably need Costa to struggle and Yaya to leave. Those two things happen and we could be right up there. Oh, and we still need a DCM to play with Ramsey. Liverpool surely can’t repeat last season without Goofy adding some bite to their attacking play and Utd will hopefully have a season of transition. Plus they still have Cleverly so that should slow them down a bit.
Everton could be up there too if they can find a lukaku replacement and a striker that their wingers want to pass to.
And then of course, there’s Tottenh… No, it’s no good. I can’t say it without laughing.
:turtle:
Chins, fourth place seems a definite for you. Don’t think you will struggle like you did the past two seasons to win your 4th place trophy. #champagnetime
Times are changing mate. Fisheyes and Sanchez aren’t going to play for a club that strive for 4th.
So what i’m saying is…. They’ll probably not stay long. 😉
Haha, very true round up! I can’t see Yaya leaving and Costa will get loads of service…. but that shouldn’t stop us giving it a good shot!
Walcott needs to come back strong. We need to tighten up in big games. But who knows, with Khedira / Schneiderlin and Debuchy I’m feeling very optimistic! As is usual before the season starts… 😉
Can also be misleading! Tonev was reportedly tearing it up last pre-season for Villa so I put him in, only for him to then get about 10 minutes in the first 10 games!
Good to see you again James, hope the exams went well
Hey Calvin – yeah I guess so – Man City lost 2-0 to Dundee recently too! Just goes to show… similar with me and Ravel Morrison.
Cheers!
Think most of them did aye, I’ll let you know how I’ve faired on results day! Nervous to say the least…
Adding to that Calvin two seasons ago when everyone was going for this new kid Michu I went for Danny Graham who preseason had got something mental like 5 in 3!!! Whoops!
And I think we all fell for Anelkas prolific preseason form last season!
I think the conclusion is ‘Everything that glitters isn’t gold!’
Ah indeed Peaky, remember Graham being bigged up on FFC.
Following this vein, who were you biggest failures and/or disappointments last season?
Calvin by biggest regret was not getting on Yaya train as early as I should have done!! Also not reading the Aguero injury too well but I think we might have all struggled with that one!!
Chins, you’re in Texas right? Not gonna see SKC vs Man City next Wednesday are you?
Tekno, i am indeed. Didn’t know they we playing mate! The only pre season game that i was aware of is Roma vs Real Madrid which i’m planning on going to.
Cheers for the heads up, altough i guess they’ll bewithout their world cup stars which leaves me wondering who exactly is going to play!
Sorry Tekno, i read your comment and assumed that the game (for some reason) was being played in the Dallas/Fort Worth area, or at least somewhere in Texas! 😉
Kansas home ground is (in current traffic, according to google) a mere 7.5 hour drive / 526 miles away! So i think i’ll give it a miss.
I thought Kansas was a city in Texas. Boy, I feel slightly embarassed now… :shake:
Don’t feel embarrassed, that just makes you a honorary American.
Don’t be embarrassed Tekno, i’ve heard a lot worse!
One American i met the other day thought that Liverpool was actually a dangerous massive polluted shanty slum city on the outskirts of London!
I honestly have no idea where he got that idea from.
But don’t worry scousers, i set him straight. I told him its actually on the outskirts of Manchester. 😉
That’s terrible, I am happy you set him straight Chins. I had to set an American straight the other day explaining the four small countries in one or some shite like that, united in the dislike for each other. He also tried to tell me Mel Gibson was Scottish, but don’t worry I set him straight. Made him apologize to old Mel.
Feel a little better about mself now:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a0TK_vk-XDM
Any of you ever met Americans who think Norway is the capital of Sweden?
You mean it isn’t?!
:poop:
Arsenal usually plays in a 4-2-3-1 right? The players they have that can occupy the 5 mid posititions are Rosicky, Arteta, Wilshire, Özil, Ramsey, Cazorla, Flamini, Diaby, Podolski, Walcott, Ox, and Sanchez. Oh, and they’re looking for a new CDM. That essentially means 13 players fighting for 5 positions. If we assume this is the most likely starting lineup:
Ramsey – Whichever CDM they buy
Walcott – Özil – Sanchez
That leaves a lot of good players on the bench, players who’ll surely want to play. Hence, we should expect a lot of rotation from Arsenal in these positions right? That at least makes me very skeptical of the fantasy appeal of these players.
Tekno, i think (if fit) the four you’ve listed will play most games, but you do make a good point.
Wenger will hopefully be aware of burnout / injury risk to Ramsey and Walcott especially and had to give Ozil a rest too last season. I think the season after world cups tend to see even more players than normal getting tired so given our record of injuries i think we’ll need that many just to play a fully fit 11 every week!
Rosicky, Wilshire, Diaby, Walcott and Ox will spend more than half the season on the injury table. (Diaby has a second home there!).
Arteta and Flamini will probably rotate with the latter playing fewer games. (Should be the other way round imho)
Podolski and Sanchez will probably play the odd game up front when Giroud needs time off for family councilling.
Its going to be tough to predict week to week. My tip would be that Walcott and Ramsey will play every game until they break. Ozil and Sanchez will play every game until they “need a rest”. Aka have a couple of shit games.
And you forgot to mention Gnaby. I hope we’ll get to see more of him this year but a loan out would probably be more likely.
Looks like the summer holidays have caused you guys no harm whatsoever, quality articles, cheers.