FPL Transfer Window New Player Analysis part 1
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[/three_fourth]It’s fair to say that Premier League clubs have been quick to spend their new slice of the vastly increased TV money. In this transfer window they managed to shell out a record £835m between them with no less than six clubs breaking their own transfer records. Manchester United lead the way with an outlay of £149m and were joined in the £100m club by Liverpool on £117m with Chelsea and Arsenal not far behind on £91m and £82m respectively. Over the next two articles we aim to provide you with a whistle stop tour of the major deals that were done in the last few days of the transfer window and hopefully give you an overview of who we feel may be of interest to you as a fantasy football manager.
Danny Welbeck – Arsenal
Position – Forward
FPL Price – £6.9m
While rivals Man Utd were busying themselves tying up a deal for arguably one of the best strikers in the world, Arsenal fans were left wondering if yet another transfer window was going to pass them by and see them have to ‘rely’ on the likes of Giroud and Sanogo to fire in the goals. With Arsene deciding that the best use of his time on deadline day was to referee a charity match in Rome it felt like their worst fears would be realised but alas they managed to cobble together no less than £16m to prise Danny Welbeck away from the lower reaches of the Old Trafford pecking order to spearhead their attack.
On the face of it this may seem somewhat underwhelming given Welbeck’s recent performances but it is worth noting that for both Man Utd and England he has been predominantly deployed in a wide role rather than his best position as the main striker. He will undoubtedly get the opportunity now to play in his preferred position and will surely add more goals to his career stats of 37 in 178 appearances. With the talent around him at the Emirates he should get chances aplenty and at just £6.9m he could be a fantastic ‘3rd’ striker should he nail a place in the Arsenal team which seems likely given that Giroud could be out for 3 or 4 months and Sanogo proving perpetually ineffective.
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Samuel Eto’o – Everton
Position – Forward
FPL Price – £6.0m
Having broken their transfer record to bring Romelu Lukaku to the club on a permanent basis it was perhaps little surprise that Roberto Martinez would be shopping at the cheap / free / loan end of the market from then on in. That usually equates to the odd journeyman footballer but it doesn’t often equate to one of the most decorated players in world football. With three Champions League winner’s medals to his name and having scored an amazing 108 goals in 145 appearances for Barcelona, Samuel Eto’o represents the epitomy of experience. How much of a role Eto’o will go on to play for Everton this season on the pitch remains to be seen but perhaps Martinez also sees his value off it being just as beneficial to the development of a relatively young squad. Eto’o came off the bench against Chelsea for a brief cameo at the weekend and showed enough to suggest there is plenty of life left in the old dog yet, looking sprightly and intellegent in his play he rounded it all off with a headed goal that oozed class in it’s simplicity. In FPL terms he’s very much a wait and see as he will surely be used from the bench, at least initially, but should anything happen to Lukaku then Eto’o could well become Everton’s main striker for a period and at £6m then he will come into consideration if that scenario presents itself.
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Niko Kranjcar – QPR
Position – Midfield
FPL Price £5.0m
Like Kevin Keegan and Shaun Wright Phillips some managers just can’t live without their favourite player by their side and so once again Harry swooped to bring his love-child back to Loftus Road on a season long loan deal from his parent club Dynamo Kyiv. Quite why Kyiv got involved in the love in is anybody’s guess as he’s ‘been there’ since June 2012 after they spent £7m on him but he’s made just 13 appearances for them in that time having spent the majority of last season at QPR making 31 appearances for them and chipping in with two goals. Predominantly an attacking midfielder, Harry will be hoping that Kranjcar can add some flair and creativity to his team and supply the bullets for the likes of Charlie Austin. As an FPL prospect he’d have to hit the ground running pretty quick to spark much interest beyond being a 5th choice filler in midfield.
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Sandro – QPR
Position – Midfield
FPL Price £4.9m
As evidenced with Niko above, if Harry likes you, he likes you for life and will hunt you down and sign you again and again and again. With Harry you fall into one of three brackets – you’re either ‘a top, top, top player’ or you are ‘a proper footballer’. Or you are Niko Kranjcar. Let’s see where Harry classes his new £10m man Sandro. “Sandro’s a proper footballer and a top-class professional”. Yep, thought so. We won’t bore you further with much rambling about Sandro suffice to say that he’s a defensive midfielder who made 81 appearances for Spurs, scoring just 3 goals in the process. He’s very good at what he does and if he can stay fit he will add a great degree of stability to the core of the QPR team but he offers little by way of fantasy returns and even at £4.9m there are plenty of better options out there.
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Daley Blind – Manchester United
Position – Midfield
FPL Price – £5.5m
While United broke all records in the window, it may well be that the £14m purchase of Daley Blind mightjust prove the shrewdest transfer of all. United have struggled in midfield in recent seasons – Carrick, Fletcher, Anderson and Cleverley have failed to come near to replacing the likes of Keane and Scholes. The arrival of Ander Herrera sparked some optimism, until he got injured. But they still needed someone who could sit in front of the defence, break up play and turn defence into attack. This is where the 24 year old Blind fits in – the Dutch midfielder is no match-winner or game changer – he is the player who will win the ball and pass it quickly to Di Maria, Rooney or Falcao et al. Ronald De Boer, his ex-assistant manager at Ajax describes Blind as “a team player, who makes others around him play better”. Blind was named Dutch Footballer of the Year last season as Ajax won their fourth successive league title and of course he represented the Dutch side at the World Cup in the summer, under LVG, who he acknowledges as a big influence in his decision to move to Old Trafford. Blind can also fill in at the back, either centrally or left, but defensive midfielder is his primary and best role. In this respect, he is of great value to United, but not really as a fantasy prospect. However, as mentioned in the first sentence – he may be the cog which gets the United wheel turning again.
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Marcos Rojo – Manchester United
Position – Defender
FPL Price – £6.0m
The Argentinian defender cost United £16mln when he joined from Sporting Lisbon in mid-August, though he still has to make his debut due to difficulties in gaining a work permit, because of pending criminal charges in Argentina, where he is alleged to have battered a neighbour with a bottle. Allegedly. Reports are that international clearance has been received so the work permit should now just be a matter of time and Rojo is expected to be available to make his debut for United vs QPR in GW4. The defender is known of course for representing Argentina at the World Cup, scoring vs Nigeria and being named in the illustrious Team of the Tournament. His main position is left back, as per Luke Shaw, but Rojo can also slot into the left side of a central back 2 or 3 – it all depends on what system LVG decides to progress with – and of course the fitness of Shaw. A tough tackling, physically imposing defender, Rojo should not have any problems acclimatising to life in the Premier League and can be a threat going forward from set pieces. United defenders have not proved as lucrative an investment this season as many had hoped and we would advise caution in buying Rojo just yet – let the new players come in and settle and if United begin to look more solid, Rojo could well be worth the money.
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Loic Remy – Chelsea
Position – Forward
FPL Price – £7.4m
Remy joined Chelsea following Fernando Torres’ decision to join Milan – the Blues fought off interest from the Gunners for the French striker’s signature, though in fairness Remy would probably offer more fantasy interest if he had gone to the Emirates, where he would of been a certain starter, certainly until his mate Giroud returns from injury in the New Year. Anyway, it’s the Bridge for Remy and a whole load of splitting, pulling and occasional cameo appearances coupled with some Capital One Cup action, no doubt. With Diego Costa impressing and clearly Jose’s no.1, Remy’s opportunities will certainly be limited, which is a shame as his record in the Premier League is good – 14 goals in 24 starts for Newcastle last season and 6 goals for QPR in 13 starts the season before. At least he passed his medical I guess, something that he failed at Liverpool. Unless Costa gets a (genuine) injury then Remy is best avoided unless Mourinho gives him more starts than anyone expects right now.
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Michael Keane – Burnley
Position – Defender
FPL Price – £4.4m
21 year-old Keane has joined Burnley on loan from Man United until January. With LVG now believing he has enough options in defence, first team experience at the top level was his desire for the centre back, who has struggled to force his way into the first team at Old Trafford and spent most of the last two seasons out on loan. Keane actually won the reserve Player of the Year at United in 2012 and has represented the England U21s 12 times, scoring 3 goals. While we’re not suggesting you should invest in Keane, it may well be that he gives intense competition to FPL favourite cheapie Michael Duff. Keep a close eye on Sean Dyche’s selection over the next couple of GWs to see if Duff can retain his place.
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Tom Cleverley – Aston Villa
Position – Midfield
FPL Price – £5.3m
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[/three_fourth]Poor old Tom. Well ok young Tom. But poor Tom, regardless. The kid was made a scapegoat for both Man Utd and England alike last season, taking the brunt of the Moyes era, he was almost a pariah and became the poster boy for all English football’s failings at one point it seemed, to the extent that there was a ridiculous online petition launched for his exclusion from the national squad. Woy played the diplomatic card and publicly slammed said antics. Then went away, thought about it and dropped him! Well we aren’t about to join the boo boys party at FF247 as we believe in Tom and wish him all the best on his new venture at Villa. There’s a player in there bursting to get out, of that we are sure and hopefully the temporary step down from the Old Trafford limelight may help him rediscover some much needed confidence. The reason for our optimism is two-fold and it’s all deep rooted in Utd culture – albeit past culture. Firstly, you don’t make it through the Utd ranks all the way to the first team with Fergie at the helm unless you have something special about you. And Tom did just that. Secondly and somewhat strangely, by joining Villa he’s passed an even more stringent test – Roy Keane. Keane may only be the no2 at Villa but let’s not kid ourselves – that conversation has happened and Keane has ratified the move himself and for someone who presumably spent many years watching Tom develop he’s seen enough to know that maybe with an arm around the shoulder, he and Lambert can coax Tom back to somewhere near his best and that when they do they have a great young talent on their hands. That said, in FPL terms, even at just £5.3m and dropping we would steer well clear of him at least for the time being – he may bring the odd assist but he’s crap at finishing! Good luck though young Tom, you don’t deserve the abuse you have endured over the past 12 months.
Thanks for reading FPL Transfer Window New Player Analysis part 1. This article was written by Cookie and Inittowinit
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Throughout this season which combination is better:
1) Moreno,Ivanovic,Welbeck
Or
2) Taylor(swa),Moore,Falcao
Until January I’d say 1.
I agree with CC – though I’d extend that to no.1 easy for the whole season.
I am going to use my WC and this is my first RMT since the start, so please help – my points to date total 169 :-
Krul, Mannone
Clyne, Hutton. Moreno. Pieters. Janmaat.
Ramsey. Sterling. Siggy. Fabregas. JWP.
Costa. Aguero. Naismith
I have gone for Aguero but shall compare with Falcao after 2 x GW ( he is expensive ) so can then downgrade and upgrade 3’rd Striker to Welbeck
Thank you all for your help, please
Looks pretty solid musungu – should score well mate
Does that mean you haven’t activated it yet then Musungu? What’s your current team if so? You must be around 150,000 with that rank, not bad at all this early on, so perhaps you needn’t WC just yet..
If you’re intent on it though, that’s a nice well-balanced team. No heavy hitters in defence, but a bunch of solid players and not just uber-cheapies. I would question the wisdom of having both Krul and Janmaat. though.
CC
I have not WC’d yet
My team up to the proposed is
Dg . Krul
Vlaar. Caulker, Debuchy. louis, Bruce
Fabregas, Ramsey, Sterling. Siggy. Barton
Costa, Rooney, Bojan
I have one FT left because I did move in Sterling for Mata
Any ideas
Well you’d be leaving Costa and your starting midfield as is, so not sure the WC would yield a big increase in points for you.. I would suggest taking a hit this GW, and downgrading Luis to Moreno and getting in Naismith for Bojan.
Thanks CC I had decided to take a hit Luis / Moreno and Rooney/ Falcao but then today looked at a WC, which seemed tempting as I had 9 changes – anyway I shall sleep on it. many thanks mate
Quick observation here. From what I am seeing there is a general clamour to get in the big big names. Didn’t we just do this three weeks ago. It’s not always the big expensive stars that shine, hence the need for many to now feel they need to wildcard.
While I’m not saying now is a bad time to wildcard, many I feel are panicking into it, afraid they’d lose value or get left behind.
For some a wc is justified – bad start, 4/5/6 names now not playing in their squad etc….but for 3/4 changes – I ask, is it really the best time or are you being sucked in?
Cookie, You’re bang on ! I’ve been sucked in….I think I could have just taken a 4pt hit and seen how the next couple of weeks went but too late now, I hit the activate wildcard tab and have to stick with it now! Not too happy that i’ve done it so soon……
Having said that, I’ve changed 4 defs, 1 mid and 2 fwds, I just hope it pays off and gives me the boost I need.
Hear hear, here here!
Morning Cookster, totally agree mate. This is my squad for now, no need to panic at all, have used my ft to bring Costa back,0.4itb, will do Mata to Sterling for -4pts depending on any international injuries, your thoughts mate.
Glad to see I’m in good company, same starting 11 but with Ivan over Cahill. And will also almost certainly bring in Sterling for Mata for a hit.
So i ain’t that bad at this Calvin, or are we both awful ? :big-lol:
That remains to be seen Elle :big-lol:
Morning Elle,
That makes perfect sense to me mate. I would rather take a couple of hits right now than just wildcard.
I should emphasise my point – some have very good reasons to wildcard now. I just think many see others do it, start playing around with their team, see what they could have and then before they know it, BOSH, the button has been pressed, when maybe with a hit or two, as you have shown, above, you can sort things.
Great comment above Cookie. Before the transfer deadline majority of ppl wanted to ship United players out. Now all with wcs are looking to get them back in. No disrespect to United but they definitely not firing at the moment and yes Di Maria scored yesterday and assisted a million, but that was in a decent Argentina side. I for one would like to see how they fare over the next couple of gws. That being said I still have Rooney and Mata and hanging on by a thread in terms of value, but hoping not too lose out too much and have them at home to QPR and then have a points hit to get in Welbeck and Aguero after
Too right Cookie. I think one only need be reminded of Sanchez, who’s taken a few games to get going. Occasionally a player can hit the ground running, as we’ve seen with Costa, but so often even the world class players can take a while to find their feet. There’s no shortage of safer options to keep their seat warm for the time being. So STOP SELLING MATA AND ROONEY PLEASE! B) Thanks.
Especially outside his window! 😉
haha. Inside joke, ftw. (Well, outside joke in this case)
I would sell Mata!
Already sold them both !!!
You git!! 😛
Going to sell Rooney just to annoy you 😉
That does it. I’m gonna bring in a big name just to annoy Cookie then.
In all honesty, if I was on a WC I’d not risk having Mata. But I’ll wait to see what LvG’s next game tells us about his system.
V wise young Bry, impossible to know where they all fit in or indeed whether Falcao will even start vs QPR.
I am now playing my wildcard cookie. I had a decent start followed by a below the FPL average score of 41 this past gameweek. My defence needed major work and I also had Mata and Rooney, not to mention the big mistake of taking out Costa at the wrong time. So I bit the bullet.
I see what you are saying about United but after the international break the starting eleven is going to be completely different to the first three gameweeks. Due to injuries United have been playing with a similar lineup to what Moyes did but against QPR, United could have Falcao, Blind, Di Maria, Rojo, Herrera, Shaw and Rafael all playing. Together with their decent fixtures up until gameweek 9 I would not dismiss having Falcao or Di Maria in your team at all.
City and Aguero have some tough fixtures coming up and of course the man can score against anybody but for 12.1m is he as MUST HAVE as many believe he is, right now anyway?
He is for me Mark, yes. As I said to GP earlier, in my opinion, Aguero is one of those essential captain choices that can turn an average GW into a sensational one.
I hope you’re right about United and, indeed, that is what my optimistic head is telling me also. However, LVG says he is not surprised by their start and has said to give him three months to start to show improvements…..that is quite telling to me.
So, will there be an improvement straight away? Maybe, hopefully. Will it barnstormingly fantasyfootballtastic? Unlikely, in my opinion.
A good point, well made Cookie.
There have been some exciting signings made in the window but until i see how they play and how they perfom, fantasy wise, i don’t deem them must haves at this time.
(The lady) doth protest too much, methinks. Cookie it sounds like you are trying very hard to convince someone not to play it. Could it be yourself by any chance?! :p
Init,
My thoughts exactly.
Yeah. What these two said!!! *hides behind Init and GP*
Absolutely not mate, too many variables for me right now. You are one of the few I know to have a genuine reason to play it now, so back the f off :hippo:
Is it the time of the month mate, you seem angry? If you need to talk I’m here…………
Angry? Me – nah!!
Genuine belief that many, not all, as I’ve already said, see other wildcard teams and think, “yeah, I want that” and then play it when a hit or two would do just fine.
Im in your corner Cooks, they don’t call me NZ ‘hold the card’ Alex for nothing
so just to clarify, have you played yours yet?
No mate, unless I get a load of injuries from the internationals next week, I won’t be playing it yet mate
Yeah. What Cookie said! Back off, Init.
I’m actually considering bringing in Sterling for Mata now, thanks to mounting peer pressure. I just don’t know if I can bring myself to have exactly the same midfield quartet as everyone else.
Get Henderson instead Bry – he’s got a bigger name than Sterling. Just.
I was hoping to use my FT to bring in Welbeck for Riviere, who’s contributed about as much to my team as Mezut Ozil, who’s not even in it.
Bry, you think he’ll start? Are you adamantly against taking a points hit?
It’s one of my commandments this season Alex. Thou shalt not take points hits unless in a crisis. Given that I came out of this GW thinking of not using my FT, I shan’t be persuaded to take a hit. My players have got great fixtures for next week, and if I have to stick with Riviere, so be it, but if LvG’s presser indicates that Mata will start at home to QPR, then I’m definitely gonna be tempted by Welbeck. If an average player like Giroud can get goals for Arsenal, I’d imagine Danny boy could be in for a treat.
Your right Cookie i panicked after having a shocking week and blowing my two transfers taking costa out ,putting my plans a couple of weeks behind.I should have just taken a couple of hits in retrospect but what with the two week break (meaning extra time to torture myself) and the fact a couple of my players were going down in price and three of my targets were going up,i hit the button and have to admit it felt good !! Probably regret it in a few weeks though.
https://m.soundcloud.com/weeklyfantasyfootballshow/weekly-fantasy-football-show-gameweek-4?utm_source=soundcloud&utm_campaign=share&utm_medium=twitter
I’m assuming that will work, it’s the podcast link until we get it on site with a pretty picture! Great stuff Calvin and Bry, just having a listen now. And no Bry you certainly haven’t lost the accent!
I sound really hoarse on it for some reason. I should probably cut down on the partying, eh.
By gum.
Let me go ahead and listen to this, if for no other reason to get material to use against CC and Bry.
Just don’t do it willy-nilly mate. (Dig at Calv, dig at Calv)
Did Naismith go up in value again last night?
yes Smash…5.4 now
Morning ,
Good article guys..
how’s this look..?
For me that strike-force is not worth playing Wisdom or Moore over a quality midfielder each GW BigP.
Cc..
Cheers..
Can’t resist going for the big 3 upfront
It’s basically sacrificed Ramsey for those 3 upfront…!
Main thing is I’ve got playing cheapos if needed.
Wouldn’t just rely on Moore or wisdom,
Could go 3-4-3 with Marney an option.
Ivanovic is an option to downgrade may raise 1,5m…
but upgrading Marney to 6m mid ain’t worth it.
Either way it boils down to Aguero and Moore/Wisdom/Marney or Welbeck and Ramsey/Silva/ADM. My money would be on the second option, but good luck
Calvin…
Welbeck + top mid vs Aguero & budget mid / Def
Aguero is more prolific on his own, than having Welbeck & Ramsey / Silva combined..
EPL Last 4 years inc this one..
Aguero = 54 goals 23 assists
Welbeck & Ramsey combined = 33 goals 33 assists
Welbeck & Silva combined = 36 goals 54
I hear you, but you can’t really compare as Ramsey just came alive last season and did nothing of note really prior to that, and Welbeck always had limited game-time at United but appears to be first-choice at Arsenal now Giroud is out.
If he stays fit though you can’t argue with Aguero’s pedigree of course.