Kops Fantasy Football Tips Game-week 4

Kops Fantasy Football Tips Game-week 4

FPL managers we’re regularly told to remain patient and not to panic, but given the current circumstances it’s proving difficult to do either! Who could have predicted that United, City & Liverpool would keep three clean sheets in the first three games, that Kompany & Kolarov would amass 31 points in that period, that Riyad Mahrez would be the top points scorer or that Eden Hazard would have just 8pts after three games? It really has been the perfect storm! The fun is likely to continue through until 6pm next Tuesday evening when the transfer window closes. Expect a few surprises between now & then, while you should prepare for these surprises to cause some further headaches as we once again try to establish who’s first choice in a particular team and who’s not! However that’s in the future and there’s no point worrying about it now as we’ve more pressing issues to deal with such as who to transfer in & out this week. With such issues in mind we have once again trawled through every team in an effort to identify the players whom we believe can bring home the bacon over the coming weeks.

Goalkeepers

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[/three_fourth]Those of you who have watched both Manchester teams this season will have noticed a glaring difference in style between the two teams. Whereas City are playing a free flowing brand of football United are the complete opposite as they struggle to make their possession pay, they’re just not carrying a threat at the moment. One similarity between the two is that they have both kept three clean sheets from their opening three games. For those of you who have chosen to play with one premium keeper for the season then Joe Hart would appear to be the standout candidate, at least for now! If we assume that there will be an element of rotation for both full back spots as well as for Kompany’s partner at centre back then Hart will remain the cheapest guaranteed starter from the City backline. However, picking Hart does have one slight drawback in that he takes up one of those prized City spots and given the form they’re in there’s a strong argument to be made for having three of their outfield players. Having made just 10 appearances for Sampdoria last season I doubt any of us expected Sergio Romero to go straight into the United first XI, but due to the standoff with David de Gea that is exactly what’s happened. After a couple of shaky moments against Spurs on the opening day of the season the Argentine hasn’t put a foot wrong and appears to be great value at £5.1m. The problem is that following GW4 the transfer window shuts and if de Gea remains a United player he will surely be back between the sticks, after all he’ll likely leave for free next summer so United need to get the most out of him before then. It is however a situation which is certainly worth monitoring and should United choose to cash in on the Spaniard Romero will suddenly become a bargain.

A number of keepers priced at £4.5m who warrant inclusion this week are West Brom’s Boaz Myhill, Stoke’s Jack Butland and Watford’s Heurelho Gomes. With Ben Foster still a minimum of 4-5 weeks away from a return to first team football Myhill continues to represent a worthwhile option, particularly when you take a look at their upcoming fixtures. The Baggies have conceded three in two of their opening three games but these games were against City & Chelsea, while against Watford Myhill picked up 10 points. Stoke are yet to keep a clean sheet in the league this season but this is through no fault of Butland’s. Anyone who saw highlights of Stoke v Norwich last weekend will undoubtedly have been impressed by Butland who turned in a Roy of the Rovers performance. Aside from a trip to Arsenal in GW5 Stoke have a number of fixtures over the coming game-weeks which should see Butland claim his first clean sheet of the season. Now I realise that Gomes faces City this week so his inclusion is more for those on a wildcard. With two clean sheets from their opening three games they have perhaps surprised a few and following this week’s daunting trip to Manchester they have a number of games which will allow him to build upon a good start.

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Defenders

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[/three_fourth]Don’t buy Aleksandar Kolarov as he’s a rotational risk! Heard those words before? In fairness I’ve said it myself a number of times over the last few seasons. However, following his superb start to the season he has become less of a gamble and this is highlighted by the fact that his ownership has grown to over 13%. Yes, Gael Clichy is fit and yes he will start sooner rather than later but I’m confident that Kolarov is now the first choice left back, for now at least! After just three games he has already formed a great understanding down the left side with Raheem Sterling and there is no reason for Pellegrini to interfere with a team in such form. Of course things might change once the CL starts but that’s not for another three weeks. With Pablo Zabaleta side-lined for the next month Bacary Sagna will continue to play at right full for City. Granted he’s unlikely to pick up attacking returns in the same manner as Kolarov but he is £0.6m cheaper and for those of you trying to fit in as many big hitters in midfield as possible the inclusion of Sagna in your defence may give you a little more freedom.

Whisper it quietly but the standout defender at Old Trafford over the first three games has been Chris Smalling, who at last is beginning to fulfil his potential. However in fantasy football terms there is little to separate him from Matteo Darmian and Luke Shaw, and with the two full backs both cheaper than Smalling they are once again our tips from the United defence. In terms of their returns there is little to separate the two full backs, Darmian has 20pts & Shaw 19pts, although the fact that Darmian has four bonus points as compared to Shaw’s two might suggest he’s more suited to FPL although it’s too early to make such a statement. Their underlying stats indicate that Darmian has more of an impact in defence while Shaw is more of a threat going forward. Therefore with United currently lacking a cutting edge in attack Damian just about shades it over Shaw for us.

With just two points & five goals conceded Southampton haven’t enjoyed a great start to the season. Last Sunday against Watford Koeman switched to three at the back in an attempt to stem the flow of goals and it worked as The Saints kept their first clean sheet of the season, although the opposition needs to be factored into this. Should Koeman decided to stick with three at the back then Maya Yoshida becomes a long term possibility. With the arrival of Steven Caulker many assumed Yoshida would find himself on the bench but the Japanese international has started each of the first three games and even if they sign another centre back there is every chance Yoshida will maintain his spot. You would have assumed that a switch to three at the back would see Cedric further up the pitch but his average position was more defensive than in GW2. However it’s impossible to ignore his attacking instincts and if Southampton can shore up their defence the Portuguese international will remain a great choice.

Liverpool will always let you down, especially their defenders. Well so the story goes, but those of you who have had a Liverpool defender in your team since GW1 will be quite happy given their three clean sheets. With three of their next four games at home to West Ham, Norwich and Villa you have to fancy their chances of picking up another couple of clean sheets. But who do you pick? Joe Gomez has been the surprise package as none of us expected him to start the season. Despite a surge in interest leading to a couple of price rises he is still just £4.7m and given the aforementioned fixtures he is excellent value for money. A word of caution though, he’s one of the favourites to be the first to reach five yellow cards this season! If the form of Gomez has been somewhat of a surprise the same cannot be said for Nathaniel Clyne. The former Southampton man has settled into life at Anfield with three assured performances. In defence he’s been solid while he is always happy to get forward and shows great composure when he does so, and it is only a matter of time before he generates some attacking returns.

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Midfielders

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[/three_fourth]So United didn’t want Pedro? I suppose it’s easy to understand whY…..99 goals in 321 appearances, as well as countless trophies including five La Liga titles and three champions league winner’s medals. We’re sure there was some logic to their decision! Of course it was Chelsea who the Spaniard signed for and it didn’t take him very long to endear himself to the Chelsea fans as he claimed a goal and an assist on his debut. Many felt it might take him a couple of games to settle into life in the premiership but he’s certainly hit the ground running and at the time of writing over 200k managers had transferred him into their teams this week and he already features in over 7% of teams. Against West Brom he started on the right but his versatility means Jose can field him in any of the attacking midfield positions behind Diego Costa, whilst if the need arises he could replace Costa. At £9.5m he is £1.9m cheaper than Hazard and £1.5m cheaper than Diego Costa, so if he can build upon his debut it certainly appears as though he offers the best value for money from the Chelsea attack.

We may only be three weeks into the new season but who amongst us could have predicted that the top point’s scorer at this stage would be Riyad Mahrez?! The word ‘must have’ is an overused term in fantasy football circles and I’m not going to state that Mahrez is a ‘must have’, but can you afford to be without him? On the back of four goals and nine bonus points his price has rocketed to £6m which in all honesty is still great value given his form. Many will feel as though they’ve missed the boat on Mahrez as he’s already scored four and we’ve seen his price rise by £0.5, but in my opinion that’s nonsense. If you believe that Mahrez will continue to score get him in now before you miss out on any more points! Leicester as a team are playing extremely well and one look at their upcoming fixtures would suggest there’s no reason for this to change, between GW4 & 14 they only play one of last season’s top six…which should in turn see Mahrez remain amongst the goals?

It really is quite difficult to ignore both David Silva and Yaya Toure at the moment. Silva was outstanding last season but over the first three games of this season he has taken his game to another level. He appears to have all the time in the world to do what he likes with the ball, against Everton last Sunday he had Barry and McCarthy chasing shadows. He was unlucky not to get on the scoresheet against The Toffees as he struck the woodwork with a thunderous effort. I’ll wager that come the end of the season he will comfortably have the most assists in the PL, while he’ll also have a handful of goals to his name as well. It looks like the Yaya Toure of 2013/14 is back, the lucky Yaya, the one who only has to walk onto the pitch to pick up some attacking returns. He’s not technically gifted like Silva but when he’s playing well he just has this habit of picking up points even when he doesn’t deserve them. At £8.8m he’s over £1.0m cheaper than Silva and given the current form of the two it’s difficult not to favour the Ivorian.

Quite a few players made their top flight debuts last weekend and amongst them were four midfielders each of whom should be monitored closely over the coming weeks, I refer to Stoke’s Xherdan Shaqiri, Crystal Palace’s Bakary Sako, Spurs’ Dele Alli and Villa’s Adama Traore. Much was expected of Shaqiri when he joined Bayern Munich in 2012 but his career hasn’t taken off like many expected it to do so and he arrives at Stoke on the back of a poor season in Italy with Inter Milan. The Swiss international will be hoping to kick start his career with Stoke and Mark Hughes will be hoping that he helps Stoke build on last season’s 9th place finish.

Sako arrived at Selhurst Park on the back of a great season with Wolves, scoring 16 times from 46 appearances. Not only did Sako score against Villa, he also registered six shots five of which were on target which bodes well for those managers who decide to take a punt on him. I say punt because given the amount of quality midfielders currently at Pardew’s disposal there is likely to be an element of rotation over the coming weeks.

Alli joined Spurs from League One side MK Dons and just like Sako has a reputation as a goalscoring midfielder, last season he scored 16 times. At 19 he’s got a lot to learn but Pochetino has said he’s willing to give youth a chance and with Spurs struggling in the transfer market there is likely to be plenty of opportunities for the youngster over the course of the season, meaning he could yet prove a bargain at £4.9m.

Traore or Adama as he is known has been part of La Masia since the age of eight, so he’s certainly got talent. Obviously it’s one thing doing it for the Barca youth teams, now he’s got to do it in the Premier League. However if his debut is anything to go by he should do ok, he hadn’t been on the pitch long when he picked up the ball near the half way line and drove past two defenders before his cross into the box was diverted into the net for an og. For good measure he scored in the League Cup on Tuesday night. Unfortunately reports suggest he has picked up an injury so it might be best to wait for Friday’s Team Talk before making a decision on this lad.

Matt Ritchie was quite popular in these parts as we prepared for the season kick off, with many using him as part of a rotational strategy. Of course we’re only three games into the season but to date Ritchie hasn’t had the impact many were hoping for. For those of you looking to ship Ritchie out you might want to consider his midfield colleague Max Gradel. The Ivorian international enjoyed a superb season with St. Etienne last term scoring 17 times from just 31 appearances. Gradel played a key part in Bournemouth’s win over West Ham last weekend picking up two assists and looked lively throughout.

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Forwards

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[/three_fourth]Three games into the season and Chelsea have scored just four goals. Four in three games isn’t actually that bad it’s just that you expect more from the reigning champions. Against West Brom last Saturday there were obvious flaws at the back but going forward there were signs of improvement, largely thanks to new signing Pedro. The West Brom game also saw Diego Costa score his first goal of the season and for good measure he weighed in with an assist as well. Given the fact that Jose has not bought a recognised out & out striker (Falcao doesn’t count!) over the summer it is obvious that as long as Costa can remain fit he will start the majority of games. Assuming he can stay fit for the majority of the season there is no doubt that he will score goals and Chelsea will be hoping that he can surpass the 20 goals he managed last season. A fit & firing Costa is not only good for Chelsea but also for FPL managers as he falls into the category of players who you worry about if they’re not in your team!

It was always going to happen…Sergio Aguero scores against Chelsea, FPL managers the world over fall over themselves in an attempt to get him into their teams and he then blanks at Everton! While Aguero failed to get on the scoresheet we must take confidence in the way City played, particularly in the 2nd half. After just three games confidence is already high, David Silva & Yaya Toure are pulling the strings in midfield and while Sterling is yet to register much in the way of FPL points he has settled quickly into the team. This is great news for Aguero owners as it means that City will continue to create plenty of chances over the coming weeks and as we’ve seen in the past, Aguero only needs half a chance. Given City’s form they won’t be afraid of any team but their fixtures over the coming weeks are particularly enticing and those of you who do not own Aguero had best invest in a couch.

Christian Benteke really should have had his 2nd goal of the season against Arsenal on Monday night. Yes it was a great save from Cech but Benteke should have buried the chance. While he didn’t score it did highlight the fact that he is more than capable of getting on the end of such chances and he is more than just a one trick pony. It’s early days but he appears to be building a good understanding with Coutinho who is undoubtedly Liverpool’s most creative player and if this understanding can flourish the Belgian should get plenty of chances over the coming weeks. As we have already noted above three of Liverpool’s next four fixtures are at home to West Ham, Norwich & Villa, so we certainly expect to see his name on the scoresheet more than once over the coming weeks.

Two mid-priced options who have impressed to date are Swansea’s Bafetimibi Gomis and Stoke’s Mame Biram Diouf. With a goal in each of the opening three games Gomis is certainly a striker in form and with the likes of Montero creating both space & chances there is no reason for the flow of goals to stop. One slight concern is that he has yet to pick up a bonus point despite scoring in every game. Aside from a trip to The Emirates in GW5 Stoke have a relatively easy fixture list over the next 5-6 weeks and with a goal in each of his last two games Diouf is worth some consideration. Stoke have come a long way since Hughes took over and with the likes of Shaqiri and Afellay having being added to the squad over the summer there is no question Diouf will have plenty of chances.

For those looking for a cheap 3rd forward the standout options given form and fixtures would appear to be Bournemouth’s Callum Wilson and Sunderland’s Jermain Defoe. Bournemouth’s performance against West Ham confirmed that they can mix it with the big boys and that they will create chances. Wilson’s pace will cause problems for many more teams and at £5.5m he’s hard to ignore. The form of Sunderland has been something of a disappointment, although Defoe provides some light at the end of the tunnel. He’s one of those players who’ll do nothing for an entire game but give him a chance and he’ll take it as he proved against Leicester & Swansea.

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Thanks for reading Kops Fantasy Football Tips Game-week 4. This article was written by Kop Warrior

Follow @KenLyons79

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