New Signings – Fantasy Premier League 2015/16. Milner, Ings, Firmino

New Signings – Fantasy Premier League 2015/16. Milner, Ings, Firminho

Liverpool were poor last season, actually they were worse than that but for the sake of our younger readers let’s stick with poor! Their defenders made a catalogue of errors over the course of the season, while up front they struggled for goals. It therefore comes as no surprise that Brendan Rodgers has been busy in the transfer market, although as we’ve seen in the past this is not necessarily a good thing! They’ve replaced Brad Jones with Adam Bogdan whom unsurprisingly we won’t be covering in one of these articles, 18 year old centre back Joe Gomez has arrived from Charlton and as he’s likely to be one for the future we won’t include him either. We took a look at Nathaniel Clyne in an earlier article and today we’ll focus on James Milner, Danny Ings and Firmino.

James Milner
Liverpool
Age: 29
Signed From: Free agent (previously Manchester City)
Fee: Free[three_fourth padding=”0 20px 0 0″]

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Why has James Milner left Manchester City? A club with whom he won two league title and will challenge again this season, and who offered him a four year contract worth up to £165k a week. It is likely that he has been assured of his game time at Anfield, but where Brendan Rodgers will play him is not immediately obvious, although reports have suggested that he will be handed his preferred role in central midfield. One possible scenario would see him played alongside Jordan Henderson with a more defensive minded player behind them or they could form the defensive base of a midfield three with a more attacking player ahead of them. Should he be offered a somewhat attacking role from central midfield position he could prove to be an interesting fantasy option, particularly as he’s priced at just £7.0m. During his time at City he spent most of his time operating in a wide role, a position from which his influence is limited and his lack of pace exposed. However in his final season at Villa, the last season in which he was a consistent starter he chalked up 184 points thanks to seven goals, 12 assists and 35 bonus points. One thing is for sure and that is that wherever Rodgers chooses to play him Milner will give everything for his new club and while he should not be viewed as a replacement for a certain Steven Gerrard his experience will help fill the leadership gap which Gerrard’s departure has created. Finally, while Milner has been handed Liverpool’s famous no.7 jersey, I wouldn’t expect him to hit the heights of those who have worn the jersey in bygone years!

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Danny Ings
Liverpool
Age: 22
Signed From: Burnley
Fee: To be decided by tribunal[three_fourth padding=”0 20px 0 0″]

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Is Danny Ings the next Rickie Lambert? Liverpool fans will certainly be hoping that the answer is no! In the two seasons prior to joining Liverpool Lambert scored 28 goals in 75 Premier League appearances for Southampton, while in his only season in the Premier League Ings scored 11 in 35 games for Burnley. Both Liverpool fans and FPL managers will be hoping that Ings has more of an impact at Anfield than Lambert managed last season. I’m not going to compare the two but one big difference is that Ings is only 22 and will surely continue to develop as a player, whereas Lambert was 32 when he joined the club. So what can we expect from Ings? It will all depend on how he himself handles the move. While Liverpool can no longer be considered a top 4 club there will be still be an awful lot more pressure placed upon him at Anfield than there was at Turf Moor. Currently Liverpool have five forwards (I use the term loosely!) in Sturridge, Lambert, Borini, Balotelli & Ings himself, actually there’s six, how could I forget Divock Origi. With Lambert, Borini & Balotelli all likely to leave the club over the remainder of the transfer window and Sturridge unlikely to be fit for the start of the season, Ings could find himself as the clubs only recognised striker come August 8th. Obviously the club continue to be linked with Christian Benteke, and it seems highly unlikely that another will not be brought in before the window closes. One thing is for sure and when he is given his opportunity he will work endlessly for the good of the team. He can hold the ball up well, win aerial duels and can finish with both feet. He has the ability to link up with the midfield and wide men which would see him fit into either a 4-3-3 or 4-2-3-1 system, both commonly used by Rodgers. Should Rodgers choose to play two up top Ings could also be effective. Just like Lambert last season Ings has been priced at £7.5m. Is this good value? I would advise you to wait & see how Ings settles into life at Anfield, this will also allow you to assess how Liverpool’s new signings gel together.

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Firmino
Liverpool
Age: 23
Signed From: Hoffenheim
Fee: £29m[three_fourth padding=”0 20px 0 0″]

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Let’s be honest, Firmino is one of those players who the vast majority of us had never heard of back in May. It wasn’t until the papers linked him with a move to United that most of us took any notice of him. He began his career with Figueirense in the second tier of Brazilian football before moving to Hoffenheim in 2010. It’s said that he initially struggled to adapt to foreign climes, which is good news for Liverpool, and he took three seasons for his talents to emerge. Since the start of the 2013/14 season he has weighed in with 23 goals & 21 assists, and has been one of the stand out performers in the Bundesliga. It remains to be seen where Brendan Rodgers plans to play the Brazilian, at Hoffenheim he spent most of his time playing directly behind a striker in something of a free role, although he is also capable of leading the line. He is a great dribbler, has excellent technique and as his recent stats demonstrate, he can finish. In 2013/14 Liverpool adopted a high pressing approach but the loss of Luis Suarez meant they struggled to press teams last season. Firmino is not only a flair player, he is also known for his work rate and his arrival could see Liverpool get back to playing on the front foot. Liverpool will be hoping that he and his compatriot Philippe Coutinho form an immediate understanding on the pitch and if this is the case, Firmino could very well prove to be an interesting FPL prospect, particularly if Liverpool have a striker knocking in the goals on a regular basis.

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New Signings – Fantasy Premier League 2015/16. Milner, Ings, Firmino This article was written by Kop Warrior

Follow @KenLyons79