Aston Villa 0-3 Man Utd
Man Utd were dealt a huge blow midweek with the news that Robin van Persie would be side-lined for about a month with a thigh injury. Aston Villa were without the influential Fabien Delph who was serving a one game suspension and the Villains were hoping to end their abysmal home run against Utd, their last league win against Utd was 18 years ago. Sadly for Villa after just 18 minutes of play they found themselves two nil down thanks to Danny Welbeck. The first came after Adnan Januzaj had hit the post and Welbeck was first on hand to slot home, the second came three minutes later following great work from Antonio Valencia down the right who produced a pinpoint cross into the path of Welbeck to convert. Man Utd keep up the pressure in the first half and both Welbeck and Wayne Rooney came close to increasing the lead. Villa on the other hand failed to test David de Gea. The second half was a feisty affair, de Gea and Gabriel Agbonlahor had a handbags moment shortly after the re-start which resulted in both being booked. Agbonlahor will therefore miss Villas next fixture away at Stoke. Utd kept up the pressure and were rewarded on 52 minutes when Tom Cleverley (yes that is correct!) finished off a Wayne Rooney assist to make it three nil. Mathew Lowton was the next name in the referee’s book when he caught Januzaj and shortly afterwards Utd supporters rose in unison to welcome the return of Darren Fletcher following serious illness. Rooney was unfortunate when he found himself clean through only for the referee to bring play back following more handbags by Welbeck and Nathan Baker. The remainder of the match just petered out with no more clear cut chances, Villas Ciaran Clark was booked and Christian Benteke was missing in action again and is clearly short of confidence. Man Utd will take some positives from this result, three crucial points, a comfortable win and signs that when they attack down the flanks the Red Devils can be a handful, Villa though will be very concerned with their poor run of form.
Bonus points: Welbeck (3) Cleverley (2) Jones & Valencia (1)
Norwich 1-1 Swansea
This intriguing encounter at Carrow Road saw Swansea without the industrious Chico Flores who was suspended and the home side were without their influential midfield pair of Robert Snodgrass and Anthony Pilkington due to injury. Fantasy managers were hoping this game would be as action-packed as the previous six meetings which have produced 25 goals and the signs at first were promising when Nathan Dyer put Swansea ahead on 12 minutes following a great passage of play from Ashley Williams. Michu should have doubled the lead but took a wild stab and saw his effort sail over the bar. The turning point in the first half came shortly after Dyer was stretchered off the field with a nasty ankle injury, when deep into stoppage time Johan Elmander found Gary Hooper and the former Celtic Forward unleashed a 25 yard volley that gave Michel Vorm no chance. The second half was a messy affair, Swansea were frustrated by The Canaries and picked up silly yellow cards, Angel Rangel, Michel Vorm and Jose Canas were all booked by the referee. Hooper was denied late on following great work by Leroy Fer and Michael Turner headed against the bar. Norwich will be disappointed not to have taken all three points, they were denied by the woodwork and outstanding goalkeeping by Vorm.
Bonus points: Hooper (3) Dyer & Williams (2)
Tottenham 0-5 Liverpool
Sundays stand out game was the visit of Liverpool to White Hart Lane who had their captain Steven Gerrard missing due to injury. Spurs had enjoyed a small run of form but have won only one of their last five home league matches. The first 45 minutes showed a side to Liverpool that has been lacking away from Anfield. They were relentless at times against Spurs, Phillipe Coutinho had a great chance after just 2 minutes following good work from Liverpool’s Stand in Captain Luis Suarez but the Brazilian scuffed his shot. Liverpools passing was played at a high tempo and was slick and they broke through the Spurs defence on 18 minutes when, following a period of extended pressure, Michael Dawson lost possession to Jordan Henderson and his pass found Suarez who obliged with a brilliantly well placed finish. Liverpool now had the bit between their teeth and Coutinho saw an effort hit the crossbar and Spurs were then forced into an early substitution when Sandro retired injured. To compound his departure more sustained pressure from Liverpool saw Henderson calmly volleying into the goal for Liverpool’s second after an effort by Suarez had been saved. Just before the break Simon Mignolet was fortunate when an effort by Roberto Soldado was disallowed following a shoulder barge. The second half performance by Liverpool showcased their potential, and the result was devastating to Spurs. Goals from Jon Flanagan, Raheem Sterling and Suarez were no more than Liverpool deserved and Spurs’ job was made all the harder when Paulinho was red carded in the 63rd minute for a foul on Suarez. The standout performance has to go to Suarez, 2 goals and three assists says it all, the home fans had long gone as the sound of You’ll Never Walk Alone reverberated around White Hart Lane. The result moves The Reds up to 2nd place, just 2 points off top spot. Sensational!
Bonus points: Suarez (3) Henderson (2) Flanagan (1)
This article was written by Eddy
Hi all,
Taking out Aguero for Negredo with 1 FT left. Tempted to bring Walcott in for a -4 hit. Or should I wait until GW18 to get him?
What’s the rest of you squad like hdmhmd?
Reason being, I did the exact move you have just mentioned, for a -4. I fancy Walcott against an out of sorts Chelsea back line.
Was thinking the same thing – Walcott’s hit the ground running. Here’s my squad:
Mignolet (Boruc)
Coleman, Evra, Wilson (Olsson, Gabbidon)
Ravel, Silva, Barkley, Shelvey, Ramsey
Rooney, Suarez
hdmhmd – We cant see your squad so it’s hard to say,if your midfield is weak and costing you points then yes..i’d bring him in (i’ve actually done the same),otherwise it’s probably best to leave it for a week or make a different move if need be..again..it’s hard to make a call without seeing your squad…
Sorry my bad – here’s my full squad:
Mignolet (Boruc)
Coleman, Evra, Wilson (Olsson, Gabbidon)
Ravel, Silva, Barkley, Shelvey, Ramsey
Rooney, Suarez (Aguero)
1 FT and 0.5 in the bank
hdmhmd – No problem,if it was me,i’d bring him in,probably for Shelvey/Morrison,i think Arsenal will win this weekend and Wally to be in the thick of it,whether you do it or not will depend on how you see the weekends fixtures going,you could do with another solid mid too so it’s a yes for me,Morrison/Shelvey >> Walcott,i had a similar problem this week and shipped out Brady for Walcott for a -4..
NIN – Thanks for the pointers – much appreciated. That must’ve been a sweet result for you taking that -4 hit for Walcott! I have a feeling they might score a few at the Bridge considering their leaky defence… I agree I do need another solid mid, and its definitely him. Looks like Shelvey’s out for me.
NIN – I just realised that I’m short 0.1 if I do Aguero >> Negredo and Shelvey >> Silva
Do you reckon its a good idea to take Ramsey out instead?
hdmhmd – The dreaded 0.1m…it’s never fun,i couldn’t advise anyone to ditch Ramsey mate,it would be about as brave a move as you could make haha,108 points already suggests that he’s a must for everyone.I seem to have worded myself arseways in the last post..i meant i brought in Walcott for this weekend coming,didn’t have him for the City game unfortunately,ah well.
Haha, its ok. I was thinking that with Wally back he would make for enough ARS coverage by himself – but then again Ramsey’s looking quite the mainstay for most managers this season (will he ever stop?). I guess there’s no other choice but Aguero >> Lukaku and Shelvey >> Walcott for me then, though I would’ve preferred Negredo.
Hey All – got my mind set on Aguero > Negredo with my 1 ft. Also have Cahill and Boruc injured and a weak midfield. Any of these moves necessary for a -4 hit?
1- Brady/Noble > Silva
2- Cahill > anybody!
3- Boruc > upgrade gk
Help!!
Is it worth getting Silva in for Sessegnon for a 4 pt hit? Have no City coverage now as I have transferred Aguero out for Rooney
Mignolet, Marshall
Coleman, B.Turner, Shaw, Chester, Davies
Walcott, Hazard, Brady, Ravel, Sess
Rooney, Suarez, Lukaku
Have 3.7 in the bank
RITZ – With West Brom being managerless and up against a tight Hull side this weekend..i’d say yes,definitely worth it.
Thank you NIN! Just what I needed to hear! 😉
RITZ – It makes sense to me..doesn’t mean it will work though haha,i hope it does though!!
Arsenal will not beat Chelsea. One point is in the cards for that game if Arsenal get that much out of it. I actually really like Hazard on the counter against Arsenal. Mourinho will let Arsenal come and counter them. When Hazard and company get a good run at Merts, Sagna and the Slow Arsenal defence, I smell trouble. KOs speed will be missed. Just an opinion, but I said they would not beat Everton and would get trashed by City so far so good on Arsenal predictions last two games. A tie or Chelsea win!!
I agree Mito. If you look at how the Chelsea defense has been holding up lately I do believe there will be a high scoring game though. 3-3 or 3-2
:red-flag:
:blue-flag:
and :white-flag: for Arsenal
So I’ve just brought in Rooney for Aguero.
My question then is:
Is it worth getting in Silva for Brady for a hit? I’d bench either Shaw or Gabbidon if I brought him in.
I think Brady for Silva is worth 4pts yes.
Aight, thanks. Who would you bench then, Gabbidon (New H) or Shaw (Tot H)?
Bench Gabbidon.
Hi everyone!
I’m new to this site and I need some help considering my team. I think I need to get rid of Aguero as he is injured so long. Definitely too expensive to leave on the bench. Who should I replace him with? Lukaku? Negredo?
I would also like to get rid of Oscar but not sure about a -4p.
Would this be worth a hit?
Aguero and Oscar -> Lukaku and Silva
I’d expect the hit to be worthwhile in this case due to your bench.
Lukaku and Silva are solid options, given the rest of your squad is sweet.
Nice to have you here buddy, and well done so far! You’re obviously doing something right with a score like that, don’t take advice if you don’t need it! 😉
Thanks for your reply flingy! Yes I’ve done great this year but it could be even better. I’ve got my transfer really wrong lately.
You’ve done pretty good yourself also! It’s not easy to be in the top 100k.
Great example about bad advice came last gameweek as I had Suarez as captain untill very last minute. Then I had a chat with my friend and decided to captain Aguero
SOover,
Welcome to the site, great to have you onboard! Looking at your ranking, I think it should be us asking you for advice! Looks like you’re having a great season.
Would it be worth a hit ? You know what, with City’s fixtures and current scoring form it may just be – Oscar seems to be going through a bit of a lean spell, although him scoring could return at any point and make us look silly.
Lukaku or Negredo ? Again a very tough call – I guess the Silva and Lukaku combo spreads your risk and Everton have some great fixtures – though I’d be a bit more confident if Lukaku had managed to score against Fulham at the weekend!
Let us know what you decide to do mate – and be sure to hang around the site – I think you’d have some great advice to offer out yourself.
Thanks Cookie!
I’m quite certain that I will do Aguero->Lukaku as I have two other city players(Pantilimon and Zabalete). If I go with Negredo I don’t have a place for Silva. Even if I like Negredo very much, I think I like Silva more.
Will need to think this Oscar->Silva transfer a bit more as 4p hits may turn out crucial.
Yes, I will definitely visit this site and try to give my opinion to others. My first one is you should always captain Suarez!
yes liking the Suarez advice.
I would captain him 9 times out of ten without even thinking about it. The other time I would give a little bit of thought and then captain him.
SOover – I agree with the lads there,i think that is a worthy hit,and welcome to the site..the more the merrier