Big thanks to That’s A Goal for their GW2 Predictions. They did excellent last week with 2 out of 3 bets landing and only missing out on a full house by 1 goal! Bring on Gameweek 2. Don’t forget to check out the FantasyYIRMA.com Fantasy Football Gameweek Preview.. Available here! After being a goal short […]
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Fantasy Football Roundup: Hazard, Chelsea, Liverpool and Pork Scratchings
Aug 16
Scroll down for a list of all our posts from this week including features on Swansea, Sunderland, Rooney in addition to our Fantasy Previews. It has been a busy week! Selection dilemmas, guessing rotation policies, do we pick RVP or not pick RVP, Double Gameweek preparation and aftermath considerations… you know – real gritty Fantasy […]
Premier League Preview: Paolo Di Canio’s impact at Sunderland
Aug 14
We continue with our ramp up to the new season. Sunderland have made some big changes in 2013. How will they shape up this season and more importantly should their players be in consideration for your Fantasy Football team. The @footballbutler is back with a great insight into Sunderland and his thoughts both on the recent […]
@Mark_Jones86 : Di Canio, a few wins and all will be forgotten
We hadn’t had a good one in a while had we? An English football scandal that we could all obsess over for a few days.
Luis Suarez hasn’t handled a ball against plucky FA Cup minnows in weeks, whilst Eden Hazard has probably been put off kicking cheeky Welsh ball boys for the remainder of his career.
What was the best one we’ve had recently? Callum McManaman’s tackle? Rio Ferdinand pulling out of the England squad? They were hardly scandals to get the pulses racing were they? Enter Paolo Di Canio.
Except Di Canio hasn’t just entered English football at all.
Following a season at Celtic in 1996/97 the Italian spent six years as a player in the Premier League with Sheffield Wednesday, West Ham and Charlton, achieving cult hero status at the Hammers.
Now a manager, for the past two years he’s been stationed down the divisions with Swindon Town, earning them promotion from League Two in 2012 before resigning due to an ownership row this February with the club challenging for elevation to the Championship.
All of which makes the events of the past few days a little odd.
Following Di Canio’s appointment as the new manager of Sunderland on Sunday, talk has been rife of his alleged fascist beliefs and sympathies.
Of course using the word ‘alleged’ is a bit difficult when you see some of the words that have come out of Di Canio’s mouth in the past, but the focus on his words and much-publicised act in 2005 has dominated the unveiling of the Italian, who had a tough enough job keeping Sunderland in the Premier League without all of this.
The answer to the scrutiny can of course be found in Di Canio’s change of destination, because the journey from Swindon to Sunderland didn’t just take him from south west to north east England, but it took him from the Football League to the Premier League as well. Everything looks bigger from up here.
This is in no way an attempt to defend Di Canio’s past comments, but if they didn’t seem such a big problem in Swindon then why should they be now? Of course the Robins didn’t have a figure as well known as the former Shadow Foreign Secretary David Milliband around to register his displeasure, but any opposition to his Swindon appointment received little attention and was soon forgotten once he started winning.
Under the Premier League magnifying glass everything appears bigger and more exposed though, none more so than during the last major scandals in the division which occurred within a week of each other in October 2011.
Just as there will always be those who now prefer to see Suarez and John Terry as card carrying members of the Ku Klux Klan as opposed to individuals who made a snap decision and ultimately a huge mistake – intentionally or otherwise – so now there will be others who instantly judge Di Canio without ever looking deeper into the story.
Supporters of Liverpool and Chelsea’s rivals repeatedly bring up the Suarez and Terry incidents because they like to see their opponents squirm. It is another one of the less tasteful aspects of the whole sorry business, but doesn’t often get mentioned.
The chances are that most of them and you won’t have heard of the Reading player John Mackie, who was banned for three matches for racist abuse in 2003. That occurred in the old Division One though, where headlines weren’t sought and reputations weren’t damaged as rapidly as they are in the Premier League.
Most of that is beside the point though, because Di Canio’s off-field beliefs will soon become yesterday’s story too.
A couple of wins from his early matches in charge – and given that the first two of them are away to Chelsea and then a derby match against Newcastle then he’s not entering quietly – will see the focus mercifully switch to football for Di Canio, just as it ended up doing for him at Swindon.
Even if he fails to keep the Mackems up in these final seven matches of the season then he deserves a tilt at the Championship in 2013/14, and if he achieves promotion there then you can be certain that all of the talk will be of his managerial skills and nothing else.
We’ll have had plenty of new scandals by then anyway.
Di Canio will be old news.
Sunderland: Consistently inconsistent
What to make of Sunderland’s season? It depends what mood you and they are in.
There probably isn’t a more suitable nickname in the Premier League than the one adopted by the men from the Stadium of Light. Black cats are either considered lucky or unlucky depending on what culture you adopt, and the Black Cats from the north-east are either good or bad too.
Mackems supporters are likely to opt for the latter description for the majority of their club’s season though, even if Sunderland’s struggles haven’t been easily apparent to the rest of us.
Bar a six-game winless streak which took in all of October and much of November, Sunderland and boss Martin O’Neill have always just done enough to maintain an air of control. Wins like the Boxing Day success over Manchester City – a now customary victory following on from last season’s – gave the impression that everything was serene on the surface, but below deck those black cats’ legs were whirring wildly.
Now, Sunderland sit just five points and three places above the relegation zone. They have lost all three of their games in February and now face what has suddenly become a huge home match against Fulham, another of the division’s great inconsistencies, on Saturday afternoon.
There are clearly talented performers in O’Neill’s team.
Steven Fletcher has proven himself to be a genuine Premier League forward, Stephane Sessegnon is capable of fantastic performances when he’s in the mood, and Simon Mignolet looks to be a goalkeeper who is destined to play for one of the big boys one day.
The individual talents are certainly there for O’Neill, but as can be true with every individual, the team has far too many bad days to compensate for the good.
Only seven of Sunderland’s 27 Premier League games this season have ended in wins, and whilst that is more than the five clubs who currently sit below them it is clearly not enough given the talents they have at their disposal.
Last season, when O’Neill entered the club in December and steered them away from the relegation zone and eventually to within two points of a top half finish, the likes of Sessegnon, Seb Larsson and James McClean all starred.
The arrivals of Adam Johnson and Fletcher saw new, potentially exciting elements added to that trio, and whilst the Scot has been an undoubted success given his 10 goals over the campaign, Johnson’s inconsistencies have mirrored those of his team.
The sometime England winger is capable of some fine performances on his day, but his day doesn’t come around often enough – a fact borne out by his struggles to break into the Manchester City team and his eventual sale by Roberto Mancini.
O’Neill has recently added Danny Graham to the mix, although the forward’s similarity to Fletcher does leave concerns that the pair won’t be able to form a potent partnership. The French midfielder Alfred N’Diaye looks to be an energetic enough arrival, but there remains a belief that Sunderland failed to strengthen in key areas during January. They are still playing midfielders at full-back regularly.
All of that adds to the often makeshift nature of a team and club who look as though they are not sure where to be. They need to be out of relegation trouble obviously, but that isn’t enough for a club of Sunderland’s stature.
Their inconsistent nature simply can’t be allowed to go on, especially if they want to avoid getting sucked in to the battle at the bottom.
Sunderland need to find themselves, and find a few more wins in the process.
Fantasy Premier League: GW27 Review
#FPL GW27 Review
Many thanks as always to @shots_on_target for his weekly wrap up of the Premier League games.
Check out his website at www.shotsontarget.com for some great #FPL insight!
What a performance by Gareth Bale in a very buoyant encounter at Upton Park. There’s not more much to say about Bale so I’ll move right on and mention Andy Carroll and Joe Cole. Nolan’s injury could prove a blow for the Hammers if it’s serious but this may afford Cole a more prominent role. He’s not £0.0m by the way, he’s £5.6m.
These two teams have both been great sources of fantasy players this season, and should continue to be so. With Ba gone, Sissoko and Cisse are providing the goals and Gouffran is one to watch too. Cabaye, on pens and free-kicks, will pick up points although Sissoko’s (rapidly rising) price tag and advanced role behind the striker make him this team’s highlight. In a FPL season dominated by midfielders Ritchie Lambert is this season’s third highest scoring forward, behind only RVP and Suarez. Not bad. Puncheon’s 2nd benching in the last 4 games throws a spanner in the works for a fair few managers; both were away games though so perhaps a tactical move and ,if so, maybe not too worrying ahead of 4 home games in the next 6 for. Maybe.
Berbatov was a dim glimmer of light in this match, Fulham unable to really threaten much against a Stoke side willing to let them try. Riise and Riether took advantage of the space to push up down the flanks and get involved in the attack, the latter getting the assist. Let’s move on.
A tight game without any real top draw attacking play to shout about – perhaps the highlight was Moyes’ fury at the final whistle. Norwich have been a legitimate threat from set-pieces all season which makes Snodgrass a very sound option for your FPL team, with Bassong and Holt the two players who tend to get on the end of things. Everton really didn’t get much going, too often failing to find players in the box. They need a good win against Oldham in the Cup and then Reading to keep up momentum into the run-in.
Top notch performance from Wigan, excelling not only in attack but defensively too, with the return of Boyce from injury and late introduction of season-long absentee Alcarez. Kone scored his 8th goal of the season in which he has missed about a fifth of. I would not be surprised to see him score another 5 or 6 before the end of the season with some nice fixtures over the horizon.
The early withdrawal of Van Persie will be a keen talking point for fantasy managers through this week ahead of a plum home game against Norwich which comes a few days before the Real Madrid game. In RVP’s absence it could well be Nani who fills the gap. Recently urged in the press by Sir Alex to show consistency this might be just the type of “media-message” Nani needs to prove his worth at a top club. QPR hardly troubled United at all but they will be pleased to get Remy back in action.
All hail Lukaku, right? Although Sunderland have earnt a tag as a defensive team over the last few seasons they don’t travel well at all so it’s no surprise that West Brom created plenty of chances, and even less of a surprise that these chances mostly fell and were put away by Lukaku, who just seems to be getting better through the season. Sessegnon had one of his best games yet this campaign and Sunderland’s attacking form has been gradually improving.
If United weren’t so far ahead in the league this dominant performance could have been regarded as City reaffirming their title challenge. Mancini has had a strange strategy this season of starting matches with a block of 5 in a deep midfield line, with the 2 fullbacks lining up with 3 center mids, this week in Milner, Rodwell and Garcia. Only when Tevez emerged did City have enough creative force to break Chelsea down, Silva and Toure showing their class. Check out Talk of the Crowd’s awesome tactical analysis of how the introduction of Tevez changed the game.
A lot was expected of Arsenal ahead of this one after their now almost customary March cup exits. Though they got the win and had a host of chances they left it late. Santi Cazorla has gone slightly under the radar but has now scored 11 goals this season, the same as Walcott although in significantly more minutes. Walcott and Giroud had their fair share of chances too. Villa, unsurprisingly, did not create much although N’Zogbia is ever so slightly blinking on the fantasy radar.
Fantasy Premier League: GW26 Review
Gameweek 26 still has one fixture remaining with Liverpool playing Swansea this weekend, but here is the round up of the 10 other games so far. Many thanks as always to @shots_on_target for his review, check out his site at www.shotsontarget.co.uk a fantastic #FPL resource!
A much needed win for Aston Villa although overall they performed below average for a home
team up against a travelling West Ham, Villa’s red arrows indicating below average totals in
all shot categories. Their limited attack is all through Benteke though, which makes him
always in with a chance of a goal. The Nolan-Carroll partnership combined well again
producing plenty of chances in the box but none of real gilt-edge quality.
Torres had a rare performance here where he is the Chelsea player with the most shots on
target, usually he’s second behind one of the midfielders. There were a lot of efforts to
share out here though, and with many at range from Lampard and Luiz. Both players can hit ’em though. Hazard’s goal and assist flatter his underlying numbers.
A rather muted, some might say controlled, performance from United against Everton.
Ferguson did not need to take any risks with this game, especially after City’s loss, and
this kind of performance was always on the cards. United’s attack, and Van Persie in
particular, are just so clinical this season they continue to score goals from
limited chances. Evans, when he gets a start, probably warrants his new found goal scoring tag this season. Rooney’s lack of threat up-front will have those managers who signed him up recently reverting back to worries of a few months back, will he play too deep too often? Everton were well contained here. The talismanic Fellaini was marked out of the game by Jones and Anichebe was no match for Vidic, leaving the best chances falling for Osman from midfield.
If any game was going to be 0-0 this week it was this one. Fulham have just lost it whilst
Norwich have learnt how to defend. New signing Becchio looked to be a useful focus for
Norwich’s attack with Snodgrass maintaining his position as my favourite fantasy option in the
Canary’s attack. I’ll try not to mention Berbatov anymore than is necessary.
The report’s after this game centred on City’s shocker but I’d like to draw some attention to
Southampton’s performances of late since their Argentine coach came on board. This was not a result in which they earned a plucky result against defending champions. They dominated
City at both ends of the pitch, deserving of a dominant victory. Puncheon continues to present an excellent cut-priced option. As for City.., who can tell? Aguero and Silva are not paying
back their price tags yet and rotation risk continues to hang over Dzeko, although he’s
maybe worth that kind of risk with his career goal scoring record.
Stoke managed a lofty number of shots here, hauling themselves all the way up to an average level performance against Reading, thanks in part to Walters bluster up behind Crouch and plenty of set pieces. There was no miracle comeback for Reading this time but Stoke really should’ve kept a clean sheet.
This was a game with a lot more chances than the score line suggests. Despite Giroud being restored to the central strikers berth it’s young Theo once again who posed the most threat in
Sunderland’s penalty box, followed by Cazorla who looks to be finding his spark again. For
Sunderland, Fletcher will feel unfortunate not to have been on the score sheet.
This was another terrific display from Swansea, led up front again by their main man in Michu. The Spaniard’s brace and assist will have overshadowed team-mate Hernandez who was rewarded here after some great performances recently. QPR look doomed already but if they do get anything it’s usually from a Taarabt pass.
What can I say about Gareth Bale that you don’t already know? With Defoe out and Adebayor
rested after his duties with Togo there’s was plenty of room up front for Bale to exploit, although it was Dempsey who started up front. Holtby‘s performance will have caught the eye too, with 4 shots, all in the box, showing a potential knack for getting into scoring positions. Gouffran’s was looking good for the visitors until his injury and that’s blow for Newcastle. Sissoko‘s lack of shots here is a downer on his virtuoso display last week but an away game at White Harte Lane should not dampen expectations too much, unlike Cisse though who has failed to step it up since Ba’s Chelsea exit.
West Brom’s gameplan worked a treat here. They had to ride their luck at times with Foster in fine form, especially saving Gerrard’s penalty. But with 70 minutes of pressure successfully soaked, Clarke threw on Lukaku and his enviable strength and pace was enough to hit Liverpool with the sucker-punch.. With Sturridge out injured Suarez was up front but his shooting was off today, failing to hit the target with any of his 7 shots. Gerrard continued to put in the kind of shift that has seen him amass so many FPL points recently. If he had scored his penalty, which was won by Suarez, this gameweek would have told a whole different story, and it still may with the final fixture, LIV vs SWA, to come this Saturday.
Enrique stole the crown for top points with a goal, assist and clean sheet, plus full bonus points.. Suarez and Sturridge were next best and despite Suarez outscoring Sturridge by 5 pts it was very close between the two of them again. Suarez won a perhaps fortunate penalty for his assist. Sturridge was generously handed his penalty by Gerrard, but could have easily scored one or two more from open play. Couthino’s full debut also showed he’s one to watch.
Liverpool’s victory was emphatic. They had 35 shots in total, the most from any team this season, and this has prompted me to take a look back through this season’s results for other dominant performances from a shot data perspective. As can be seen from the number of goals scored in these games it’s still shots on target that is the important stats. Sure, lots of shots are good, but if they don’t hit the target it doesn’t count for much.
You can read more on the Liverpool v Swansea game at http://www.shotsontarget.co.uk/2013/02/liv-5-0-swa-and-other-emphatic-wins.html
Fantasy Premier League: Bonus Point Review
GW26 Bonus Points
So after all 11 fixtures scheduled for GW26 the completed batch of bonus points have been released.
Bale and Michu will be popular choices for 3 bonus points this week. RVP gets the 3 point award for today’s game against Everton also and this will no doubt be good news to the huge 40% + ownership who own the Dutchman. After consecutive gameweeks without a goal RVP returned to normality this afternoon with a goal and an assist.
Benteke with a goal and 2 BP’s is certainly building on his growing reputation and for Chelsea, Eden Hazard returned from suspension with a Goal, assist and 3 bonus points to round off a great performance.
Davis and Lambert both benefited from Southampton’s fantastic victory against City yesterday also.
As per usual, we would like to hear from you… Who got bonus points that shouldn’t have??
Already there have been grumbles heard about how Ramsey ended up with 3BP’s and Cazorla ?? Do you agree/Disagree.
Drop a comment below and let us know your thoughts.
With Liverpool still to play twice and West Brom and Swansea in action also, GW26 is shaping up to provide some big #FPL scores. How is your team doing so far – tweet us your scores @FantasyYIRMA
About us
FantasyYIRMA.com established in 2012, is a niche Fantasy Football site focused on providing news, views and insight for the English Premier League. Solid gameweek articles and Club features in addition to a top ranked free to play mini-league makes #FY a must read Fantasy source! Find us on twitter @FantasyYIRMA
Tottenham 2-1 Newcastle
Bonus:
3 BALE
2 DAWSON
1 PARKER
Chelsea 4-1 Wigan
Bonus:
3 Hazard
2 Apilicueta
1 Ramires
Norwich 0-0 Fulham
Bonus
3 Sidwell
2 Hangeland
2 Garrido
2 Turner
Stoke 2-1 Reading
Bonus:
3 Whelan
2 Huth
1 Mariappa
Sunderland 0-1 Arsenal
Bonus:
3 Ramsey
2 Walcott
1 Arteta
Swansea 4-1 QPR
Bonus:
3 Michu
2 Hernandez
1 Rangel
Southampton 3-1 Manchester City
Bonus:
3 Davis
2 Lambert
1 Dzeko
Aston Villa 2-1 West Ham
Bonus:
3 N’Zogbia
2 Benteke
1 Westwood
Manchester United 2-0 Everton
Bonus:
3 Van Persie
2 Cleverley
2 Giggs
Liverpool 0-2 West Brom
Bonus:
3 McAuley
2 Mulumbu
1 Foster
Liverpool 5-0 Swansea
Bonus:
3 Enrique
2 Suarez
1 Sturridge
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Follow @fantasyyirmaJanuary Transfer Window: SLAMMED SHUT!!
Many thanks to the team from @FourFourTweet for submitting this great review of the January Transfer Window
Guest Post by @jonnywarburton
Premier League clubs contemplate future as January Transfer Window concludes.
Deadline day has been and gone with plenty of deals that will impact clubs seasons across the Premier League.
The toughest time to chop and change your squad is in January but many Premier League mangers use this window to bring in extra depth to depleted squads and to find that hidden bargain that can change a season’s fortune. Plenty of teams have been busy over the last couple of weeks and here is the summary of the key ins and outs at every Premier League side.
Arsenal
Current League Position 6th
Arsenal failed to bring in more than one senior player despite persistent links with Barcelona striker David Villa. Nacho Monreal was added late on in the window to provide significant quality at the LB position. Arsenal fans have been crying out for several new signings that will help lift the gunners into the champions league places. Arsene Wenger’s reluctance to spend significantly signals a very frustrating end to the January transfer window.
Verdict
They needed a couple of quality players and to ship out the dead wood from years ago, Monreal is a nice pick up and should adapt to the Premier League well.
5/10
Players IN: Nacho Monreal (10m)
Players OUT: Johan Djourou (Loan), Marouane Chamakh (Loan), Chuks Aneke (Loan), Emmanuel Frimpong (Loan)
Aston Villa
Current League Position 19th
Villa failed to strengthen an inexperienced squad with only one senior signing through Ligue 2 forward Sylla. It is tough to see the Villa staying up with such little experience throughout the spine of the squad. Premier League experience was a must as other relegation candidates spend the cash in a bid to stay up
Verdict
Failed to address the need for experienced players which could cost them their place in the Premier League. Defensive and Midfield quality was a must but instead an unproven Frenchman fits the bill.
1/10
Players IN: Yacouba Sylla (2m) Simon Dawkins (Loan)
Players OUT: Stephen Warnock
Chelsea
Current League Position 3rd
The signing of Demba Ba from Newcastle United was the main signing for the European champions who replace outgoing Daniel Sturridge. Ba proved to be a hit on Tyneside and the talented Senegalese international will be looking to compete with out of sorts Fernando Torres for a regular spot in the Chelsea line up.
Verdict
With Benitez only seen as ‘Interim’ manager, there wasn’t much surprise that the blues didn’t bring in more players to complement their squad.
5/10
Players IN: Demba Ba (7m)
Players OUT: Lucas Piazon (Loan), Sam Walker (Loan) Billy Clifford (Loan) Todd Kane (Loan) Daniel Sturridge 12m, Patrick Bamford (Loan)
Everton
Current League Position 5th
The toffees took the approach of if it’s not broke don’t fix it. They managed to keep hold of key players Baines and Fellaini which will be vital in their push for a European campaign next season. There only addition of the window was young Barnsley defender Stones, who they pipped Wigan Athletic for his signature – one for the future.
Verdict
Quiet window for Everton, which will suit David Moyes down to the ground by keeping his core together.
5/10
Players IN: John Stones (£3m)
Players OUT: Ross Barkley (Loan) Anton Forrester, Magaye Gueye (Loan)
Fulham
Current League Position 12th
The oldest average aged squad in the league have added younger talents to their side through Frimpong and Emanuelson both on loan. The former Ajax prodigy adds significant experience alongside the midfield powerhouse that is Frimpong. Emanuelson had a OK time in Milan and will be hoping this loan move reignites his career with Fulham. Manolev will offer international experience and is a solid pick up from Holland.
Verdict
Like there two midfield signings in particular and will help bolster the ageing midfield.
6/10
Players IN: Chris David , Emmanuel Frimpong (Loan) , Urby Emanuelson (Loan) , Stanislav Manolev (Loan) , Eyong Enoh [loan from Ajax]
Players OUT: David Stockdale (Loan) Stephen Kelly (Loan), Richard Peniket [loan to AFC Telford]
Liverpool
Current League Position 7th
Liverpool splashed the cash for another transfer window with a double swoop of Sturridge and Coutinho. Two quality signings with real technical skill that will be on show for years to come at Anfield. The two young players are the only real business the Reds side have completed despite reported links that Tom Ince was due a return to the club.
Verdict
Spent a lot of money again so it will be interesting to see if it is money well spent, face value looks good.
7/10
Players IN: Daniel Sturridge (£12m), Philippe Coutinho (£8m)
Players OUT: Danny Wilson (Loan), Nuri Sahin , Joe Cole , Adam Morgan (Loan) , Alexander Doni, Michael Ngoo (Loan)
Manchester City
Current League Position 2nd
With no real additions to the Man City squad it is difficult to see City really giving Man Utd something to think about in the final few months of the season. The sale of Mario Balotelli to AC Milan has been met with split views as the hot headed Italian has undeniable talent but an attitude that offers anything from bizarre to crazy just wouldn’t cut it any longer.
Verdict
Relatively quiet month for the club, splashing the cash on a new striker should have been the main focus for the champions to provide significant competition for Tevez, Aguero and Dzeko.
4/10
Players IN: Godsway Donyoh
Players OUT: Mario Balotelli (19m) Alex Nimely (Loan) Godsway Donyoh (Loan) Jeremy Helan (Loan) Reece Wabara (Loan)
Manchester United
Current League Position 1st
The Red Devils sign and loan back Wilfried Zaha to Crystal Palace after beating many top flight clubs for the England internationals signature. The technical winger will become an instant hit at Old Trafford next season with the basis to learn from one of the best managers in the game, the potential is there for Zaha to become a real hit in the North West.
Verdict
Would of liked to of seen a centre midfielder come in to strengthen the squad however the signing of Zaha will prove to be a gamble worth taking.
6/10
Players IN: Wilfried Zaha (£15m)
Players OUT: Davide Petrucci (Loan) Scott Wootton (Loan) Robbie Brady, Angelo Henriquez (Loan) Josh King , Luke McCullough (Loan) Wilfried Zaha (Loan) Federico Macheda (Loan)
Newcastle
Current League Position 15th
Alan Pardew brought in five senior signings from Ligue 1 which has prompted the call of a French revolution. The signings of Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa and Moussa Sissoko will be key as both have international pedigree that will emulate the North East club in the coming months. The first French signing of the window was Debuchy from Lille who is well known to be good friends with Yohan Cabaye. A successful window for the magpies as they conclude their business early on.
Verdict
Strengthened squad with real quality players in key areas of the pitch. The bargain of Moussa Sissoko will be the January signing of the window for the Toon – great signing.
9/10
Players IN: Mathieu Debuchy (5m) Kevin Mbabu, Moussa Sissoko, Massadio Haidara, Yoan Gouffran , Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa (6.7m)
Players OUT: Demba Ba (7m) Conor Newton (Loan) Xisco, Mehdi Abeid (Loan) Bradden Inman (Loan)
Norwich
Current League Position 14th
Norwich head back to Leeds for another signing with Luciano Becchio the latest export from Elland Road. The Argentine scored a lot of goals in the championship and will prove to be a steady signing for the canaries in an effort to avoid the drop zone.
Verdict
Like the Becchio signing and will be interesting to see how he fairs against top class defenders. Steady Window
5/10
Players IN: Luciano Becchio, Kei Kamara (Loan)
Players OUT: Jacob Butterfield (Loan) Elliott Ward (Loan), Steve Morison, Declan Rudd (Loan), Tom Adeyemi (Loan)
QPR
Current League Position 20th
Rangers add defensive steel through the signing of Chris Samba from money bags Anzhi Makhachkala. The powerful Congo international will prove to be a fantastic purchase in QPR’s bid to avoid relegation. The signing of Samba was prompted due to the retirement of Ryan Nelsen who takes up management with MLS side Toronto FC. Loic Remy swapped the south of France for West London in an £8m move that will provide a genuine goal threat in firing the hoops to safety.
Verdict
Added much needed defensive help which was key to QPR’s transfer window and the experienced Samba will prove to be vital in both penalty areas as the London club attempt to stay up
7/10
Players IN: Loic Remy (8m) Tal Ben Haim, Christopher Samba (12.5) Yun Suk-young, Jermaine Jenas, Andros Townsend (Loan)
Players OUT: Djibril Cisse (Loan) Frankie Sutherland (Loan) Michael Harriman (Loan) Alejandro Faurlin [loan to Palermo], Michael Doughty (Loan) Anton Ferdinand (Loan) Jordan Gibbons (Loan) Rob Hulse (Loan)
Reading
Current League Position 17th
The Royals lie in a delicate position in the table and this has led the club to bring in four players to their first team squad. Reading looked to the lower leagues for the majority of their signings by securing Akpan and Blackman from Crawley and Sheff United respectively. Kelly will add great depth and experience throughout the Reading ranks.
Verdict
Some decent business in this window for the club, still remain to see whether it is will be enough come May.
5/10
Players IN: Daniel Carrico , Stephen Kelly . Hope Akpan , Nick Blackman
Players OUT: Gozie Ugwu (Loan) Dominic Samuel (Loan) Jordan Obita (Loan) Michael Hector (Loan)
Southampton
Current League Position 16th
The Saints brought in only one player to help strengthen the defence during the window. Vegard Forren was a man in high demand with Liverpool closely watching the former Molde man. After the departure of Nigel Adkins earlier in the window, it was expected that Pochettino would bring in some of his own players.
Verdict
Expected the new Saints manager to bring in a couple of players but failed dramatically. Will be interesting to see if they have enough in the second part of the season.
3/10
Players IN: Vegard Forren
Players OUT: Dan Seaborne (Loan) Ryan Dickson (Loan), Sam Hoskins (Loan) Jonathan Forte (Loan), Steve de Ridder (Loan) Ben Reeves (Loan)
Stoke
Current League Position 10th
The Potters didn’t have too much business to do during January, however the deadline day signing of Birmingham City’s goalkeeper Jack Butland will be a shrewd move. The England international has been in hot demand from the majority of Premier League sides and it was confirmed that he turned down Chelsea. USA international Shea will provide competition down the left hand side of the pitch as the MLS product will look to make his mark.
Verdict
Solid bit of business as Butland will become an International regular for years to come.
6/10
Players IN: Jack Butland (3.5m) Brek Shea (2.5m)
Players OUT: Michael Tonge, Danny Higginbotham, Rory Delap (Loan) Ryan Brunt, Jack Butland (Loan) Matthew Upson (Loan)
Sunderland
Current League Position 11th
The Black Cats had a three in three out policy this window with Danny Graham headlining the Sunderland imports. The goal scorer was desperate for a move back to the north east and the signing may highlight a need to help Steven Fletcher out in the goal scoring department.
Verdict
Graham will be a good signing and N’Diaye will provide a dominace in midfield that is much needed for the club.
6/10
Players IN: Kader Mangane (Loan) Alfred N’Diaye, Danny Graham (5m)
Players OUT: Blair Adams, David Meyler (1.5) Ahmed Elmohamady (Loan) Jonny Maddison (Loan) Fraizer Campbell (600k)
Swansea
Current League Position 8th
Swansea City did not bring any players in during the January window however they decided to sell Danny Graham to Sunderland for £5m. Michu still leads the line for the Swans and this was important for Swansea to keep hold of their talisman going into the final months of the season.
Verdict
They have allowed fringe players, to leave, so no major cause for concern. The Swans just need to keep Michu, injury free, however, the Home fans I am sure would have been hopeful to see an attacking addition to replace Graham and keep Michu company.
4/10
Players IN: N/A
Players OUT: Jamie Proctor, Danny Graham (5m) Curtis Obeng (Loan) Leroy Lita (Loan), Ashley Richards (Loan), Gwion Edwards (Loan)
Tottenham
Current League Position 4th
AVB beat off competition from many top clubs across the continent by signing German international Lewis Holtby from Schalke 04. English speaking Holtby will offer craft and guile which will provide an added dimension for a loaded squad of attacking talent. A quiet month for Spurs despite their persistent approach for Leandro Damiao that inevitably proved inconclusive in a bizarre transfer saga.
Verdict
Love the Holtby signing but another striker to keep Defoe and Adebayor on their toes would have made it a fantastic window.
8/10
Players IN: Lewis Holtby (1.5m) Zeki Fryers (3m)
Players OUT: Heurelho Gomes (Loan) Alex Pritchard (Loan) Jermaine Jenas , Andros Townsend (Loan) , Tomislav Gomelt (Loan) Simon Dawkins (Loan) , Ryan Mason (Loan)
West Brom
Current League Position 9th
Very quiet window for West Brom as they held off late interest for want away striker Peter Odemwingie. Sitting steady in mid table, the baggies will look to bolster their squad in the summer.
Verdict
Sold Chris Wood to Leicester but there wasn’t much need to buy after a good start to the season.
4/10
Players IN: Roland Lamah (Loan)
Players OUT: Sam Mantom, Gonzalo Jara, Chris Wood (1m) Dawson (Loan)
West Ham
Current League Position 13th
The Hammers made a couple of signings throughout January and took to the loan market to bolster their squad. West Ham brought Joe Cole back to the club where he made his name. Cole has had a stellar career and the chance to return back to Upton Park proved too much to turn down. Big tackler Pogatetz on loan from Hannover will be a welcome addition to an injury hit defence.
Verdict
Steady if unspectacular business from West Ham, shouldn’t add too much quality to their squad. Cole will be a welcomed signing amongst fans.
4/10
Players IN: Wellington Paulista (Loan) Marouane Chamakh (Loan) Joe Cole, Sean Maguire
Players OUT: Alou Diarra (Loan) , Stephen Henderson (Loan)
Wigan Athletic
Current League Position 18th
A busy month for Wigan who brought back Paul Scharner on loan from German side Hamburg. The second spell at the DW stadium will prove to be an astute piece of business as they bring in defensive cover for an injury prone defence. The signing of Honduran winger Roger Espinoza from MLS side Sporting Kansas will be a very clever move as a need as he will provide an immediate impact for Roberto Martinez’s side.
Verdict
Small but important business for Wigan who only tinker with their squad over January, add defensive depth which is essential for staying in the division
7/10
Players IN: Angelo Henriquez (Loan), Roger Espinoza (Free), Joel Robles (Loan), Paul Scharner (Loan)
Players OUT: Mauro Boselli (Loan) Rob Kiernan (Loan)
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Premier League : Mid-Season Review (Part 3)
Guest Post from SuperGrover at www.shotsontarget.co.uk a fantastic site for insight and analysis into the Fantasy Premier League!
FantasyYirma are pleased to feature this Mid-Season Review PART 3 and the conclusion to his ongoing mini-series.
Don’t forget to drop your comments below and thanks again to www.shotsontarget.co.uk
If you would like to submit a guest post for the site, contact Ryan at fantasyyirma@hotmail.com
Midseason Team Analysis – The Bottom Half
This is part 3 of 3 from SuperGrover and his most excellent review of each team’s performances in the Premier League so far and his expactation for the remainder of the season.
Check our the other articles here if you missed them:
This article covers the 8 teams left in the bottom half of the table.
Fulham started as one of the surprise attacking teams in the league, with new transfer Dmitiar Berbatov propelling an offense that averaged 2.2 goals the first 11 games. Since then, the wheels have completely come off, with Fulham averaging just 0.8 goals over the second half of the campaign. Looking at the underlying numbers only adds fuel to the fire. Fulham’s six week form is awful, worst in the league in attack and 2nd worst in defense. Injuries have played a part, but how much of one remains to be seen.
Fun Fact: In the first 12 weeks, Fulham average 9.2 shots in the box. Since then, they have averaged only 5.
Prediction: Jol struggles to find offensive identity all season. The Berbatov honeymoon ends as his work rate becomes a real problem while Fulham fights relegation. In the end, they manage to stave off relegation but aren’t completely comfortable until game week 37.
Very interesting club. Sunderland started out very defensive minded, producing shots at levels not commensurate with the goals being scored (they averaged just 1.6 shots on target the 10 weeks but managed to score 7 goals during that time). Since then, the attack has improved tremendously, with the six week form rating the Black Cats as the 5th best attack in the league!It does appear that opening up the attack has left their defense somewhat weakened. Over those same ten weeks, goals allowed have increased 50% while other defensive metrics have shown similar increases. Nonetheless, the new attacking prowess has been an overall positive as Sunderland is simply better than they were before.
Fun Fact: Steven Fletcher scored 5 goals on his first 5 shots on target this season. He has scored 3 in his last 13.
Prediction: Martin O’Neil’s tactical changes results in more goals on both sides, but allows Sunderland to remain in the premier league another season.
I have to admit, I enjoy Rickie Lambert. He’s not the most gifted player and will never be more than he is, but he understands the game and he understands how to score. I have been rooting for the Saints and Lambert ever since locking onto the striker as a preseason budget option. I couldn’t be more pleased with the results.
It was presumed that Southampton started the season poorly, but much of that was due to a difficult run of fixtures that saw defeats to Man City, Man United, Arsenal and Everton in the first 6 games. Since then, Southampton are 4-7-5, accumulating 20 points in just 16 weeks. Interestingly, the underlying statistics indicated they weren’t as bad as thought all along. Further, the introduction of Jack Cork in week 11 seemed to correspond to a change in tactics. The defense was much more organized and the attack more cautious, taking chances when available but not stringing out to do so. Luke Shaw’s emergence and a more settled central pairing also helped. The results can be seen in the six week form that shows the Saints as a poor attack but stingy defensively.
Fun Fact: Rickie Lambert has created the 2nd most chances among all forwards with 45.
Prediction: The recent form is no fluke and the Saints stay clear of relegation. Rickie Lambert scores 15 goals and Luke Shaw is hailed as the next Garreth Bale.
Demba Ba was excellent, but injuries hit the Toon hard in the first half of the season, especially on the backline. The result is a desperate attempt to stave of relegation, something that seemed highly unlikely for this talented but flawed club.The underlying statistics tell the story here. Defensively, Newcastle are terrible, one of the worst two defenses in the league (by some margin). Offensively, Newcastle take far too many shots outside the box, resulting in low conversion rates for shots on target. Given the absence of Ba, it’s difficult to see how this will improve.
Fun Fact: Newcastle’s midfielders have taken 118 shots, but only 34 in the box. By comparison, Liverpool’s mids have 164 but 83 in the box.
Prediction: Newcastle improve somewhat as injuries subside, but problems remain. The relegation fight goes until the very last few games of the season with a goal here or there being the difference.
Wigan are unique among the Premier League as they are the only squad to regularly employ a backline of three. The uniqueness is interesting, but hasn’t resulted in much success on the pitch. Wigan have been below average both offensively and defensively, ranking 10th and 15th, respectively. With that said, Wigan’s shot numbers look a bit better than their actual results, with both the attack and defence performing much worse than expected. That along with a favorable schedule down the stretch suggests that improvement may very well be possible for the Latics.Fun Fact: Wigan have just two goals from outside the box all season, tied for lowest in the league.
Prediction: The fixtures ease up a bit, but Wigan’s record improves little. A clear relegation candidate heading into the last fortnight of the season.
Aston Villa are not a good team. The results on the field have been poor and the underlying statistics not much better. They have struggled to generate and stop shots and the resulting goals conceded should be expected.
The caveat is that Villa’s goal differential is an aberration to some extent. While they have been poor, they haven’t been 6 goals worse than everyone else. Further, unlike some other bottom dwellers they have registered a few points against some of the better teams in the league, winning at Anfield, drawing with Arsenal and taking 4 points from their meetings with Swansea. Nonetheless, this is a bad team that needs to improve quickly or face relegation.
Fun Fact: Christian Benteke has scored or assisted on 76.9% of all Villa’s goals this season, easily the highest of all players with at least 1000 minutes played.
Prediction: Benteke continues to dominate, but Villa don’t have enough to back him up. Without a turn around, Villa get demoted.
Reading are the worst team in the league and it’s not all that close. Offensively, Reading have been among a group of poor offensive teams at the bottom of the table, scoring occasionally but never generating an consistent attack. Defensively, Reading are atrocious, allowing more shots, shots in the box, shots on target, and goals than any other team in the league. They have been poor, and lucky to have the points they do. This is a team with little upside and little chance of finishing out of the relegation zone.
Fun Fact: Pavel Pogrebnyak has scored on 27.8% of all shots, 7% better than Mr. Van Persie himself. Unfortunately, the Russian has just 18 shots all season.
Prediction: Reading’s fate is sealed before the month of May.
Harry’s next big thing still reside at the bottom of the table 5 points away from safety. It seems assured the Rangers will be demoted, right? Not so fast.
QPR weren’t the worst team in the league when Redknapp took over and they certainly aren’t now. Their underlying numbers suggest they should have about 8 more goals on the season while allowing about 3 fewer. Now, one should look at the numbers above and immediately note a problem in their attack, namely Adel Taarabt. Taarabt is an unquestionably talented player, but one who far too often settles for shots well outside the penalty area. By himself, he has made QPR a team that relies upon low precision shots outside the box as evidenced by the shots in the box numbers above. That has to change going forward.
On the other side of the ball, QPR have actually been pretty solid, especially under Redknapp, who has decided to park the bus against better competition the last couple weeks, securing 4 unexpected points in the process. Even before that QPR showed defensive potential with much of the negative goal differential driven by an opening day 5-0 defeat in which they actually allowed just 6 shots on goal.
QPR currently rank 12th in the total ratings. While that may be inflated for reasons listed above, there’s no reason to count this team as automatic relegation candidate. They can fight their way out of the cellar.
Fun Fact: QPR score a goal around every 16.5 shots. Manchester United score a goal every 6.2.
Prediction: QPR bring in enough talent to present a legitimate attacking threat though the rest of the season. Taarabt settles down and Harry leads the team to a 17th place finish and another year in the premier league.
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