Fantasy Football Insider – Gameweek 33: Gunners Gamble

With a fragile Arsenal squad in action twice, JOE wonders if it’s worth taking a risk on a few Gooners in Gameweek 33.

By Conor Heneghan

Fantasy Football in association with Champion Sports

Gameweek 32 review

By the standards of the Premier League this season, the weekend just gone was something of a muted affair, with no significant moves at the top of the table and the situation remaining ‘as you were’ in the relegation zone.

By fantasy football standards, however, it was slightly better than average and there was a fruitful bounty at stake if you made the right moves in the transfer market in the wee hours of Friday night/Saturday morning (or is it just me that does that?).

Three players who moved clubs during the transfer window, for example; David Luiz (8 points), Daniel Sturridge (13) and Andy Carroll (13), all proved their worth to their new teammates.

West Brom’s recent renaissance, meanwhile, was led by the unlikely figure of Youssuf Mulumbu (9) and the far more likely figure of Peter Odemwingie (15), who was tipped in last week’s insider and responded to that shot in the arm with a goal, two assists and three bonus points in the Baggies’ 3-2 win over Sunderland at the Stadium of Light.

Peter Odemwingie vindicated our faith in him with 15 points this week

Odemwingie’s 15-point haul was matched by Richard Dunne’s beer buddy James Collins after his goal against Newcastle, while Manchester United pair Nani and Antonio Valencia were rewarded with 11 points for their roles in what was an embarrassingly easy and totally predictable Red Devils victory over Fulham at Old Trafford.

Champion J-League

Whisper it, but the once unstoppable Shane Halligan is in danger of suffering a Rory McIlroy-like collapse as the Champion J-League enters the home straight.

The man who has topped the league for what seems like an eternity and has already bagged two tickets to a Premier League game thanks to topping the table at Christmas is ranked a lowly 99th in the league for the month of April after a second disappointing week in succession.

Shane’s lead is now only 36 points from Stephen Fox’s Makin Up D Numbers and with six gameweeks to go from now until the end of the season, there’s plenty of time for change at the top of the league. After Shane and Stephen, the top five is home to familiar faces in Keith Donnelly’s UpDown FC and John Murphy’s Team of Gary Breens, while Tom Dowling’s Newton Heath dine at the top table for the first time after a respectable 70 points last week moved them up to fifth in the table.

The Journeymen, meanwhile, remain well out of the picture in 22nd place and are almost consigned to the fact that our first foray into the world of fantasy football is destined to end in failure, unless, like the time he turned a magic tractor into a field outside JOE Towers, Emmet Purcell can conjure a miracle between now and the season’s end.

Champion J-League Top 5:

1.       Hal’s Allstars – Shane Halligan: 1830 points

2.       Makin Up D Numbers* – Stephen Fox: 1794 points

3.       UpDown FC – Keith Donnelly: 1779 points

4.       Team of Gary Breens – John Murphy: 1747 points

5.       Newton Heath – Tom Dowling: 1746 points

Sinking like a stone – Donal Barrett: 1746 points

What to look out for this week and JOE’s Fantasy Football picks

What to look out for this week

As they continue on what looks as if it will be an ultimately fruitless quest to catch leaders Manchester United at the top of the Premier League table, Arsenal will make up their game in hand on the Red Devils with clashes against Liverpool and Tottenham in the next seven days.

The Gunners, along with Chelsea and Birmingham, have a double gameweek this week, while if in the unlikely situation that your team is chock-full of players from Bolton, Fulham, Stoke, Wolves and Manchester City, you might have a busy weekend in the transfer market as players from all of those sides sit this gameweek out.

The big question for managers still in contention in various leagues at this late stage of the season, then, is if it is worthwhile to take what will be an inevitable hit in points and probably the value of your squad by splashing the cash on Arsene Wenger’s band of merry men.

The fact that the two games in question (Liverpool at home and Tottenham away) are pretty difficult on paper would suggest that it’s not worth completely overhauling your squad so that you can accommodate the maximum three Arsenal players.

Kenny Dalglish’s arrival has obviously been a boost to Liverpool and while he hasn’t exactly worked miracles, his side’s performances against both Manchester sides at Anfield would suggest that he has the ability to get them geed up for the big games. And while Spurs’ form has been distinctly dodgy of late, so has Arsenal’s, and anything can happen in what has become one of the most competitive and exciting local derbies in recent times.

With the finishing line so close, however, any advantage available should be used to glean an advantage and getting in one or even two Gooners certainly couldn’t do any harm. But who?

Choose wisely

Names such as Cesc Fabregas and Samir Nasri spring to mind, but a look at their form in recent weeks would suggest that they’re not worth the expense.

Nasri, for example, has not scored a goal in the Premier League since New Year’s Day and has only provided one miserable assist all season which came against Manchester City last October. Fabregas’ injury problems go some way to explaining his poor stats, and although his ten assists are a testament to his ability to unlock a defence, a meagre three goals all season hardly justifies the £11.8 million price tag.

Mad Jens? Why not, it certainly beats putting Almunia in your team

Your best bet as far as Arsenal are concerned is Robin van Persie (£10.8 million), who has 12 goals and 95 points in his last ten starts, which is pretty impressive in any man’s language.

At the cheaper end of the market, Jack Wilshere (£5.1 million) is a consistent starter but doesn’t ever really hit big scores, Theo Walcott (£6.9 million) marked his return from injury with an assist against Blackpool, while if you want a real wildcard, why not Jens Lehmann (£4.5 million), who has already leaped ahead of the awful Manuel Almunia in the goalkeeping pecking order at the Emirates.

JOE’s Fantasy Football picks

Top Dollar: Robin van Persie (£10.8 million). As elaborated upon above, Van Persie is one of the only Gunners that can claim to be on form at the moment.

Mid Range: Leighton Baines (£7.9 million). Apart from Seamus Coleman, Everton players have been conspicuous by their absence from this column this season, but it’s hard to ignore them with four wins and 14 points from their last six games. Baines is the highest scoring defender in the competition this season thanks to three goals and an impressive 11 assists.

Bargain Basement: Chris Brunt (£5.4 million). The way West Brom are playing, you wouldn’t rule out an upset against Chelsea at the Hawthorns at the weekend. Brunt’ season tailed off after a smashing start, but he has returned to form in recent weeks with two goals and an assist in his last three games.

Irish Pick: Steven Reid (£4.1 million). Reid may be a midfielder playing right back, but he has started all of the Baggies’ last five games, during which time he has contributed a goal, an assist and three bonus points.

Captain’s Pick: Robin van Persie (£10.8 million). With two games this week, we recommend trusting the Dutchman with the armband.