Arsenal’s marquee summer signing has come into his own of late and is reeling in some big points while he’s at it.
Gameweek 9 review
While there were points aplenty on offer last week, the opposite was true for most managers this week as the Dream Team was populated with a number of players who aren’t exactly used to being there.
One man who is used to it and will no doubt feature on plenty more occasions before the end of the season is Arsenal’s Alexis Sanchez, top scorer this week with 16 points after Sunderland gifted him two goals on Saturday.
Sanchez featured in a midfield trio alongside Southampton’s Sadio Mané (11) and Manchester City’s David Silva (10), while the front three of Wilfried Bony, Samuel Eto’o and Charlie Austin all finished up with a not so unlucky 13 after all three scored braces over the weekend.
There haven’t been many QPR defenders featuring prominently so far this season but their clean sheet against Aston Villa resulted in healthy points hauls for goalkeeper Robert Green (9) and Mauricio Isla (8), who were joined at the back by Martin Skrtel (9), Nacho Monreal (8) and Swansea defender Federico Fernandez (8).
J-League
Not surprisingly, none of the top five in the J-League managed to break the 60-point barrier this week, so Terry O’Rourke’s Sporting Kilbeggan hold on to their place at the top of the table, but only just.
John Thompsons’s No pants dance FC are lurking (worryingly) in second only four points further back, two points clear of Stephen Mullet’s Wecouldwinitsixtimes in third.
Niall Colfer’s Baines on Toast – top five regulars at this stage – occupy fourth spot, with the team with our favourite name so far, Diarmuid McCarthy’s ABCDE F.C. propping up the top five but still within 16 points of the top spot.
J-League Top 5:
- Sporting Kilbeggan – Terry O’Rourke: 571 points
- No pants dance FC – John Thompson: 567 points
- Wecouldwinitsixtimes – Stephen Mullett: 565 points
- Baines on Toast – Niall Colfer: 559 points
- ABCDE F.C. – Diarmuid McCarthy: 555 points
Time to get flirty with Sanchez
Maybe it’s just us, but of all the big names to arrive in the Premier League during the summer, Alexis Sanchez has quietly gone about his business without attracting nearly the amount of attention as the likes of Diego Costa, Angel di Maria or Mario Balotelli.
The Chilean might have been squeezed out of probably the most potent forward line in the world at Barcelona, but he always seemed like an astute signing by Arsene Wenger and he has proved as much in his brief time in England to date.
Intelligent, hard-working and very versatile, Sanchez appears to fit in perfectly at the Emirates and he has been rewarded with a more than decent tally of five goals and two assists in eight appearances so far; two of those appearances lasting for 45 minutes or less.
Those two appearances and the defeat to Chelsea at Stamford Bridge are the only games in which Sanchez has failed to make an impact to date and when he’s on, he’s on; in three of the four games that he’s scored in he’s also picked up a maximum three bonus points and he’s already broken double figures three times this season.
The two goals Sanchez scored against Sunderland were the result of absolutely comical defending, but he still had to score them and they came off the back of a goal and an assist against Hull in the previous game, leading to a whopping haul of 29 points in just two games.
Against a Burnley side low on confidence, the purchase of Sanchez this week is one we’d highly recommend, particularly with games against the likes of Swansea, West Brom, Stoke and Newcastle coming up over the next six weeks or so.
JOE’s Fantasy Football Picks:
Top Dollar: Eden Hazard (£9.9 million). Hazard didn’t score against Man United last weekend but he looked very dangerous and we don’t think QPR will get off the hook at Stamford Bridge.
Mid-Range: Wilfried Bony (£8.2 million): It took him six games to score one goal, but he now has four in his last three games, including the brace against Leicester that earned him 13 points last weekend.
Bargain Basement: Mile Jedinak (£5.0 million): The Australian is not only a very good player, but he has already registered three goals and an assist so far this season and is Palace’s penalty-taker to boot. For five million quid, he’s not a bad buy at all.
Irish Pick: Jonathan Walters (£5.2 million): Walters started against Southampton after scoring against Swansea as a sub and if he gets the nod, he’ll relish the chance to take an in-form West Ham side down a peg or two.
Captain’s Pick: Alexis Sanchez (£10.4 million). We’ve told you all you need to know about the Chilean’s hot streak above and poor Burnley might suffer his wrath on Saturday.
