The German midfielder was undoubtedly the biggest recruit of the transfer window and there are plenty of reasons to covet the Gunners’ new man for your Fantasy Football team.
Gameweek 3 Review
It seems a long time ago now, but it was easy to forget the last round of Premier League games almost a fortnight ago such was the lack of goals and general entertainment, although there were a couple of big results for Liverpool and Arsenal against bitter rivals Manchester United and Spurs.
Only two players from those four sides, Daniel Agger (12 points) and Wojciech Szczesny (8) made the Gameweek Three Dream Team, with the Dane included in a motley crew of individuals alongside two players from Manchester City, Swansea and Crystal Palace, Norwich’s Nathan Redmond (11), Newcastle’s Hatem Ben Arfa (9) and our own Marc Wilson (9).
Swansea’s Ben Davies was the main man with 15 points, team-mate Pablo Hernandez also fared quite well with 13, with Manchester City defender Pablo Zabaleta a point further back on 12 points.
Yaya Toure earned 11 points thanks to his magnificent free-kick against Hull City Tigers, while Crystal Palace duo Danny Gabbidon and Dwight Gayle can both be happy with their nine-point hauls.
J-League
Such is the standard being set in the early stages of the J-League that only one member of the top five keeps his place in the upper echelons this week, Brian Emmet’s The Dutch Rudders, who lead the way by six points after a solid 60 points last time round.
Six points is a monumental gap compared to the small margins separating everyone else in the top five, with only a single point separating every place from second to fifth.
Ger Lawton’s The Gunner Magpies currently occupy second berth, followed by Cathal Ryan’s The DogHal Pals in third, Jenny Murphy’s Pinkmoon83, Gerard Kelly’s Retro Mullets and Philip Wallace’s Victorious Secret in fourth, with Tom O’Connor’s Dubsnsubs and Jennifer Sinclair’s Dilligaf FC tied in fifth place.
J-League Top 5:
- The Dutch Rudders – Brian Emmet: 234 points
- The Gunner Magpies – Ger Lawton: 228 points
- The DogHal Pals – Cathal Ryan: 227 points
- Pinkmoon83 – Jenny Murphy, Retro Mullets – Gerard Kelly, Victorious Secret – Philip Wallace: 226 points
- Dubsnsubs – Tom O’Connor, Dilligaf FC – Jennifer Sinclair – 225 points
Everyone has eyes for Ozil
They may not necessarily have needed him and they probably could have done with prioritising other positions, but let nobody be fooled, Arsenal’s capture of Mesut Ozil in the transfer window was a huge deal.
Fans of the Gunners will be gazing adoringly at their new recruit with eyes wider than the German midfielder’s this weekend, probably still chuffed at the fact that they managed to get their hands on a bona-fide world superstar, arguably the first time in years that one of the best players in the world has moved to the Premier League while still at his peak.
At the time of writing, one in 12 Fantasy Football managers (8.5 per cent) have already introduced Ozil into their squad and expect that number to increase significantly after the traditional Friday night/Saturday morning transfer rush. And for ten million quid, it’s almost a no-brainer.
Consider Ozil’s stats in recent years for instance. Last season, he registered nine goals and 13 assists at Real Madrid, a more than decent return in a team that was pretty much set up to serve Cristiano Ronaldo, who is supposedly not at all happy that Ozil was allowed to leave.
His league goal tallies for Real in the two seasons prior to that weren’t that impressive (four and six respectively), but it is as a provider that Ozil is most valuable and he has the stats to prove it.
No player in the top European leagues has provided more assists than Ozil (72) in the last five seasons and if you include his international contribution in the same period his assist tally rises to a monumental 91, nine more than his nearest competitor, one Lionel Messi.
Since September 2010, Ozil is also by far and away the leading provider of assists in the Champions League (14) and while he won’t have anybody as prolific as Ronaldo to serve at Arsenal, the man knows how to create an opportunity.
That ability is patently evident in a compilation of his top ten assists below, the closest thing to football porn you’ll find on the internet… and you won’t even have to even bother deleting your history afterwards!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yi7MRXAcsrw
How Ozil will adapt to the Premier League remains to be seen, but he is almost too good not to be a roaring success and while Arsenal will likely reap the benefits, Fantasy Football managers will have plenty to cheer about too.
JOE’s Fantasy Football Picks
Top Dollar: Mesut Ozil (£10.0 million). Straight in, no kissing. Ozil’s debut is one of the most anticipated in the history of the Premier League and we think he’ll begin with a bang away to a struggling Sunderland on Saturday afternoon.
Mid-Range: Marouane Fellaini (£8.5 million). All eyes will be on Ozil’s debut at Sunderland, but we expect the man with the most voluminous hair in the Premier League to go straight into Manchester United’s starting XI against Palace and what better way to endear himself to the Old Trafford faithful than with a goal on his first start.
Bargain Basement: Michael Dawson (£5.0 million). Despite losing against Arsenal last time out, Spurs have looked miserly at the back so far and for a man likely to play 90 minutes most weeks, Dawson is good value at five million quid.
Irish Pick: Joey O’Brien (£5.5 million). Has played every minute of West Ham’s solid start to this campaign, picking up two clean sheets along the way. Very reliable performer and Big Sam is a big admirer.
Captain’s Pick: Robin van Persie (£14.0 million). No goals in two games is a major drought for RVP and after a delicious goal for Holland in the week, you’d fancy him to rattle the onion bag at least once at home to Crystal Palace.
