Arsenal and Aston Villa fantasy outlook.

Arsenal

RVP will be looking to stay injury free and
take the Golden Boot this season.

Arsenal go into this season with a lot of uncertainty over their squad but one thing we can be sure of is their stand out player. Robin Van Persie will once again lead the line and he is a player you cannot afford to let go if Fabregas leaves – meaning RVP will take the all the penalties.

A sleeper for Arsenal this year could be Kieran Gibbs at left back. At a cheap 5.5, he has no competition and is guaranteed starts. He likes to roam forward so he could get a fair few assists this year. If Arsenal shores up their defence, you may even steal a few clean sheets out of Gibbs.

The other player to consider is Theo Walcott when he is fit. I would only play Walcott against lesser opponents though as he takes no set pieces. He is very good against teams where Arsenal can rack up a few goals but in the tight games, it may be better to go with just RVP.

Aston Villa

Shay Given could transport Villa's defensive woes from
last season into one of the top defensive sides this season

Aston Villa goes into this season with a completely different fantasy outlook to last year. Last year we were wondering how good Gabby Agbonlahor may be and if Stewart Downing and Ashley Young could transform Villa into a top four team. Now we are wondering if Darren Bent, Marc Albrighton, and Charles N’Zogbia can keep them in the top half of the table.

From a fantasy point of view, Bent is the man this year. Expect 20 goals from Bent – he’ll take their penalties now that Young is gone, and he’ll be receiving some good service from Albrighton and N’Zogbia. Albrighton and N’Zogbia are worth  having a look at when Villa is playing weaker opponents, definitely worth saving a spot on the bench for one of these two.

Villa’s defence could be very good this year, and some players will be at a bargain price thanks to their shambolic defence last year. Luke Young, Stephen Warnock (who is in line for a good come back year) and Carlos Cuellar all come in at a bargain 5M thanks to the brilliant Shay Given between the posts.

Fantasy Football Guide

The screenshot of what your team
looks like on
fantasy.premierleague.com

As we approach the start of the new Premier League season, most of us will be starting to pick our line-ups for the first game of the season. This season promises to be evening more unpredictable than last season with as many as five realistic title contenders, and more importantly for fantasy, a host of new players with different teams. I’ll base my advice on having a starting XI and four reserves as in www.fantasy.premierleague.com, with one transfer each week, and with player prices based on this site.

Team setup

The core of your team should not change over the course of the season. If you have to change more than one player over the first few weeks, you are already losing too much ground. Start with a team of players who are guaranteed to start, and who stay out of injury trouble. Your defence should be strong and consistent all season, with at least two top defenders in your starting team. I would go with defenders who can also contribute goals – those who come up for set pieces, i.e. Nemanja Vidic, Michael Dawson, Ashley Cole, Leighton Baines, David Luiz, and Robert Huth. Your attack can be a bit more risky, players who may contribute a lot one week, and then not so much the next week (this is where you can use your free transfer each week).

Glen Johnson is in line for a bounce
back year - assuming he can stay healthy.

Strong picks for the full season

There are a few players this season that will stand out and provide a steady influx of points to your team. I try and pick players here who will be taking a lot of set pieces, team captains (going to play each week), and team leaders (i.e. Frank Lampard). Some of the players that will have a stellar season this year are Lampard, Vidic, Luiz Suarez, Florent Malouda, Robin van Persie, Joleon Lescott, Glen Johnson, and David De Gea (which means basically the whole Man U defence – the trouble is picking the starters besides Vidic).

Sleepers for the season

Charlie Adam is in line for a huge season. He may be the highest scoring mid-
fielder this year come the end of the season.

There are a few players who I think will either come out of the blue, or be overlooked by most people. The first one is Charlie Adam. Steven Gerrard has been ruled out for at least the first few games and if Adam performs well in these which I suspect he will (he’ll take free kicks and probably take penalties (he took a penalty in pre-season)), he’ll be a great addition – even at the inflated price tag of 9M. Another player to look out for is Adel Taarabt. Playing from midfield, he plays a role like Frank Lampard, and expect Taarabt to be a great steal, similar to that of Chris Brunt last year. The last sleeper I’d suggest is a bit more obvious but he will no doubt get overlooked for cheaper midfield options such as jack Wilshere, Gareth Bale, or Ashley Young. That player is Frank Lampard. Although not an under the radar player, not many teams will pick him up this year. After a lacklustre performance from Chelsea last term, not many are focusing on them (Liverpool and Man City seem to be gaining all the attention), and I expect Lampard, Malouda, and Torres to click this season. He takes the penalties, free kicks, and gets goals from open play; Lampard will be a great player to have.

Over the next couple of weeks I’ll do a team by team analysis of who to pick in your team, and what players you should avoid.

US Congress – A Member of New Zealand Golf?

I write this article as much in amazement today, rather than shock. As most of you know, we live in a democracy, where decisions that people disagree on, are usually voted upon. In some situations, one person has more sway, but more often that not, the people in the positions of power, will make the sensible decision (as much out of fear of losing power). I’m getting slightly off point now, but I just want to reinforce that we do live in a reasonable country, where common sense often prevails.

I have recently learnt that someone who has represented their country less than four years ago, has had her privilege taken away of playing in the local competition at her golf club. I assumed that there would be a good reason for this. Maybe this person has bad etiquette and was suspended; maybe this person got caught cheating; maybe this person rubbed some people the same way? All of these I asked myself. But it was none of these.

She has kids who play sport Saturday morning, therefore she can’t play golf in the morning so she plays in the afternoon. She has been doing this for the previous four years honing her skills to be in the top percentile of women golfers in the country! She is self employed throughout the week also having to look after her kids, the only time she can (not wants to), but can play golf is Saturday afternoon.


Ladies have been playing in the afternoon in their local competitions where half the field would play Saturday morning (those without commitments in that time) and the other half plays in the afternoon. This has been the case for the previous four years. But apparently four years ago this was not voted through the ‘proper’ channels. Even if it has been working for the past four years, hey let’s change things because old Betty Jones didn’t take the minutes of a meeting four years.


If things aren’t broke…It seems more confusing that the US Congress doesn’t it? Just let it be. Don’t afternoon golfers have it tougher because of the wind anyway?

Sorry Rory



Not needing any of the Irish luck this week,
McIlroy has been flawless.

 I hope this column is not premature. After two days of the US Golf Open, it is obvious just how good Rory McIlroy is. Although this isn’t his first major as a professional, McIlroy certainly reminds me of a young players who tamed Augusta National 14 years ago.

Currently sitting at 131 after two rounds (a US Open record), McIlroy sits six shots clear of Y.E. Yang in second and nine shots clear of the rest of the field. In the past two majors where McIlroy has held a sizeable lead (last years British Open and this years Masters), he has blown out in one of his remaining rounds.


I can’t see McIlroy losing from this position. There is no way that someone from the pack catches him assuming he doesn’t slip up. That would require them going 66, 67 in the weekend of a US Open. Congressional will get harder over the weekend. The organisers will not want to be remembered as the course where the leader finished 20 under par. The only way he will lose is if he repeats his final round meltdown at Augusta. The way he has been striking it (32/36 greens, 20/28 fairways), there is just no chance he blows this one.




Is Tiger Woods leaving the stage to be taken
by a 22 year old Northern Irishman?

 I hate to say this, and compare someone to Tiger, but we haven’t seen someone dominate the course and the opposition like this since Tiger tore the field apart at the US Open at Pebble Beach a little over a decade ago. I just hope I haven’t put the mockers on him,



Sorry Rory.




P.s. I predicted Dustin Johnson would win the US Open. Not looking good sitting at +4...
 
 
Sorry Dustin.

The Will to Win



Happy in his not so 'happy place' yet
 he found a way to win.

 Watching the State of Origin last night when New South Wales beat a highly vaunted Queensland side in the 2nd match of the series, inspired this column. Unexperienced, out-classed and with less pedigree than Queensland, NSW were able to win through sheer will. This made me think of a few other instances of where teams have won through will and not much else.

1) South Africa beating New Zealand in the 1995 Rugby World Cup Final. The All Blacks were the better team by a large margin having flown into the final, but it was the Springboks playing in front of their nation, playing for their nation, prevailing in a dour yet, tense affair. They were able to do this (with the help of Susie the lunch lady) through determination and sheer bloody determination to win in extra time.

2) Detroit Pistons beating the LA Lakers in the 2004 NBA Finals. Looking at this series on paper, the Pistons stood no chance. The Lakers comprised of four future hall of famers (three first-ballod), where the Pistons were comprised of five mix and match players. A bunch of misfits v hall of famers. The Pistons played as a team whereas the Lakers looked disjointed and as if it was for granted that they would win because of their superior talent. Flip Saunders and co epitomized team basketball which the Dallas Mavericks replicated all but three days ago in beating the much touted, Miami Heat.




The Azzuri getting knocked out in the first round thanks in
large part to a 1-1 draw against the All Whites.

 3) The All Whites 2010 football World Cup campaign. It’s almost too hard to put this into words. First there was the final qualifying game against Bahrain in Wellington (including a penalty save in the 2nd half which would’ve knocked the All Whites out of the World Cup), then the three World Cup games. All against much more talented opposition, New Zealand held it’s own, not through greater skill or simply ‘parking the bus’ (see Brighton & Hove Albion for this), but through determination to succeed. Epitomised by the captain Ryan Nelsen, who was the only player to make the tournament XI by a team which got knocked out in the first round. Inspirational stuff.



Dustin getting practice at
lifting trophy's before the US
Open this week.



Although it’s great for sports to have these dominant figures and teams, it’s great when you see people through hard work and a willingness to succeed, knock them down.

P.s. Dustin Johnson to win the US Open this week and a fiver on Adam Scott to finish in the top 5.