Game 7 vs Aston Villa(A) 1st October: A Reflection

Starting Line-Up:

(4-5-1)                                  Al-Habsi

Boyce                 Caldwell                       Figueroa                Van Aaaholt

                                             Watson

                          McCarthy                         Diame

Stam                                                                                           Moses

                                             Di Santo

Result: 2-0

Man of the Match: Franco Di Santo

Aston Villa’s strikepower simply proved too much in what was Wigan’s poorest performance of the season so far. Having rarely threatened the Villa goal, the prospect of the Latics scoring enough goals to stay in the division this time around will be something for Martinez to consider. Having suggested Agbonlahor was the player to watch in this game he didn’t disappoint, returning a goal and an assist. Having just returned from injury and perhaps not fully fit, Emmerson Boyce struggled to contain the jet-heeled forward down the Villa left. At the other end, Franco Di Santo became increasingly isolated as the game wore on. The difference between the sides was evident in that Agbonlahor, Ireland and Bannan supported Bent at every opportunity whilst Moses, Stam and Diame struggled to get close enough to Di Santo.

Villa’s opening goal arrived after James McCarthy gave the ball away in midfield, allowing the home side to break quickly and effectively. Agbonlahor received the ball and attacked Caldwell, who backed off rapidly, before rifling a shot into the top of Al-Habsi’s net from just inside the area. Villa deserved the goal and in truth the Latics were fortunate to find themselves just one goal down at the interval. Just after half-time the most contentious incident of the game arrived, with Di-Santo battling his way into the Villa area before going down after what looked to be a push by right-back Alan Hutton. However, Stuart Atwell waved away the appeals of the Wigan players.

It was obvious that the Wigan players felt aggrieved by this decision not to award a penalty and shortly after their mini-revival seemed to lose some momentum. The introduction of Heskey, replacing Stephen Ireland, allowed Villa to regain the momentum, Darren Bent eventually putting the result beyond any doubt with a neat finish after Agbonlahor again beat Boyce for pace on his return from injury and delivered an inch-perfect cross.

The Opposition from a Fantasy Premier League Perspective

From a Fantasy League Perspective, Villa’s opening to the season as served as a considerable disappointment. Despite their unbeaten start to the campaign, those who have invested in the likes of Given, Collins and Warnock have been rewarded with just two clean sheets. Richard Dunne’s own goal during injury time in their last fixture at QPR will have annoyed several Fantasy Premier League managers who had banked on a Villa clean sheet, particularly given that the opposition had been reduced to ten men. Moreover, Villa’s attacking options from a Fantasy Premier League perspective have also flattered to deceive thus far. Darren Bent has returned just one goal in five at a hefty starting price of 10.0 whilst much-fancied winger Charles N’Zogbia has failed to register either a goal or an assist despite starting all six of Villa’s Barclay’s Premier League games.

However, all is not lost and the home fixture with Wigan Athletic provides the perfect opportunity for some Villa players to start justifying the significant investment in them on the game. Bent is listed on the Fantasy Premier League site as having a 75% chance of making the Wigan game. Should he recover in time, his owners are entitled to expect a goal and bonus points at the very least in this favourable fixture. Should he fail to register on the scoresheet, Bent’s already declining 5.4% ownership across the game is likely to decrease even further despite a relatively good run of fixtures in the next five including home games against West Brom and Norwich.

Should Bent fail to pass a late fitness test, it is likely that Gabby Agbonlahor will continue in the central striking role, supported by Charles N’Zogbia, Stephen Ireland and Barry Bannan. Having been initially priced at just 6.5 in the game, Agbonlahor has risen to 6.9 after a string of impressive performances and returns which have made him Villa’s stand out player from a Fantasy Premier League perspective after six games. Transferred in by over 50000 managers this week alone, Agbonlahor will be looking to continue this run of form this coming weekend and build upon his three goals and two assists.

Analysing the Opposition

Despite being unbeaten so far in the Premier League, the jury is still out on Alex McLeish amongst the Villa faithful. This is in no small part due to the fact that out of the opening six games five have resulted in draws, with just the solitary win coming against Blackburn in gameweek two. McLeish’s reputation for moulding team’s into draw specialists does not sit very well with the Villa fans, and the pressure will really begin to mount should the home fixture with Wigan produce anything less than three points.

Villa began the seasons with a 4-2-3-1 system, McLeish evidently believing that this would bring the best out of the players he had to hand. Surprisingly, Emile Heskey was given the role ‘in the hole’ operating behind lone striker Darren Bent. The 3-1 victory over Blackburn in the second gameweek suggested that the formation could deliver success. However, four straight draws later and Villa fans are beginning to question just how well their players are suited to this set-up. For instance, Darren Bent has just one goal from five this season and has struggled to adapt to the new system. Last season, Bent had Stewart Downing and Ashley Young supplying him from the wings in a fluid 4-3-3 system which suited his tendency to make runs beyond defenders. Conversely, this season he is now being asked to play as a more of a target man and hold the ball up with his back to goal to allow runs from midfield by players such as Emile Heskey and Stephen Ireland. Moreover, the main disappointment for Villa fans has been the failure of major new recruit Charles N’Zogbia to have any sort of immediate impact. Like Bent. N’Zogbia is more used to playing in a fluid 4-3-3 system where is able to concentrate on the attacking side of the game rather than worrying about defensive duties. It should also be noted that the majority of N’Zogbia’s best moments at Wigan came whilst he was playing on the right hand-side, allowing him to cut in on his favoured left foot. Should McLeish want to see the best N’Zogbia has to offer, moving him from the left to the right could be an option worth exploring.

Having assessed Villa’s start to the season and their current position, I don’t think it’s unrealistic to believe Wigan could secure at least a point from this fixture. If Darren Bent remains on the sidelines, Villa may struggle to score goals whilst Latics’ main striker Franco Di Santo is currently in a rich vein of form which he will hope to carry into this fixture. Hence, I have predicted a 1-1 draw for this match, which I believe should be an entertaining encounter ultimately resulting in yet more frustration for the home side.

Game 7 vs Aston Villa(A) 1st October

Possible Starting Line-Up:

                                            Al-Habsi

Lopez                   Caldwell                       Figueroa                Van Aaaholt

                                             Watson

                            McCarthy                         Diame

Gomez                                                                                           Moses

                                             Di Santo

Prediction: 1-1

Game 6 vs Tottenham(H) 24th September: A Reflection

Starting Line-Up:

(4-5-1)                                  Al-Habsi

Gohouri                 Caldwell                       Figueroa                Van Aaaholt

                                             Watson

                            McCarthy                         Diame

Gomez                                                                                           Moses

                                             Di Santo

Result: 1-2

Man of the Match: Mohammed Diame

The return of the Barclay’s Premier League to the DW Stadium, following a month’s absence, ultimately ended in disappointment for the home side. Yet things could have been oh so different had Steve Gohouri remembered the fact he was already on a yellow card and not made a rash challenge on Gareth Bale in the sixty third minute.

A disastrous start to the match saw the Latics go behind in just the third minute following an error by makeshift centre half Maynor Figueroa who gifted possession to Emmanuel Adebayor, allowing the Tottenham forward to find Rafael Van der Vaart waiting in acres of space in the Wigan area. Van der Vaart finished in typically emphatic fashion, opening his account for the season, and from then on the away side began to find space with ease, Adebayor going close to extending his scoring run. After riding their look for half an hour, Wigan eventually subsided to the relentless Spurs pressure, Gareth Bale appearing unmarked at the front post to glance home a Luka Modric corner. The second half required a reaction from the Wigan players and it arrived almost immediately in the form of a Mohammed Diame goal on fifty minutes.

Although the sending off of Gohouri effectively ended Wigan’s hopes of rescuing a point from this fixture, there are still numerous positives which Martinez will be able to take from the spirited fightback which his team displayed. However, the results show that this is now Latics third defeat in a row in the Premier League and this is something which they will be looking to rectify when they travel to Aston Villa next Saturday, where I believe a point would represent a good result.

The Opposition from a Fantasy Premier League Perspective

If Tottenham can continue with their recent revival and put together a consistent run of form, there are several players within their squad who can be effective from a Fantasy Premier League perspective. The three I wish to highlight as potential targets for Fantasy Premier League manager are Kyle Walker, Rafael Van der Vaart and Emmanuel Adebayor. Although he is currently Tottenham’s second dearest defender on the game, coming in at 5.4, if Walker can cement the right-back spot ahead of Vedran Corluka then he could see some investment from Fantasy Premier League managers. He displayed his attacking credentials during his time spent on loan at Aston Villa last season, returning one goal and three assists. If he gets the game time, I can see Walker’s forays down the right hand side seeing him improve significantly on last season’s returns, when he was part of an uncharacteristically poor Villa defence.

In midfield, I would always advise to fork out the extra money and get Van der Vaart instead of Gareth Bale. Alhough Bale is obviously hugely talented, he can often be an extremely frustrating player from a Fantasy Premier League perspective. For instance, he registered just three assists last season despite playing the majority of it on the left wing. Conversely, Van der Vaart is a proven Fantasy Premier League performer whose consistency makes him a serious consideration for any Fantasy Premier League manager whenever Spurs have a favourable run of fixtures. Last season Van der Vaart returned thirteen goals and nine assists despite missing a significant proportion of the season due to a recurrent hamstring injury. This injury has already troubled him once again this season, causing him to miss the trip to Wolves. However, he is widely anticipated to return to the starting line-up against Wigan this coming weekend.

The recent capture of Emmanuel Adebayor on a season-long loan from Manchester City has brought Tottenham forwards back on the radar from a Fantasy Premier League perspective following their reliance on midfield players to contribute goals during the last campaign. Peter Crouch, Jermaine Defoe and Roman Pavlyuchenko all failed to reach double figures for Premier League goals last time round, meaning the contributions of Rafael Van der Vaart and Gareth Bale proved to be vital. Harry Redknapp will hope he has found a solution to this problem with the capture of Adebayor, a proven Premier League goalscorer with a point to prove. Adebayor has been nothing short of sensational in his first two Tottenham games since his arrival at White Hart Lane and will be looking to continue his prolific form. If he manages to do so it wouldn’t be so difficult to imagine him replicating or coming close to his best ever Premier League goals tally for a season of twenty four during the 2007/08 season whilst still with Arsenal. Should Adebayor produce what we all know he is capable of when he applies himself he could well prove to be a bargain, currently priced at just 8.2 in the game.

Analysing the Opposition

Tottenham arrive at the DW Stadium in two days time on the back of two very impressive displays following a slightly shaky start to the season. Harry Redknapp’s side appear to have been revitalised by the signings of Scott Parker and Emmanuel Adebayor. Redknapp’s failure to enter the market earlier on in the transfer window had left a few die-hard Spurs fans somewhat disgruntled. However, their fears were allayed with the acquisitions of these two proven Premier League performers on Deadline Day. Parker and Adebayor are like for like replacements for Wilson Palacios and Peter Crouch, both of whom departed for Stoke, with several pundits commenting that these changes have allowed Tottenham to improve.

Significantly, since the introduction of Parker and Adebayor, Tottenham have recorded back to back victories over Wolves and Liverpool. Redknapp’s side comfortably overcame what seemed a tricky trip to Molineux, winning 0-2, before easily dispatching 9-man Liverpool last Sunday. Parker has quickly developed an effective partnership with Luka Modric in the centre of midfield in Redknapp’s favoured 4-4-2, whilst Adebayor already has three goals to his name in just two Premier League appearances. Should the form of their new additions continue, Spurs fans will be entitled to expect another three points this coming Saturday against a Wigan side depleted by injuries to key men such as Emmerson Boyce, Antolin Alcaraz, Mohammed Diame and Hugo Rodallega.

One contentious debate that currently exists amongst Spurs fans is just where Dutch maestro Rafael Van der Vaart will fit into the team once he has fully recovered from injury. In Tottenham’s last two Premier League games, the emerging partnership of Adebayor and Defoe in a 4-4-2 system has provided the basis for their success. Whether Redknapp will revert to last season’s 4-4-1-1 in order to accommodate Van der Vaart remains to be seen, with the Dutchman expected to be fully fit to take on Wigan this coming weekend.  Should he choose to do so, it is likely that Jermaine Defoe would be the man to drop out. Alternatively, Redknapp could choose to play Van der Vaart out wide on the right instead of Niko Kranjcar, although he is less effective in this role. Whatever formation Redknapp ultimately opts for, Wigan will need to be at their best in order to avoid defeat against a resurgent Spurs outfit.