In this week’s insider, we suggest that despite less than favourable weeks for both Manchester sides, they still represent the best value this weekend.
Fantasy Football (In association with Champion)
*** Update – Wayne Rooney likely to be fit to play against Norwich ***
In a week where a man being paid nearly €300,000 a week refused to come off the bench and do his job and the home team at Old Trafford very nearly managed to throw away a two-goal lead against a no more than average Swiss outfit, it’s safe to say that the wheels have slightly come off the Manchester juggernaut that has been in full flow since the start of the season.
City were made to look thoroughly ordinary against an excellent Bayern Munich on Tuesday night, while United’s display against Basel showed further evidence of a problem that has been apparent all season but has been disguised by the sheer quality of their attacking displays – that the Red Devils are perhaps too open in style and can be got at in defence.
In fact, an amazing statistic came our way earlier today – in six Premier League games, the opposition facing United have had 85 shots on goal. That’s nearly 15 per game and it was only a matter of time before they paid the price.
After unpleasant experiences in Europe this week then, both Roberto Mancini and Alex Ferguson will take heart from the fixture list this weekend, which sees United take on Norwich at Old Trafford and City take a quick hop to Ewood Park to face Blackburn. Not gimmes by any means, but a victory for both sides is to be expected.
Outside of the regular heavyweight contingent of City and United players (Rooney, Aguero, Silva, Nani, Young et al), a couple of players worth considering are United’s Phil Jones (£5.8 million), whose first goal for the club only seems like a matter of time, and the much maligned David de Gea (£6.6 million), who is the top scoring goalkeeper due to the number of saves (35 in 6 games) he has made thus far.
For City, rampaging right back Micah Richards (£6.0 million) has already chipped in with two assists so far and following his valuable contribution from the bench against Everton and Edin Dzeko’s tantrum in Munich, the daft and always entertaining Mario Balotelli (£8.5 million) may be worth a shot.
JOE’s Fantasy Football Picks:
Top Dollar: Frank Lampard (£11.7 million). Has he turned a corner? His display against Valencia seemed like a riposte to all of his critics, who had suggested that the ageing midfielder is past it. He seems likely to retain his place at the weekend and will doubtless have a few opportunities against a Bolton defence that has been alarmingly leaky so far.
Mid-range: Emmanuel Adebayor (£8.4 million). Given his history, Adebayor seems fated to have some sort of impact on proceedings at White Hart Lane, although selecting him in your team means you run the risk of losing points if he does something stupid.
We have a feeling he’ll do the opposite, however, as for the first time in a long time, Tottenham are arguably now the superior force in North London and will fancy adding weight to that theory with a victory over their nearest rivals. Providing they’re not too spent from their efforts against Shamrock Rovers, of course.
Bargain Basement: Stephen Taylor (£4.9 million). It will be interesting to see how long Newcastle can maintain their current good run, but you’re as well jump on the bandwagon before the wheels fall off. Taylor has been the Magpies’ most consistent defender so far, averaging just short of eight points a game thanks to a fine bonus-point haul and an assist against Blackburn last time out.
Irish Pick: John O’Shea (£5.0 million). Long John has fallen off the radar a little since leaving Old Trafford, so we’ll welcome any opportunity to thrust him back into the limelight. The Waterford man has played three games for the Black Cats so far and two of those have resulted in clean sheets. Will have to contain international team-mate Shane Long this weekend, but the Baggies are struggling of late and a clean sheet seems like a decent bet.
Captain’s Pick: Nani (£10.1 million). After a nervy start to the season when he seemed to be overshadowed somewhat by Ashley Young’s explosive start, Nani has burst to life in recent weeks.
The Portuguese has averaged ten points a game in the last four fixtures thanks to three goals, three assists and seven bonus points. With Wayne Rooney likely to be out, United will again look to him for inspiration against Norwich this weekend.
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