Kick-Off: Gameweek 36 Fantasy Preview

Fired as a West Brom coach, reached UEFA CL Final.

Overview
In midweek we saw two richest clubs in the world, namely Barcelona and Real Madrid, got knocked out in Champions League semi-final. £50m Spaniard Fernando Torres actually scored the game sealing goal, and that goal alone possibly has redeemed the huge money spent by Roman Abramovich. Dramatic game by Chelsea. Salute.

Super Gameweek Double
8 teams will be on double this week, namely:

• Liverpool (@NOR, FUL)
• Fulham (@EVE, @LIV)
• Stoke (ARS, LIV)
• Everton (FUL, @STO)
• Chelsea (QPR, NEW)
• Newcastle (@WIG, @CHE)
• Bolton (@SUN, TOT)
• Tottenham (BLA, @BOL)

In my personal view, Everton has a really sound fixtures, especially when attackers like Jelavic are in fine form.

Game of the Week: MANCHESTER CITY v MANCHESTER UNITED

Will Balotelli be forgiven?

Here comes the climax. Defending champion, leading by 3 points, Manchester United, travel to Etihad Stadium to challenge their #1 contender, Manchester City.

A series of shocking results saw Manchester United's 8 point lead got shrunken into just 3 points. With City at home, it's hard to say whether the title race will only be decided at round 38.

City is free of injuries at the moment so it is hard to expect who will Mancini partner for Aguero. While Tevez would be the most likely candidate, Balotelli could also get a head start despite protests from his teammates. Huge riddles to be solved for Sir Alex Ferguson then.

Another question for SAF would be the wings setup. Which two to pick from Nani, Young and Valencia? While Nani poses greater offensive threat, he also is more vulnerable in defence. What will be SAF's priority? My guess is defence.

It should be a dramatic contest, and I'm betting City to win to make create the most exciting Premier League finale ever.

Prediction: MCI 2-1 MUN

Fantasy Game of the Week: Everton's Double (FUL, @STO)

Pienaar enjoying his return
to Everton.

Everton have been in a pretty fine form at the moment, and that makes their players interesting purchases for this gameweek double.

Jelavic has been in superb form, scoring 4 goals in the last 2 games he played. Solid acquisition at interestingly cheap price.

His teammates such as Pienaar, Osman and Fellaini could also provide good offensive returns, while Hibbert will be the real value buy at the defensive line.

Prediction: EVE 2-0 FUL, STO 1-0 EVE

Pick and Captain: Jelavic

Pick: Pienaar, Osman, Hibbert, Fellaini

Gameweek 36 Dream Team

Friedel

Hibbert -- Bosingwa -- Simpson

Bale -- Dempsey -- Pienaar -- Ben Arfa (VC)

P. Cisse -- Jelavic (C) -- Suarez

Subs: Begovic -- Mata -- Kaboul -- Enrique

Kick-Off: Gameweek 35 Fantasy Preview

Drogba: The man who took Barca down.

Overview
It's only 4 weeks away from the closing of the season with the battle getting more and more intense. It's five points separating the top two; the battle for fourth doesn't seem to be able to conclude before gameweek 38; 5 teams are still on a good race to escape from the relegation spots. It's just gotta be intense.

Game of the Week: Arsenal v Chelsea

Lampard continues to impress.

The team on form, Chelsea, will be looking forward to take the fourth spot for at two hours by taking down Arsenal at Emirates Stadium.

The Blues are the team on form now, marching on in both cup competitions (FA Cup and UEFA CL). They defeated the unbeatable Barcelona at home, something which was quite surprising.

Drogba who scored against Barca will continue to become the team's focal point in offence, supported by Mata, Lampard and co. Defensively Terry and Cahill will have to work very hard against #1 favourite for Golden Boot, Robin Van Persie. Do not expect clean sheets.

On the other side, RvP and Walcott are expected to cause many troubles again. Don't expect clean sheet for the home side as well, as Chelsea is on a truly astonishing form.

Prediction: ARS 2-1 CHE
Pick: Van Persie, Drogba, Walcott, Mata, Lampard
Drop: Both defence


Fantasy Game of the Week: Wolverhampton Wanderers v Manchester City

Caveman back with
total demolition.

City will need to keep up the pace to continue to pressure against league leaders Manchester United.

The Wolves season has practically ended with more than two games difference from survival zone. This should become City's advantage, as the opposition's morale should be very low, not to mention Wolves have not won any of their last 10 league games.

Meanwhile, City seems to recover their early season form, scoring 10 goals in last two games. Ex-captain Carlos Tevez is certainly the shining man now, after scoring a whopping 19 fantasy points in City's 6-1 demolition over Norwich. Aguero and Silva have reactivated their fantasy scoring machine as well.

Should be an easy win and possibly a clean sheet as well for City.

Prediction: WOL 0-3 MCI
Pick and Captain: Aguero, Tevez
Pick: Silva, MCI defence
Drop: WOL team


Pick and Drop
Pick and Captain:
Yakubu - Norwich always give goals.
Dempsey - Just so good.
P. Cisse  - Extremely prolific.

Pick:
AST and BOL team - Gameweek double.
Rooney/ Valencia/ Young - Usual offensive prospects from United.
Ben Arfa - Brilliant lad.

Drop:
NOR defence - Unlikely to withstand Blackburn's offence.

Transfer Traffic
Green light (buy):
Gameweek 35 double gamers - Check the fixtures.
Tevez/ Aguero/ Silva - Sensational form.
AST and BOL team - Gameweek double.

Gameweek 35 Dream Team

 Krul

Lescott -- Evans -- Collins

Silva -- Walcott -- Ben Arfa (VC) -- Dempsey

Tevez (C) -- Yakubu -- P. Cisse

Subs: Given -- M. Petrov -- A. Hughes -- Wheather

Kick-Off: Gameweek 31 Fantasy Preview

Kenny Dalglish: Man in pressure.

Overview
So Chelsea continued their fine run under the lead of Di Matteo. The Blues won their first leg of the Champions League quarter finals with a 1-0 win away to Benfica. Great likelihood to progress, but they are expected to face Barcelona next.

Game of the Week: NEWCASTLE v LIVERPOOL

Can Ben Arfa get consistent
starts?

Not pretty interesting in terms of the meaning of the battle, but nevertheless this is the most balanced match-up of the week.

Newcastle are back in winning ways, winning the last two games with Papiss Cisse the man. The compatriot of Ba has scored three goals in the last two games and will be the biggest threat of Liverpool's clean sheet points.

Ben Arfa is the other man where you cannot take your eyes off. The talented winger has shown supreme performance last gameweek by getting involved in all three Newcastle's goals. Coupled with Cisse and Ba, the trio has immeasurable potential against Liverpool.

On the other side, Suarez has managed to find some consistency recently, but his explosive potential is yet to be materialized. Can he unleash that against Newcastle? Seems tough when his teammates are not up to his par except Gerrard.

Should be a comprehensive Newcastle victory as Liverpool continues to drop points horribly.

Prediction: NEW 3-1 LIV
Pick: Cisse, Ben Arfa
Drop: LIV defence


Fantasy Game of the Week: MANCHESTER CITY v SUNDERLAND

Carlos Tevez to get a start?

City certainly is not ready to hand the title out as they host Sunderland in the quest of closing down the gap against United.

The Blue Moon's offensive power has been mediocre recently - they had only scored 3 goals in their last three when they had score 12 in their first three games of the season. David Silva seems to be out of magic as the team struggles to find chances.

Aguero is quoted as "75% playing" so maybe you should sell him considering how much better you can achieve via Van Persie and Rooney. Balotelli will be your main man to trust, as the wonder kid is never short of wonders - both on and off the field.

Defensive wise, Kompany is flagged as "50% playing" but given his importance in the team, I think he should start in order to break down Sunderland's offence which has return to its best after as Sessegnon returned from suspension.

City's superb home record should keep their trail within 3 points so put your City players on and hope for the best.

Prediction: MCI 2-0 SUN
Pick and Captain: Balotelli
Pick: MCI defence


Pick and Drop
Pick and Captain:
Dempsey/Pogrebnyak - Superb potential against Norwich.
Van Persie/Rooney - The automatic picks.

Pick:
Mata - The team are very much settled under Di Matteo.
Jelavic - Seems quite lively recently.
Bale/Adebayor - Expect them to back in form.
Valencia - Never short of magic.

Drop:
QPR defence - Too poor against Arsenal's offensive standards.
BLA defence - Nothing stops United at the moment.

Transfer Traffic
Green light (buy):
Evans - 25 points in the last two games has made him super popular.
G Cahill - Performs impressively under Di Matteo's tactics.
Walcott - Starts for more than 10 consecutive league games.
P Cisse - Cheaper and in better form than Ba.

Yellow light (hold):
Sessegnon - Returned but has back to back tough games.
Jelavic - Looks settled but needs more games to make conclusion.
Suarez - Still waiting for the explosive factor to explode.

Red light (sell):
Enrique/Skrtel - Terrible form at the moment.
Ba - Overpriced compared to his teammate Cisse.
MCI forwards - Overly crowded to get consistent minutes.

Gameweek 31 Dream Team

Hart

Assou-Ekkoto -- Evans -- G Cahill

Ben Arfa -- Dempsey -- Bale -- Valencia -- Walcott

Rooney (VC) -- Van Persie (C)

Subs: Al-Habsi -- Pogrebnyak -- Gibbs -- Hibbert

Happy New Year: Gameweek 19 Fantasy Preview

A fresh one-match ban for Suarez will prevent him
from facing Newcastle.

Overview
Further drama on Suarez's incident as he will be facing a one-match ban against Newcastle following the middle finger incident at Craven's Cottage. Just one thing to note: Fulham is neither fined nor warned about their fans misconduct to constantly attack Suarez through chants. Such a fair English Fools Association.

Game of the Week: LIVERPOOL v NEWCASTLE

Ben Arfa is one of the
cheapest fantasy commodity
with big gun prospects.

The battle for sixth. Two of the top tier defences across the league.

Liverpool has the worst home record among the top 7 despite being undefeated at Anfield, with draw rate as high as 66.7%. Certainly a stat that can boost Newcastle's morale. 11 home goals is also the worst of the top 7, so don't be surprised if the away team gets a clean sheet.

Suarez will not be available for this game (and perhaps the other 8 games to come) so expect at least one of Bellamy and Carroll to start upfront. The Geordie will face his old club again but it certainly won't be an easy game against the solid back four of Newcastle. Gerrard could also make it a start at Anfield - certainly the light of hope Liverpool needs.

On the other side, Demba Ba will continue to boss the front line and give Liverpool's defence a big test. Ben Arfa has played very well featuring from the bench last game and could as well start the game with Ba. Two delicious fantasy stocks.

Liverpool has historically done very well against the Magpies at home. The Reds should really end their unlucky streak already.

Prediction: LIV 2-1 NEW
Pick: Ba, Ben Arfa, Bellamy
Drop: Suarez


Fantasy Game of the Week: MANCHESTER UNITED v BLACKBURN

Valencia performs consistently
regardless of whether he is
playing as RW or RB.

Sure, Blackburn had managed to draw Liverpool, but blame Liverpool for their poor chance conversion. Against Manchester United, they have no chance.

Two straight 5-0 victories have surely rocketed the morale of fellow Red Devils sky high. Both Nani and Rooney didn't play for a full 90 minutes game against Wigan - superb captain choices. Berbatov might start too after a spectacular hat-trick, but just don't bet on him yet.

A big victory again might just send Steve Kean to execution and bring United to the summit. Sorry Blackburn.

Prediction: MUN 4-0 BLA
Pick and Captain: Nani, Rooney
Pick: Valencia, MUN defence
Drop: BLA players


Pick and Drop
Pick and Captain:

1. Van Persie - Might be rested, but nonetheless presents great scoring opportunity against QPR.
2. Bale - Hot and unstoppable, though Michel Vorm might stand on his way.

Pick:

1. Gervinho - In good form.
2. S. Fletcher - Against poor Bolton he should be able to do it again.
3. Sturridge/ Mata - The usual performer at Chelsea.
4. Holt - Norwich will put hopes on him to rebound from a defeat.
5. STO defence - Wigan has only scored 6 goals on the road this season.

Drop:

1. QPR defence - Arsenal hardly fails to score.
2. BOL players - In confidence crisis.
3. SWA defence - Looks impossible to stop Bale, Adebayor and Van der Vaart altogether.

Transfer Traffic

Green light (buy):

1. Bale - Fabulous and unstoppable.
2. Nani/ Rooney/ Valencia - United on fire.

Yellow light (watch):

1. Berbatov - His superb form might rekindle Ferguson's interest to start him.
2. Lindegaard - Started for 2 straight league games and kept 2 straight clean sheets.
3. Carroll - Suarez to start his suspension soon so he will get his chance.

Red light (sell):

1. BOL players - Whoever they are, sell. Second round of hellish fixtures is near for them.
2. Adam - Played terribly recently with Gerrard returning.
3. Suarez - Suspension begun.

Gameweek 19 Dream Team

Lindegaard

Shawcross -- Vermaelen -- Enrique
Nani (VC) -- Bale -- Mata -- Silva
Rooney (C) -- Van Persie -- Sturridge

Subs: Sorensen -- Hoolahan -- Walker -- R Martin

Man Utd's Season Begins: Gameweek 17 & 18 Fantasy Reviews

Ashley Young is expected to out until late January... Time to get
Valencia the super duper real deal guys.

Manchester United has scored 10 massive goals in just to games to close down the gap against Manchester City to just 5 goal difference. The real test for Mancini begins as the United's engine is officially ignited...

Team by Team Round-Up

• MCI: Failed to score for the first time this season against one of the worst defence of the league. Big shock. Three straight clean sheets nonetheless suggests that they're still one of the most reliable defence in England. Kompany remains the best bargain of all given Richards' absence due to injury. Offensively they're less consistent nowadays so don't put your shoes in yet if you haven't.
• MUN: 5-0 followed by another 5-0. The real season begins for them as Berbatov scored 4 goals in 2 games. A guy of pure class but certainly needs more playing time to gain a place in any fantasy team. Valencia is the real deal of the team given Young's absence and his ability to play as both winger and full back. One to watch. Evans is out due to injury as the cheapest access point to United's clean sheets is gone. Both Evra and Jones are pretty expensive while the rest are just so uncertain about their playing time.
• TOT: Speedy speed boy Gareth Bale crushed Norwich while Adebayor continued to show consistency scoring 6-5-7-5 over the last four games. Both are great buys.
• CHE: The fantasy points are still pretty widespread across players. Sturridge and Mata remain the "good but not great" buys, while Torres continues to be gloomy on the final third. Stay away from their shabby defenders.
• ARS: Van Persie is still the ace of the team, while Gervinho is starting to get some serious form when he is just days away from playing African Cup of Nations. Not so good. I like Benayoun's creativity but it looks like he's not fit enough to play 90 minutes.
• LIV: Charlie Adam single-handedly handed four league points away after failing to score a penalty against Wigan but scored an own goal against Blackburn. Two bottom three clubs. Great. Chance conversion is still terrible for the team. Lots of silly attempts going wide, lots of shots going too straight to the keeper, and when it's on target, opponents' keeper went into godlike mode. From De Gea to Hart, from Hart to Vorm, Ruddy and Bunn. Great keepers were all born at Anfield.
• NEW: It's great to see Ben Arfa scored his second goal for Newcastle after more than one year. The Magpies have now a second ace to rely on apart from Ba. I can see better attacking display from them.
• STO: Failed to score in both games but defensively it's still solid as long as they're playing with Shawcross. Nothing really sparkling to comment about.
• WBA: Hodgson's defensive tactics worked against City despite such a poor group of defenders. Odemwingie looks to rediscover his fantastic form. Certainly a man to watch.
• EVE: Saha and Cahill continues to stuck deep within scoring drought. Deep frustration. Osman is the only man who functions properly in offence.
• NOR: The results they got is just so predictable with the same usual bunch of players who perform.
• AST: Agbonlahor has lost his hot foot and we wouldn't know whether he will return to the Agbonlahor of last season.
• FUL: Dempsey is showing some consistency at the moment and is a good option for a mid-price midfielder.
• SWA: Nothing much to catch my eye except that Danny Graham has a nice footwork.
• SUN: A pretty much resurrected team under Martin O'Neill. It's still not so convincing offensively anyway.
• QPR: Mackie scored two games in a row. A man to match as we see how his partnership with Helguson develops.
• WOL: It's all about Steven Fletcher offensively. Best budget striker at the moment.
• WIG: Still the same old story of defeats and defeats. Poor sent off of Sammon though.
• BOL: Only 3 goals in last 6 league games as Owen Coyle's position is surely insecure now.
• BLA: Yakubu has gotten his tenth goal of the season but Blackburn is still rocking at the bottom of the league.

Gameweek 14 Fantasy Preview

Gary Speed (1969-2011)

Overview
Shocking news earlier this week as one of the Premier League legends, Gary Speed, was found dead at his home following his suicide. Big loss.

Carling Cup Review
So Liverpool will meet Manchester City at the semis after killing off Chelsea twice at Stamford Bridge in just 9 days. Crazy fixtures. In the other end we will see Championship sides Cardiff and Crystal Palace facing against each other. It's surprising to not see Manchester United in the last four list.

7-Gameweek Fixture Analysis (Published Monthly)
In heaven run:

1. Everton (STO, @ARS, NOR, SWA, @SUN,  @BLA, BOL) - Pretty lenient ones in the midst of hellish calendar month. Be sure to monitor on Baines, Drenthe and supersub Vellios.
2. Liverpool (@FUL, QPR, @AST, @WIG, BLA, NEW, @MCI) - Shouldn't be too much of troubles defensively. If they can convert the chances more efficiently they should be able to slide into fourth place.
3. Man Utd (@AST, WOL, @QPR, @FUL, WIG, BLA, @NEW) - A good platform to improve their form... Hopefully they will.
4. Sunderland (@WOL, BLA, @TOT, @QPR, EVE, MCI, @WIG) - Loads of bottom team for them to earn some solid league points.
5. Swansea (@BLA, FUL, @NEW, @EVE, QPR, TOT, @AST) - A crucial period to book their survival place in the Prem.
6. Tottenham (BOL, @STO, SUN, CHE, @NOR, @SWA, WBA) - Great fixtures to lift them nearer to the league leaders.

In hell run:

1. Aston Villa (MUN, @BOL, LIV, ARS, @STO, @CHE, SWA) - Extremely tough to handle, especially when the compact festive games are coming.
2. Chelsea (@NEW, MCI, @WIG, @TOT, FUL, AST, @WOL) - The tough string of games won't help them to regain their form and confidence.
3. Fulham (LIV, @SWA, BOL, MUN, @CHE, @NOR, ARS) - All the teams they face have at least some decent attacking force, if not great.
4. Wigan (ARS, @WBA, CHE, LIV, @STO, SUN, @MCI) - Might be an early death sentence on Martinez and his team.

Game of the Week: NEWCASTLE v CHELSEA

Ben Arfa will cause big
trouble to Chelsea's defence.

It's going to be a tough month for Andre Villas-Boas as he will continue to play against tough oppositions in what that might become his job-deciding matches. St. James' Park is his first destination for Chelsea this month (hopefully not his last).

Newcastle played yet another solid game against Manchester United at Old Trafford, conceding only due to some bad luck. While the penalty was controversial, I simply wouldn't deny the fact that they deserve to take something from Old Trafford. Impressive.

The back four who started for every league games together should play together again - expect superb fortress-like defence which is further solidify with the presence of Krul. I rate the Dutch stopper now on par with Vorm and Hart as the league's toughest keeper to pass through. Up front we shall see Ben Arfa and Demba Ba creating havoc again and perhaps score a goal or two together.

On the other side, Chelsea are losing the cutting edge they have seasons before, and their results against the top sides were all but defeats this season. Losing twice at Stamford Bridge against the same side Liverpool certainly isn't a healthy sign for AVB's squad form. Terrible.

Defence has always been the fatal point of the Blues - many goals conceded were due to silly mistakes of the defenders. Attack isn't too sharp neither, with Sturridge, Mata and Lampard the only three reliable finishing points to score goals.

It's going to be close again, and I think the Magpies' work rate as a team should give AVB a worthwhile lesson.

Prediction: NEW 1-0 CHE
Pick: Ben Arfa
Drop: CHE defence


Fantasy Game of the Week: MANCHESTER CITY v NORWICH

Show time for Aguero again?

Manchester City might have lost the mighty form they had a month or two before, but at home against Norwich it's certainly too hard to resist.

Aguero and Silva are still two of the best fantasy performers - make them your captain and you will most probably get well rewarded with 10++ points. Mouth-watering picks.

Defensively it's not that formidable as before, but you shall still play your Kompany and/or Richards if you own them with them playing at home.

Should be solid win for City at least. Would be a big headline if Norwich are able to escape from Etihad.

Prediction: MCI 3-0 NOR
Pick and Captain: Aguero, Silva
Pick: MCI defence
Drop: NOR players


Pick and Drop
Pick and Captain:

1. Adebayor - Bolton is quite easy for him I suppose.
2. Van Persie - A big yes against one of the worst side of the Premier League.

Pick:

1. Walcott/ Ramsey - Should provide big threat to Wigan
2. Agbonlahor - To take advantage against off-form Man Utd.
3. Bellamy - In great form, though not that sure to start the game.

Drop:

1. WIG defence - Never a decent pick.
2. MUN defence - Not sure how they can hold Agbonlahor and Bent.

Transfer Traffic
Green light (buy):

1. Bale - Stacking up points in the speed of light.
2. Mata - Even if everyone in Chelsea is unpickable, he won't be.
3. Ben Arfa - Continues to impress me with his superior influence in Newcastle's attack.
4. Adebayor - Well supplied to score goals.
5. EVE defence - Three of the next four games at home.
6. Krul - Such a fantastic goalkeeper.

Yellow light (watch):

1. LIV defence - Surely Lucas' absence for the rest of the season is going to adversely affect them.
2. Bellamy - If he can just lock down a place from Dalglish's first XI, he will be a sure fire pick.
3. Aguero - With City's form declining, it's not that sure to own him now.

Red light (drop):

1. MUN players - Players are severely disjointed. Stay away until they regain their form.
2. Balotelli - His stupidity will hinder you from harvesting points from him.

Gameweek 14 Dream Team

Krul

Jagielka -- Richards -- Walker

Bale -- Ben Arfa -- Walcott -- Silva

Van Persie -- Aguero (C) -- Adebayor (VC)

Subs: Vorm -- Barton -- Luke Young -- Simpson

Full-Time: Gameweek 6 Fantasy Preview

Demba Ba rocked St James' Park with his hat-trick.

Manchester City 2-0 Everton
MCI: Solid performance which saw them back on level terms with neighbour Manchester United. Both Dzeko and Aguero failed to score at this round though, with Balotelli and Milner the one who broke the deadlock. Silva continues to show his second to none fantasy consistency. Great buy.

EVE: Good job for holding City up for so long but City has just too much class at Etihad Stadium. Take note that Tim Cahill injured himself. Though it's a short one the upcoming tough fixtures suggest that you should drop him sooner rather than later.

Pick: Silva, MCI defence
Drop: Cahill


Arsenal 3-0 Bolton
ARS: The victory was expected but a clean sheet was indeed a big surprise. Van Persie was the key man as expected, contributing 2 important goals. Song's goal is impressive - it showed that he can be technical at times. Ramsey contributed 10 points too with 2 good assists.

Note to worth is Wilshere's expected absence for five months after completing an operation.

BOL: Two straight red cards in a row now as Bolton sat at the bottom of the table. Their hellish fixtures are going to end next week after the clash against Chelsea, and you should reevaluate them after that.

Pick: Van Persie
Watch: Ramsey
Drop: Weather


Chelsea 4-1 Swansea
CHE: Torres finally backed to his good old self, but he jinxed himself for yet another time after conducting a silly two-footed tackle. Before that he was almost perfect, with his opening goal indicating how good is his ball control and the incisive pass showing how important is his presence.

Ramires was the key man as well as he almost hat-tricked. If he can improve his finishing, I think he can become a very good second striker with his athleticism.

Defence wise the Blues are very shaky to set pieces. Beware.

Lampard was benched - not a part of AVB's integral plan anymore?

SWA: Not a day for Scott Sinclair as he was given no chance by his previous team.

Pick: Ramires
Drop: Lampard


Liverpool 2-1 Wolves
LIV: Suarez was influential once again but was quite frustrated by Dalglish's decision to sub him out early. His goal was simply a display of true class. Carroll played one of his better games at Liverpool with one shot on post. Bad luck.

The team still waste a lot of chances - something that need to be greatly improved to increase their competitiveness.

WOL: The form seems to dip already - a sign to sell?

Pick: Suarez
Watch: Carroll, Gerrard


Newcastle 3-1 Blackburn
NEW: Great performance by Ba. Unexpected hat-trick - cool. Best also provided something with his cross for Ba's opener. The striking department will start to show some uncertainties with such kind of competition, especially when Ben Arfa's return could influence Pardew to play 4-5-1 more often.

BLA: Junior Hoilett continues to show that he's the man capable of doing a lot of damage upfront for Blackburn.

Pick: Ba, Best
Watch: Ben Arfa, Cabaye, Hoilett
Drop: BLA defence


West Brom 0-0 Fulham
WBA: Good attacking display but perhaps lack of some luck to score. Mulumbu was surprisingly impressive at offence - maybe a good 5th midfielder for your team.

FUL: Many chances from many players but just didn't have the luck. You got to admire Schwarzer for his superiority.

Watch: Mulumbu, Schwarzer


Wigan 1-2 Tottenham
WIG: They failed to threaten Spurs too much. Diame's dribble and goal was fantastic though.

TOT: Adebayor didn't score in this game but created 1. Solid return, great prospect.

Both Van der Vaart and Bale scored suggesting that the duo are back in action. Bale clearly deserves your observation after having opening his account this season.

Pick: Adebayor, VdV
Watch: Bale, Diame
Drop: WIG defence


Stoke City 1-1 Man Utd
STO: Britannia once again has shown its supremacy after yet another extension of home unbeaten run by Stoke. Strong attacking display after trailing. Respect.

MUN: Luck for too against them as Chicharito was the latest to join red crescent army along side with Rooney. Nani's goal was yet another state of the art shot though.

Pick: Nani, Walters
Watch: Crouch, Welbeck


QPR 1-1 Aston Villa
QPR: Traore is rather silly to give a free penalty to Aston Villa. Quite good in build up play though, although they only draw the game through an own goal.

AST: Dunne broke the record of top own goal scorer in Premier League with 10 OGs. Agbonlahor continued his undivided influence, while Bannan surprisingly took the spot kick.

Pick: Barton, Agbonlahor
Drop: Traore

Norwich 2-1 Sunderland
NOR: Holt once again featured only from bench suggesting that he is a fantasy flop now. I would say avoid Norwich players for now as they don't seem to have any focal point to attack. Nonetheless, Morrison deserves some mention here as he recorded 14 points from the last 2 games.

SUN: Defence was awful as both goals are due to defensive errors.

Watch: Morrison
Drop: Holt

Kick-Off: Gameweek 6 Fantasy Preview

Stuart Holden back to Bolton's rescue.

Overview
There are plenty of actions in Carling Cup on the midweek as we saw fellow benchwarmers like Owen and Oxlade-Chamberlain shone. The more important news are of course the return of Stuart Holden (Bolton) and Hatem Ben-Arfa who both recovered from long-term injuries. Two fantasy players to watch.

Game of the Week: STOKE CITY v MANCHESTER UNITED

Phil Jones is a versatile beast.
Strong and determined.

Pretty surprised to feature here? Too bad but this is the most anticipated one in my opinion as the sentinel of Britannia will try to hold the trident of Red Devils.

Stoke suffered a 0-4 defeat away to Sunderland last week, but at Britannia Stadium it's going to be a different story. The Potters are still yet to concede any goal at home in local fixtures including the Carling Cup tie against Tottenham where they won by penalties.

On the other hand, Man Utd continued their to record their best league opening for tens of years as they beat old-time rival Leeds 3-1 in the Carling Cup encounter. Michael Owen scored a brace but it will be too much for him to knock both Chicharito and Berbatov out to start with Rooney.

A classic sword and shield encounter. Tony Pulis' team might be able to shock us, but most probably it will be Sir Alex Ferguson's side to extend their record run of 6 straight league victories. United players will continue to shine.

Prediction: STO 0-1 MUN
Pick: Rooney, A Young, Jones
Drop: STO defence except Begovic


Fantasy Game of the Week: CHELSEA v SWANSEA

Hopefully not another
miss of the century.

Manchester City are facing tricky Everton, while both Arsenal and Liverpool are not in their very best form despite racing rather easy oppositions. So let's stick with Chelsea - the team who host themselves at Old Trafford even though they lost it.

Scott Sinclair will face his old club but it will be too much for him to lead Swansea sinking Stamford Bridge. Maybe a surprise goal, but certainly not a victory.

Another sign for Torres resurrection - he's spectacular last week despite the miss of the millennium. I believe this time it's not false positive though compared to the first gameweek - as long as it's the pack of fast players like Ramires, Mata and Meireles who will be pairing up with him.

Shouldn't be too hard for Chelsea, so start your Torres, Mata, Meireles, Ramires and Bosingwa if you own them.

Prediction: CHE 3-0 SWA
Pick and Captain: Torres
Pick: Mata, Meireles, Ramires, Bosingwa
Drop: SWA defence except Vorm


Pick and Drop
Pick and Captain:

1. Suarez - Liverpool are more consistent at Anfield. Perhaps the last chance for Suarez to prove himself.
2. Van Persie - The Gunners will learn from their mistake and improve on.
3. Adebayor - On fire and cannot be stopped.
4. Best - A differential captain pick if you're willing to risk.

Pick:

1. Man City players - Not an easy game against Everton, but home advantage should bring them through.
2. Wright-Phillips, Barton - Should be able to get something at home.
3. Gervinho - Should get a lot of chances.
4. Van der Vaart - Returns to take set pieces.

Drop:

1. WIG defence - I can't see a clean sheet against Adebayor and Van der Vaart.

Transfer Traffic

Green light (buy):

1. Adebayor - Expect huge bandwagon soon.
2. SWP, Barton - Two productive players from QPR.
3. Aguero, Agbonlahor, Best - Productive players at different tiers.
4. Jones - Can play everywhere in defence and hence less rotation fears.

Yellow light (watch):

1. Torres - Looks like he has discovered his form...
2. Ben Arfa - Returned and should be under your radar.
3. Holden - Will provide good supplies for Bolton in the center of midfield.
4. Enrique - Short of clean sheets and you should be prepared for a contingency plan to sell him.
5. Gerrard - Might bring direct impact to Liverpool's play.

Red light (sell):

1. ARS defence - Too mistake prone.
2. EVE players - Tough series of fixtures.
3. Klasnic - 3 match ban.
4. Moses - Not performing.

Gameweek 6 Dream Team

Krul

Bosingwa -- Kompany -- Enrique

Arteta -- SWP -- VDV -- Mata

Suarez -- Adebayor(C) -- RVP(VC)

Subs: Kenny -- Cabaye -- R Taylor -- Jones

Saturday Quick Review

Hatem Ben Arfa
Nothing's better than a debut goal of victory.

Hatem Ben Arfa is the man of the day with a incredible long-distance fire which defeated Tim Howard who was brilliant until then. Here are some highlights:

• Parker scored again! Maybe not as heroic as Peter Parker, but if you are to pick one from West Ham, he's the man.
• Everton is disappointing. Newcastle basically controlled the game even on the road. Ben Arfa is a superbly cheap fantasy star in making.
• Van der Vaart opened his score account through penalty, and this is a good signal to buy him.
• A dramatic day for Scott Dann's owners: first an own goal, then an assist. Still better than other Birmingham defenders though.
• Odemwingie scored again. A good bargain if you are unable to afford Carroll currently.
• Ashley Young and Kenwyne Jones were both on the scoresheet. Definitely the first to consider in FPL for respective teams.
• Arsenal struggling with Fabregas out currently. It should be a minor injury though. UPDATE: Darren Bent scored a last-second equaliser in this controversial game.

Hatem Ben Arfa Flies Like A Magpie

Hatem Ben Arfa
A new fantasy force alongside Carroll?

Great signing by Newcastle. The Tunisian-French is loaned by the Magpies from Marseille and should play his first Premier League match after the international break.

He's a winger and he's talented, but he's also hot-tempered. Can Chris Hughton tame him? Let's wait and see for his debut excitingly.