2011/12 Fantasy Season Preview - Bolton Wanderers

Bolton Wanderers FC

Last Season Summary

League ranking: 14th (46 pts)

Points per game (home: away): 1.84: 0.58

Goals per game (for: against): 1.37: 1.47

Number of clean sheets: 5

Top league scorer: Johan Elmander (10 goals)

Top league assister: Johan Elmander, Chung-Yong Lee (6 assists)

Transfers

In: Darren Pratley, Nigel Reo-Coker, Chris Eagles, Tyrone Mears

Out: Johan Elmander, Ali Al-Habsi, Daniel Ward, Andrew Burns, Matthew Taylor

Predicted Season Finish: 15th

Things are not going smoothly for Bolton this summer. Their top scorer, Elmander, leaves; their joint second top scorer, Sturridge, wants to fight for a position at Stamford Bridge; their best midfielder, Chung-Yong Lee, suffers an injury which will leave him out for one whole season; their best defender, Gary Cahill, is wanted by numerous big teams. All these bad news will bring negative psychological effects, apart from strength reduction, to Owen Coyle's squad.

Fantasy Ace: Kevin Davies (£6.5m)

He's one of the veteran Premier League players whom I like a lot.

Bolton's captain has been so consistent ever since he joined the club. Apart from his second year with the club, his league goal figures is always within the 7-11 range. The best part is, as he ages, his bonus points elevates as well.

With the current strike force at Reebok Stadium, you can expect the skipper to take even heavier responsibility to score. His goals will be crucial for Bolton's survival.

Decent Picks: Gary Cahill (£5.5m), Martin Petrov (£5.5m), Chris Eagles (£5.5m)

Gary Cahill has been the backbone of Bolton's defence for years. As an excellent centre-back he has been performing at a significantly higher level than his partners at the back. Regardless of where will he end up in the Premier League before the transfer window closes, he is always a good bargain.

Martin Petrov has been far from his prime at Manchester City, but he is slowly climbing back. 77 fantasy points from only 1465 minutes suggests that he can share Kevin Davies burden. If he get twice the playing time he got last season, he can be a solid fantasy prospect.

Chris Eagles had a good season with Burnley two seasons before. With Lee expected to out for whole season, the flanks is all up to him to operate.

Worth Scouting: Ivan Klasnic (£6.0m)

The "kidney fighter" will have a bigger role to show compared to last season after the departure of Elmander and Sturridge. Take note that in his first season with Bolton Klasnic scored 8 goals.

Lee Chung-Yong to Miss Next Season; Joey Barton On Transfer List

Two budget fantasy midfielders are on the headlines these two days:

Chung-Yong Lee
To miss this whole coming season after breaking his leg.

1. Chung-Yong Lee, the second-most popular Premier League Asian after Manchester United's Ji-Sung Park, is forced to miss this coming season after breaking his leg in a friendly against Newport County.

Joey Barton
On the transfer list now.

2. Joey Barton, the second-most popular budget fantasy midfielder after Charlie Adam last season, was put on the transfer list after a dispute with the club owners regarding contract extension. He is even told that he can leave on free.

We might lose both budget fantasy midfielders for this very new season. Bad news.

Gameweek 34 Fantasy Preview

Gareth Bale
PFA Player of the Year. Even Dirk Kuyt has better statistics than him on the league.

Raul Meireles
PFA Fans' Player of the Year. Well deserved.

Scott Parker
Football Writers Association Footballer of the Year. What a great year for a great leader.

Congratulations to all three of them for winning their awards respectively. This season has gone pretty far isn't it? Still, there are three horses running for the title and five clubs struggling on the quicksand of relegation. Excitements continue...

Back to this gameweek. Four more teams on a double this week, with Fulham having the best fixtures among them. Will you invest heavily on double gamers given that the top clubs are having relatively easy fixtures this week? A big gamble to be honest.

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PART I: PRE-MATCH ANALYSES

Daniel Sturridge
Can he continue his magic in this gameweek double?

Double Gamers

• Stoke City (Aston Villa @ away, Wolves @ home) - Fantasy managers won't be enjoying too much from this double with two tough opponents. The Villans had regained their long lost form and will give a hard time to Bolton at their home ground. Wolves on the other hand are still distance away from survival and will again fight their best for points. Still, start your Begovic, Huth and Etherington - they are all great in collecting fantasy points. Prediction: AST 2-0 STO, STO 1-1 WOL.
• Wolves (Fulham @ home, Stoke @ away) - Interestingly both of their opponents this week are double gamers. They should at least salvage a point at Molineux given Fulham's inability to win an away league game since 2nd of February. Stoke at away is a tricky one, but with nothing else to lose, they will fight out their best. Jarvis is the best Wolf, but those who are willing to take risk may stock Ebanks-Blake or Milijas as well. Prediction: WOL 2-1 FUL, STO 1-1 WOL.
• Fulham (Wolves @ away, Bolton @ home) - The Cottagers are quite on fire now with the return of Bobby Zamora, and it's quite possible to take four points from these two games. Dempsey and Zamora are worthy for your captain armband this week. Prediction: WOL 2-1 FUL, FUL 2-1 BOL.
• Bolton (Arsenal @ home, Fulham @ away) - First, they have neither European spots to pursue for nor relegation crisis to fight for; Second, one of their opponents is Arsenal (I know the Gunners have been quite unreliable recently, but still). Don't put too much on hope for them except for one - Daniel Sturridge! Prediction: BOL 1-2 ARS, FUL 2-1 BOL.

The Rest

• Man Utd v Everton (1-0) - The Red Devils are not as slippery the Gunners, but you never know.
• Blackpool v Newcastle (2-1) - The Magpies are quite safe. Will they lend a helping hand?
• Liverpool v Birmingham (3-0) - The Reds now have more than enough weaponries to kill any team who park their buses.
• Sunderland v Wigan (2-2) - One point from last nine games for the Black Cats. I'm quite sure they will not win this time as well.
• Tottenham v West Brom (2-0) - It's VdV's time again.
• Chelsea v West Ham (3-0) - Expect complete demolition by the Blues (if Torres doesn't start).
• Blackburn v Man City (0-1) - City needs to win to protect their Champions League spot.

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PART II: SQUAD SELECTIONS

Didier Drogba
Another scoring spree for the Ivorian?

Captain Picks

• Drogba - On his peak currently.
• Suarez - They will be plenty of opportunities for him to strike.
• Zamora/Dempsey/Sturridge - Double gamers with fantasy excellence.

Buys-In

• Drogba/Malouda - Back to their prime.
• Van der Vaart - Starts his scoring engine again.
• Dempsey/Zamora - Fantasy proven.

Sells-Out

• Man Utd players - The toughest period of their season is coming soon.

Squad of XV

GK: Schwarzer

DF: Huth, Hangeland, Luiz

MF: Malouda, Dempsey, Etherington, Van der Vaart

F: Drogba, Suarez, Zamora

Subs (in order): Begovic, Jarvis, Flanagan, Gary Cahill

Captain: Drogba

ECS: Value

Game of the Season: Arsenal 1-1 Liverpool @ Emirates

Lucas Leiva
Conceded two important fouls which helped Liverpool to equalise.

Unbelievable DRAMA.

The game didn't promise much in the first 80 minutes. But it started to get crazy after that with a van Persie's one-on-one parried by Reina, and then the longer than usual eight minute stoppage time due to Carragher's time dragging injury. Now that's where the great drama started.

96th minute. Fabregas dribbled into the box and was continuously challenged by Spearing. The ref whistled! Penalty! Van Persie took it with a great angle and power and sent Pepe Reina the wrong way. 1-0! The Dutch took off his shirt and celebrated, but he would never believe what happened next...

98th minute. Lucas was challenged on the edge of penalty box, with the ball inside the box already but not him. Just a free kick. After a long set piece preparations, Suarez fired the ball and it was well deflected by the defenders. But the story didn't end...

Lucas took the ball and tried to maintain the possession, but Eboue made a silly push on the Brazilian. A payback penalty! Kuyt again took it in the absence of Gerrard. 1-1 and the whistle signaled the end of the game! Great game!

Now some of my reflections from this game:

• A very very fantastic display from the Reds' two youthful full backs. Both John Flanagan and Jack Robinson have contained the Gunners' flanks very very well. This is indeed totally out of my expectations. Liverpool need not to worry about the future of their defence with them and Martin Kelly.
• On the other hand, the men in the middle, Skrtel and Carragher, were much more vulnerable to attacks.
• How respectable is Jamie Carragher? It was totally shown on his injury. The claps were so loud, even when it's not Anfield. Salute.
• Van Persie again showed how important he is for Arsenal to challenge for the title. Numerous golden chances he has today, only to be denied by godly Reina. Bad luck. Five pre-bonus fantasy points weren't too bad for his fantasy managers anyway.
• Another man on bad luck was Koscielny. If his attempt on the first half hit the net instead of post, things would go very differently.

Drama of the season. Do you agree?

Also featured on today was Stoke's 5-0 humiliation to Bolton in the FA Cup semifinals.

Saturday Stage

Kevin Davies (13 pts) and Elmander (13 pts)
United they FLY.

A big feast for fantasy managers as most of the fantasy key men have a point burst this weekend. Here are the highlights:

• Chelsea stumbled again. Birmingham got it right with only one shot and that made it very difficult for the away side. Don't tell me I didn't tip you about this as I even listed Foster as the first choice keeper. Well rewarded with eight points. Surprisingly, Alex started the game.
• Bolton overpowered Newcastle with both Davies and Elmander scoring two goals and one assist. The duo have been spectacular under Owen Coyle this season. With easy fixtures ahead, grabbing both of them is not a stupid choice.
• Jonathan Walters came from the bench and returned home with two goals. He may secure a starting spot in the next two to three games so continue to monitor him.
• Nani didn't reward his fantasy managers despite a 2-0 victory for Manchester United. Rooney was back for the game but didn't make enough impact for the Red Devils.
• The injury news look like a cheat as Charlie Adam played as for Blackpool as well. Varney again recorded his name on the score sheet.

Fantasy Pit Stop 1: Part Two

To start reading from PART ONE, click here.

As a reminder, for this pit stop I am going to write about:

1. Some major news/events related to the team;
2. Predicted season finish; and
3. Top three rated fantasy players along with their ratings.

The arrangement of teams will be according to current league rankings, in reverse order.

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Currently in 15th

Newcastle United

News
Ben Arfa out for six months but Nigel de Jong escapes from any FA punishments - Bad, bad tackle. Poor Ben Arfa.

Predicted Season Finish: 15th

Newcastle is a team with a rich history. It's squad isn't that rich though. The team is still backboned by the old faces like Nolan, Barton and Gutierrez, while the news faces don't have much calibre to make some big differences aside from Hatem Ben Arfa - who is currently suffered from a serious injury.

However, I don't think the team will repeat their fortune two years ago - where they were relegated. Newcastle is in a better shape now - most notably the vast improvements of Carroll. The 6-0 victory against Aston Villa doesn't have much element of fluke. They might struggle in the relegation zone for a small part of the season, but at the end they should be able to reach the shore.

Top Three Fantasy Players:

1. Andrew Carroll (8/10) - Great third striker with high potential.
2. Joey Barton (7/10) - The "bad boy" has been less violent and more effective on the pitch.
3. Kevin Nolan (6.5/10) - One of the important force in the Magpies' attack.

Honourable mention: Hatem Ben Arfa (8/10) - A very talented winger. Very unfortunate for him to be sidelined.

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Currently in 14th

Wigan Athletic

News - N/A

Predicted Season Finish: 19th

I like how Roberto Martinez implements his offensive team play, but that doesn't always work out especially against a much superior opposition. The Latics have only two victories up till now - one against the so fluctuating Tottenham and another against the poorer Wolves - none are convincing.

While they do have some great additions this season - particularly goalkeeper Al Habsi and defender Alcaraz, I don't think that will be enough for them to stay. Barring N'Zogbia, the rest of the midfielders are particularly weak in terms of Premiership standards.

As their fixtures get tougher and tougher in the final third of the season, I think Wigan will eventually collapse and the lads will meet Wolves next year in the Championship.

Top Three Fantasy Players:

1. Hugo Rodallega (7/10) - A quite productive strike force.
2. Charles N'Zogbia (7/10) - Had some furious times with the club but things should start settle and he should start performing.
3. Antolin Alcaraz (5.5/10) - One of the quality signings of Wigan this season. However, you need to be wary of the number of emphatic defeats that Wigan will face.

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Currently in 13th

Blackburn Rovers

News - N/A

Predicted Season Finish: 13th

They don't play pretty football, but it's fine as long as they get the results. Blackburn is a tough opposition no matter what team you are due to their aggressive approach in defence. They have all the chances to sneak away with points against tougher oppositions.

With a pack of quality defenders with offensive capabilities, added with some evenly matched strikers in a strong competition, I predict that the Rovers will end the season quite comfortably.

Top Three Fantasy Players:

1. Christopher Samba (7/10) - A decent defender with a decent scoring record.
2. Paul Robinson (5.5/10) - Not the best keeper in the league, but he'll give you quite an amount of saves.
3. Nikola Kalinic (5.5/10) - Has a steady start this season.

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Currently in 12th

Bolton Wanderers

News - N/A

Predicted Season Finish: 11th

Bolton might have almost the same team from last season, but still it's much better. Owen Coyle coaches the team right from start of the season, Elmander on form, Martin Petrov activating the attack... all these signs show that the club is in a good shape.

The club has all the strength to remain on the Premier League and finish with a good ranking.

Top Three Fantasy Players:

1. Johan Elmander (7.5/10) - A sudden burst of form has made him the top fantasy choice of Bolton.
2. Martin Petrov (7/10) - He's capable of doing a lot of damage from attack.
3. Kevin Davies (6.5/10) - Still the leader of Bolton with potential to grab plenty of bonus points.

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Currently in 11th

Sunderland

News - N/A

Predicted Season Finish: 9th

It's interesting to see that five out of six Premier League goals of Sunderland were from Darren Bent, with another from new signing Asamoah Gyan. But will that pose a threat for Sunderland's survival? Absolutely not.

The Black Cats is still the team who can frustrate any tougher opponents. They actually get better with the arrival of Elmohamady. The Egyptian defender is very proactive in surging forward and has become the "Glen Johnson" of the season. Combined with the usual faces like Bent and Henderson, Sunderland will enjoy their best top-flight finish over the past decade.

Top Three Fantasy Players:

1. Ahmed Elmohamady (8.5/10) - A constant threat from the back of the flank. Has been impressive so far.
2. Darren Bent (8/10) - One of the all time fantasy favourite that you should start against any opposition.
3. Jordan Henderson (7/10) - The 20-year-old midfielder is a promising gem.

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To be continued in PART THREE.

United Slipped!

Martin Petrov
He's not a City player by now, but United's fans will continue to hate him starting from today.

United had a bright chance to get close to Chelsea and get away from their rivals today, but they failed to capitalise on the advantage. Bolton 2-2 Man Utd.

Martin Petrov scored one and made one, whose performance is equalled by Nani.

A lot of managers will be frustrated to bring on Berbatov who hat-tricked last week. He's spectacular nowadays, but don't get fooled by a single game's performance - both last week's hat-trick and this week's zero.

On a later game Houllier got his debut Premier League victory thanks to Downing and Heskey.