Kick-Off: Gameweek 1 Fantasy Preview

The dream partnership.

I am sure sports lovers have undergone a great summer with Euro 2012 and London 2012 Olympics around. But nothing brings excitement and passion as much as Premier League action and managing your own Premier League team at Fantasy Premier League! And here we go, the gameweek 1 of 2012/13 Premier League season! Live up the game!

In case you have no idea on how to play the game or improve your game, feel free to read FPLZ 2012/13 Fantasy Season Preview Series by clicking this link.

FEATURED: Manchester United v Everton @ Goodison Park
Great season opener awaits as league runners-up Manchester United set to travel to Liverpool with a new striker in the name of Robin Van Persie (£13.0m).

The Dutch is set to start with Wayne Rooney (£12.0m) and form possibly the best strike partnership in earth's history. It remains unknown though whether the team-up will flourish both in reality and fantasy or falter.

There are other things to unveil for fantasy managers in this game as well, such as Shinji Kagawa's role in the team, Sir Alex Ferguson's favourite defensive line-up for the season and the complicated battle between the wingers of United. Big questions to answer.

The Red Devils should have no trouble to win though.

Prediction: MUN 3-1 EVE

TEAM FOCUS: Chelsea and Reading's DGW (Double Gameweek)
Interestingly the double gameweek this season begins so early - at gameweek 1 itself! Chelsea and Reading will play twice each, but of course emphasis will be placed on the defending UEFA Champions League Champion who have done so many big moves this summer.

Fernando Torres (£10.0m) will surely grab the spotlight - he is the Blue's most senior and experienced striker currently and has found some good form since the end of last season. He scored in the Community Shield against Manchester City, which may give more reason to fantasy managers to land him in their line-up.

Getting Chelsea midfielders which consist of Eden Hazard (£9.5m), Juan Mata (£9.5m), Frank Lampard (£9.0m), Ramires (£7.0m), Oscar (£8.5m) and more is a pretty risky move right now - Roberto Di Matteo needs more time to conduct his experiment after landing so many new players. The defenders, on the other hand, are more reliable in my opinion so landing Ashley Cole (£6.5m) into your team can be a good choice.

As for new boys Reading, Pavel Pogrebnyak (£5.0m) represents a great investment. The Russian has been doing pretty well in the Royals' pre-season, so fantasy managers can consider giving him a shot. You can consider getting Danny Guthrie (£4.5m) in too with his very affordable price.

It can be very risky to put all eggs into Chelsea and Reading's basket, but you can always use your wildcard to tweak your team if things go badly.

Prediction: WIG 1-2 CHE; RDG 1-1 STO; CHE 2-0 RDG

PLAYER FOCUS: Aguero and Silva
It's only gameweek 1 and pre-season is hardly an accurate indicator, so let's just focus on fantasy-proven players.

It's hard to keep your eye away from Sergio Aguero (£11.5m) and David Silva (£10.0m) as they are facing new boys Southampton this week. Aguero is one of the top fantasy forwards last season with 23 league goals last season, while Silva is one of the most consistent fantasy player I  have ever seen in my career as a fantasy manager. Both are reliable, if not great, fantasy picks.

I also like the prospect of new Arsenal ace Lukas Podolski (£8.5m) at home against Sunderland and Fulham new signing Mladen Petric (£6.0m) at home against Norwich, but it's always risky to pick new fantasy players without any Premier League exposure before.

STATUS UPDATES

• Joe Hart (£7.0m): Back injury (75% playing).
• Phil Jones (£6.0m): Back injury (short-term).
• Laurent Koscielny (£5.5m): Calf injury (short-term).
• Clint Dempsey (£9.5m): On the verge of transfer (short-term).
• Yohan Cabaye (£7.0m): Lack of match fitness (75% playing).
• Demba Ba (£7.5m):  Lack of match fitness (75% playing).
• Bobby Zamora (£6.0m): Knee injury (50% playing).
• Theo Walcott (£9.0m): Thigh injury (75% playing).
• Stephane Sessegnon (£8.0m): Ankle injury (75% playing).

GAMEWEEK 1 DREAM TEAM

Hart

Vermaelen — Hangeland  — A Cole

Silva — Guthrie — Nolan — Mata

Pogrebnyak — Torres (C) — Aguero (VC)

Subs: Jaaskelainen — Allen — McCartney — Fabio

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FPLZ 2012/13 Season Preview: The Promoters

The Promoters: Reading, Southampton and West Ham

The promoters with their new kit this season.
From left: Mikele Leigertwood (Reading), Rickie Lambert (Southampton) and Kevin Nolan (West Ham).

Overview

It's good to see them back, honestly. Reading, Southampton and West Ham are all old brands in English football and have large fan bases. Southampton fans will be extremely happy after being away from Premier League since 2005.

Survival will definitely be their primary objective this season, but it is hard to see the likelihood of each of them so survive with so many new faces around, though West Ham are still mainly composed by old faces such as Kevin Nolan, Mark Noble and Carlton Cole.

Reading: Pogrebnyak, Le Fondre, McAnuff, Guthrie
Reading have acquired some interesting players this summer, and one of them is Pavel Pogrebnyak (£5.0m). The Russian joined Fulham last season and recorded an astonishing record of 6 goals in just 943 minutes of action. With his ridiculously low price of £5.0m, he is definitely a steal.

Adam Le Fondre (£5.0m) is Pogrebnyak's partner upfront, and was the key in bringing Reading back to the top-flight league with 12 goals last season. A value for money forward, though I believe he is more susceptible to rotation especially when Brian McDermott decides to play 4-5-1, since Pogrebnyak is a more natural lone striker.

Jobi McAnuff (£5.5m) is another key man who brings the Royals to the premiership this season, contributing 5 goals and 11 assists in the process. His price seems a little bit pricier than his Pogrebnyak and Le Fondre when their fantasy value seems similar, though he is the best Reading midfielder to get in my opinion.

Danny Guthrie (£4.5m) did not get a lot of playing time at Newcastle, but I think he will get it at Madejski Stadium. Though not flashy, the midfielder is dependable, and can deliver goals and assists occasionally. A good choice as your fifth midfielder.

Southampton: Lambert, Lallana, Clyne

Scoring 25 goals last season, Rickie Lambert (£6.0m) is the ace of the Saints, and has scored 78 goals in 132 appearances for Southampton. The lad has great physical build and exceptional penalty taking ability (he still has 100% record with the club), so one would expect him to deliver some good value from his price.

Adam Lallana (£6.0m) is the second most important man behind Lambert for Southampton's return to the Premier League, recording 11 goals and 10 assists. Nothing too impressive, but a good figure nonetheless, although his £6.0m valuation doesn't seem like a good bargain compared to Lambert who is valued at the same price.

Named as a member in League Championship 2011/12 Team of the Year, Nathaniel Clyne (£4.0m) has shown great talents in the age of just 21. Though he has no great goal and assist statistics, but he is still very young, and the price of £4.0m fits perfectly as your fifth defender.

West Ham: Nolan, Vaz Te, Noble, McCartney, Maiga, Cole
We have a lot of old-time fantasy favourites at West Ham. Kevin Nolan (£6.0m) hit his prime when he was Newcastle, and was then bought by West Ham, which relegated during the time. Nolan is a great attacking midfielder - 12 goals last season at the Championship shows that.

Ricardo Vaz Te (£5.5m) has shown great efficiency last season, scoring 12 goals in just 18 appearances for the club. A good budget forward to get, though he threatens to quit the club should the right offer comes as he is unsatisfied with his wage.

Mark Noble (£5.0m) is a good candidate for 5th midfielder, with a track record of 8 goals and 9 assists last season. He played consistently under Sam Allardyce last season, you need not to worry about him rotting in the bench.

The Hammers acquired the service of George McCartney (£4.0m) this summer, and you can acquire his service too at a bargain price of £4.0m. One of the best £4.0m defender you can get in FPL this season.

Forward Modibo Maiga (£5.5m) is another man that Big Sam landed this summer. The forward has a decent track record at Sochaux (24 goals in 59 appearances), you one would expect him to challenge for the forward spot at Boleyn Ground.

Carlton Cole (£5.5m) is an old name in fantasy, and has a decent goal record, though not really impressive. His playing minutes is hindering him from getting good fantasy scores, but to include him in your fantasy team can be beneficial when the time is right.

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