Kick-Off: Gameweek 38 Fantasy Preview

It's all about good news for Frank Lampard (£8.4m, 14 pts) as he becomes Chelsea's all-time top scorer, wins Europa League and signs a contract extension over the week.

A lot has happened since my absence, so let's just have a brief summary:

• A year of retirements. Sir Alex Ferguson is to end his coaching career with yet another Premier League title. King of all coaches.
• David Moyes' chance to shine with a big club finally arrives as he is appointed to be the successor of SAF. Huge pressure after all that has been achieved by the Red Devils over the past 20+ years, but I am pretty sure that the current Everton coach will be able to cope with that.
• Also retiring are Paul Scholes and David Beckham, two of the United's famous five. Ryan Giggs is looking to emulate Teddy Sheringham though, let's see how far can he go yet.
• Jamie Carragher will also quit his playing career after this Sunday. You can hardly find any player more loyal than him these days. Salute.
• Manchester City crashed out of FA Cup final after a defeat to Wigan, though the Latics can't be happy neither with their relegation confirmed just days before. How often do your see an FA Cup winner being relegated?
• Chelsea won the Europa League final with a stoppage time winner. The first club with both Champions League and Europa League title in hand at the same time (CL title will only be passed to one of the two German clubs next week after the final).
• Frank Lampard couldn't be more happy with his record breaking goals last gameweek plus a one year contract extension.

After all these news attack, let's begin our finale, then.

FEATURED: Newcastle v Arsenal @ Sports Direct Arena
The battle for fourth is the only remaining piece of puzzle this season, so let's see how the incumbent fourth place holder defends their position.

After going through all the troubles and turbulence, Arsenal now sit on fourth — holding the ticket to Champions League qualification — leading with only a point. Their fate is on their hands now — a win will permit them to participate in the European top-flight competition for another season.

And thus, they have all the reason to go all out. Santi Cazorla (£9.6, 16 pts) is the first player to contribute 4 assists in a single game this season after such a masterful performance which sent Wigan down to Championship. Lukas Podolski (£8.2m, 13 pts) was no mediocre either, scoring 2 goals for the first time in a single game for the Gunners. Adding in the ever consistent Theo Walcott (£9.2m, 8 pts), the trio are the must picks for this gameweek.

The Magpies have little to fight for except to improve their ranking and their share of prizes, neither do they have any deep rivalry with Arsenal. Incumbent fourth remains the incumbent, I think.

Prediction: NEW 1-2 ARS

TEAM FOCUS: Liverpool
Queens Park Rangers will be hoping for a sweet goodbye from the Premier League, but I don't think Liverpool will be showing them any mercy.

Luis Suarez-less Liverpool has become a tougher team to guard — which makes sense as the marking the Uruguayan is equivalent to stopping the whole team when he's around. Daniel Sturridge (£7.4m, 17 pts) has been a beast in his absence, producing his first hat-trick for Liverpool in the last game.

Phillipe Coutinho (£7.0m, 9 pts) has been magical with his passes, and I truly expect the duo to become the big pillars of the team in the next few years to come.

Big win to end the not so big season for the Reds.

Prediction: LIV 5-0 QPR

PLAYER FOCUS: Bale
He is the one who have all the reason to go full throttle, so let's cast your captain armband to the PFA Player and Young Player of the year, Gareth Bale (£11.0m, 2 pts).

GAMEWEEK 38 DREAM TEAM

Reina

Luiz — Dawson — Zabaleta

Bale (C) — Coutinho — Cazorla — Yaya Toure

Sturridge (VC) — Podolski — Adebayor

Subs: Jaaskelainen — Michu — Demel — Rangel

Can't wait to get more? Like FPLZ official Facebook page to get the latest updates regularly!

FPLZ 2012/13 Season Preview: Manchester United F.C.

Manchester United F.C.

Manchester United players wearing the famous "picnic kit".

You can download the full analyzed squad data here.

Password: http://p-fplz.blogspot.com/

Last Season: Close But Not Enough
So Sir Alex Ferguson almost made a miracle by taking one of his weakest United to almost win the Premier League title. It was only almost though, as the Red Devils somehow stumbled their 8-point lead over local rivals Manchester City during the last few matches of Premier League last season, as their central midfield crisis penalized them.

This Summer: An Asian for An Asian
The Red Devils acquired yet another Asian after landing Shinji Kagawa from Borussia Dortmund in their attempt to further dominate the Asian market. Nonetheless, Park Ji-Sung was picked up by QPR soon enough, and the count of Asians in Manchester United remains to be one.

Nick Powell is the only other signing that arrived at Old Trafford, while Tomasz Kuszczak, Michael Owen, Ritchie De Laet and Paul Pogba are all leaving. Fabio da Silva meanwhile has parted way with his twin brother to join QPR on loan.

Upcoming Season: The Charge for 20th
Manchester United continue to be one of the favourites to win the Premier League title, especially when they have gotten themselves a world class midfielder which they have wanted for a long time. They will still be Manchester City's biggest obstacle to become the champion once more in my opinion.

Rooney's stats last
season.

Key Man: Rooney (FI: 0.778)
Hail Wazza Roo. Despite not winning the Premiership, Wayne Rooney (£12.0m) has recorded his best Premier League season so far, scoring 27 goals. It was also his best fantasy season as well, though it is only 6 points better than his previous best (2009/10).

With 230 points already it is hard to expect him to break the record again this term. Nonetheless, with United's rock solid offensive lineup which is now further enhanced with Kagawa's arrival, to match last year's standard of performance is a reasonable expectation on the English ace. Van Persie's possibility of joining Manchester United may hurt his fantasy points though.

Complicated Battle: Nani (FI: 0.617), Valencia (FI: 0.631), Young (FI: 0.528)

The Red Devils' wingers in comparison.

Manchester United has the best wingers across the Premier League, but that is not really a good news in fantasy terms - they have three equally excellent players competing for two spots!

Luis Nani (£9.0m), Antonio Valencia (£9.0m) and Ashley Young (£8.5m) represent the sweetest dilemma for Sir Alex Ferguson, but my advice for fantasy managers is simple - stay away. Unless any of them starts consistently, it is really not a wise decision to fund about 9% of your initial £100.0m transfer kitty on a player that you are not even certain that he will start.

Good Potential: Kagawa (FI: N/A)
The next Asian football legend is here at Old Trafford, and I see no reason why he cannot achieve success at Manchester.

Shinji Kagawa (£8.5m) is bought to resolve the lack of creativity in midfield and thus fantasy managers can expect him to be one of the Red Devils' focal points in offence. It might be a tough journey for him initially, but once he click with his new teammates he really has a huge fantasy potential.

Nonetheless, rotation might be an issue for him as well, with Danny Welbeck (£8.5m) and Javier Hernandez (£8.0m) both allowing Fergie to line a 4-4-2 formation instead of playing Kagawa in the hole.

Can't wait to get more? Like FPLZ official Facebook page to get the latest updates regularly!

Fergie's Golden 25: Gameweek 11 Fantasy Review

Sir Alex Ferguson with his record 25 years of excellence. Well rewarded with a Sir Alex Ferguson Stand.

Manchester United 1-0 Sunderland
MUN: Yet another mediocre display by the Red Devils, but three points, again. Good enough to celebrate Ferguson's 25 year anniversary at Old Trafford anyway.

Lack of confidence is the situation that perfectly describes Fergie's team right now, just give them some time and they will bounce back.

SUN: Not surprising to see them struggling upfront yet again. Brown was generous enough to present his ex-manager a big gift. It should be yet another mid table finish for them, despite constant investments into the team.

Watch: Nani


Newcastle 2-1 Everton
NEW: Another good victory to make sure that they are still third place on the league. The first goal was rather lucky, but Ryan Taylor's fantastic strike was a perfect piece of beauty, both the trajectory and power of the shot.

Defensively it's still solid, but that should be the end anyway with Manchester City, Manchester United and Chelsea coming up next.

EVE: The same old story about finishing ability. Tim Cahill was far from his best in goal poaching form, and Saha was never sharp enough to score frequently.

Maybe an ala Chicharito forward is what Moyes needs in January.

Drop: NEW defence


Arsenal 3-0 West Brom
ARS: The Gunners surely are on full throttle now with their fourth consecutive league victory. Van Persie's greatness is certainly unmatched across the league. A must have at this stage given the easy fixtures ahead despite such scary price.

Vermaelen provided a strong return with a goal, a clean sheet and 3 points bonus. Still, wait and see if he can reorganise the defence and continue his strong presence in attack as well. Great potential as always.

WBA: Another painful defeat. Continue to play over defensively against stronger teams. Stay away at the moment.

Pick: Van Persie, Gervinho
Watch: Arteta, Brunt, Odemwingie


Aston Villa 3-2 Norwich
AST: Agbonlahor continues to terrorise defences as he provided 1 goal, 2 assist performance at Villa park. Undisputed form especially in fantasy at such low price.

Darren Bent scored two, but I don't see the value in him when Agbonlahor is cheaper and more consistent. Unless you are planning to get both of them.

NOR: Holt has finally found his old self as he continues his pivotal performance with 2 assists. Great hope for survival if he can maintain such form.

Pick: Agbonlahor
Watch: Holt, Bent


Blackburn 0-1 Chelsea
BLA: Constructed the game well but finishing is really an issue. Will need to seriously get a decent goal poacher in the winter transfer market.

CHE: Lampard scored a crucial goal for them. He is surely returning with his form but whether he can hit 10 goals again this season is still a big riddle.

Torres was very disappointing with another open goal miss.

Watch: Lampard
Drop: BLA players


Liverpool 0-0 Swansea
LIV: Their fantastic 'shot on frame' form continues as Carroll made it the eleventh time for them to hit the crossbar and post this season in a clear cut chance. Wasted.

The old problem to score goals persist and remains a big headache for Kenny Dalglish. Stay away from their attackers.

Reina need to work out much more than usual in this game to hold the team goalless. Good news for Enrique owners anyway.

NOR: Vorm made a spectacular save against Glen Johnson's hi-speed volley. Incredible shot, but even better save. Marvellous fantasy keeper.

Pick: Vorm, Enrique
Drop: LIV offence


QPR 2-3 Manchester City
QPR: Strong fighting spirit. Jay Bothroyd was magnificent and should become the focal point for Neil Warnock's team to attack. Watch him.

MCI: Tough game due to Champions League fatigue, but won eventually. Silva remains a hot commodity, playing the most minutes among the productive attackers.

Savic looked very shaky at the back, but thankfully Kompany should return the next game.

Pick: Bothroyd, Silva


Wolves 3-1 Wigan
WOL: It's all about Jamie O'Hara. He has created lots of troubles to Wigan's defence. Superb.

WIG: Al-Habsi was busy throughout the game with several double saves but being attacked continuously it's impossible to keep the goal clean.

Pick: O'Hara
Watch: Al-Habsi


Bolton 5-0 Stoke City
BOL: Sweet revenge as the early referee dispute surely helped them a lot. Eagles and Klasnic as usual are the strong bargains upfront.

STO: Begovic never really recovered from the early shockingly unfair goal.

Pick: Eagles, Klasnic


Fulham 1-3 Tottenham
FUL: Pretty unlucky as they face a very formidable Brad Friedel on that day.

TOT: Bale continued his form surprisingly with one goal and one assist. Solid.

The most impressive one is of course the 40-year-old stopper, Friedel, who made several key saves to ensure Spurs' victory.

Watch: Bale

Gameweek 35 Fantasy Preview

Wayne Rooney
Wazza on fire.

Congratulations to Manchester United to step one of their feet into the Champions League finale after a 2-0 away win at Gelsenkirchen against Schalke. Despite Neuer's godlike performance, Die Knappen were unable to stop Rooney's fantastic performance. Thumbs up.

On the other hand, Messi outstanding performance outshone the whole team of Real Madrid, only to be shadowed by *you know who* ridiculously exaggerated post-tackle actings. Pepe's sent off was unjustified honestly. Still, Barca deserved the victory and it's like a mission impossible now to Jose Mourinho.

Now, let's depart away from UEFA Champions League and step into the world of Barclays Premier League as the season reaching its finale...

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PART I: PRE-MATCH ANALYSES

Arsene Wenger
"Should I help Man Utd or Chelsea?"

Arsenal v Manchester United
All the rest of Premier League fans except the Red Devils' will hope Arsenal to defeat Manchester United to make the Premier League challenge more interesting.

The Red Devils are only one step away from the title. Should they beat the Gunners, it's only the matter of time to get their 19th. With Champions League final almost in Ferguson's grasp, it's likely that the Scot will deploy his best squad to face Wenger's.

On the other hand, the Gunners had hardly something to cheer for, after losing eight points from the last Premier League games. Defence has been a constant problem for the London club as they conceded so many silly goals. That's the reason why Arsenal has collapsed once again in the final part of the season in my opinion.

Things should go pretty even this time given Arsenal's all-time low morale and Manchester United's stamina disadvantages. I should be pretty narrow, and I'll vote for a draw as it's enough to satisfy Sir Alex Ferguson in pursuing United's 19th glory.

Prediction: Arsenal 2-2 Manchester United

Fernando Torres and Didier Drogba
Both to start together?

Chelsea v Tottenham Hotspur
There are fighting for different reason, but they will fight with the same thirst.

All of a sudden the Blues are now only six points from leader Manchester United, and should the Red Devils lost at Emirates Stadium, Chelsea will have all the chance to surpass them on the week after.

On the other hand, Tottenham still has the chance to qualify for Champions League for another year. But more importantly, they will have to defend their fifth place against Liverpool for Europa qualification.

Torres and Drogba may join forces but their effectiveness when combined together remains a question. But since the former has broken his duck and the latter is on his prime, there should be no problem for Chelsea's offence especially when there are also in form Lampard, Kalou and Malouda on service.

Meanwhile, Tottenham continues its horrible form, finding themselves only one win from last six. Another draw or defeat will give them extreme pressure from Liverpool, especially when Spurs have fixtures disadvantages.

It's an intense London derby, but at Stamford Bridge, I can hardly believe Redknapp to outmuscle Ancelotti...

Prediction: Chelsea 3-0 Tottenham

The Rest

• Blackburn v Bolton (1-1) - The former has more reason to fight on.
• Blackpool v Stoke City (2-0) - Will Mr Charlie Adam finally create something spectacular? I will have to have faith on him.
• Sunderland v Fulham (1-1) - Both are safe, so results do not matter much to them.
• West Brom v Aston Villa (2-1) - My vote goes to Roy Hodgson and Odemwingie who's on much better form than Hollier-less Villa.
• Wigan v Everton (2-2) - Wigan are really pathetic throughout the season. Not much of confidence on them.
• Birmingham v Wolves (2-1) - It will be interesting to see whether the Wolves are hungry enough to bite the Brums.
• Liverpool v Newcastle (3-0) - Fantasy game of the week. Captain Suarez or Kuyt.
• Man City v West Ham (2-1) - Premier League survival quest looks hopeless for Avram Grant.

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PART II: SQUAD SELECTIONS

Luis Suarez
Will lady luck finally give him the permission to score a double digit fantasy score?

Captain Picks

• Suarez/Kuyt - Newcastle are known to be awful on the road.
• Drogba - Tottenham don't have good defence to stop him.
• Odemwingie - If you are adventurous enough.

Buys-In

• Kuyt - Seriously on form, seriously underrated by me before.
• Odemwingie - The remaining fixtures are quite easy.

Squad of XV

GK: Hart

DF: Flanagan, Luiz, R Johnson

MF: Kuyt, Lampard, Adam, Silva

F: Suarez, Drogba, Odemwingie

Subs (in order): Foster, Sessegnon, Tamas, Samba

Five Match Ban for Fergie

Sir Alex Ferguson
Things are not going well for him currently.

The FA has officially sentenced a five-match ban for Sir Alex Ferguson for his misconduct after the match against Chelsea.

This may cause some performance degradation for United's fantasy players. After all, he is the only reason why United is still a dominant Premier League force when the squad now is much more inferior than the Red Devils five years ago.

Halt your United's fantasy purchases, for now.

Three Gone, One Remaining for Gunners

Fabio da Silva
Starts to show his value just like his twin brother.

Arsenal lost their third title hopes after losing 0-2 to Manchester United at Old Trafford.

This will be another big psychological blow to the Gunners after the defeat against Barcelona at Nou Camp in which they had zero shot attempts.

To add the agony, Johan Djourou dislocated his shoulder in final minutes and that will rule him out for the rest of the season.

You have so salute Sir Alex Ferguson. With seven defenders on field, he was able to destroy Wenger's title ambition.

Let's see which side will collapse in the final quarter of the Premier League season.

Dalglish's Nightmare Debut

Kenny Dalglish
No luck for him for his first game in charge.

It turned out to be a disaster for the new Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish as his side crashed out of FA Cup due to some controversial judgements.

Manchester United grabbed the lead in as early as 2 minutes after Berbatov's cheap dive was cheaply awarded a penalty by the one who we call United's lucky star, Howard Webb. Great decision by England's so called best referee.

Manchester United had more to celebrate with Steven Gerrard tackled Darren Fletcher two-footedly in 33rd minute. It effectively sentenced a death to Dalglish's debut game as the Reds' manager.

But still Liverpool were able to fight their best to at least prevent any more leakage at the back and the display by the players were obviously better than Roy Hodgson's era. A sign of relief to the fans.

Man Utd 1-0 Liverpool, but the battle between Dalglish and Ferguson was certainly a draw. Two exciting old men.