Well, that was one mind-blowing weekend wasn’t it?
There are many questions, but here’s the 5 key ones:
1.
Are Liverpool for real?
Possibly the biggest story coming out is the amazing
win Klopp engineered at the Etihad. Speaking as a Liverpool fan, I was very
impressed with how the team worked together. The understanding between Coutinho
and Firmino was definitely something they worked hard at during the international
break, and it showed.
The question now is whether they can do it
consistently and sustain such energy throughout the season. The style looks
exciting but hell, I get exhausted just watching the amount of running they do.
From a fantasy perspective though, the City win kicks off a nice stream of
fixtures for fantasy teams to profit from Liverpool players. I got in Firmino
for the match and it paid off nicely.
Wikipedia prank after the match!
2.
Aguero or no?
Of course the one player that ended up scoring in
the Etihad for the Blues was Sergio Aguero, returning from injury to score
against Liverpool to give his team some hope.
His return from injury now leaves teams looking at
the possibility of working him into their teams. The impending return of David
Silva, Aguero’s partner in crime could really help open Manchester City’s
goal-scoring floodgates, and end their current indifferent form.
At $15m, he doesn’t come cheap though, and your
quality elsewhere might suffer trying to fit him in, not to mention his
position as a striker. Otherwise, Silva or De Bruyne would be your next best
options if you want to get at least some points due to Aguero’s return.
3.
Has Arsenal’s yearly deterioration begun?
We always hear and talk about how Arsenal start off
very well, but tend to tail off as players get injured or tired, not to the
point of relegation of course, but just enough to derail their league title
hopes. Well guess what, Arsenal's defeat against West Brom has set off the
alarm bells once again.
The loss of Coquelin resulted in such a turnaround that even the most loyal Arsenal fan would begin wondering what’s going on. It's a very taxing schedule ahead, and Wenger's stubborn refusal to buy any outfield players during the transfer window is really coming back to haunt him now. Ozil remains Arsenal’s most reliable player but he can’t do it alone, as other key players like Sanchez tire.
The loss of Coquelin resulted in such a turnaround that even the most loyal Arsenal fan would begin wondering what’s going on. It's a very taxing schedule ahead, and Wenger's stubborn refusal to buy any outfield players during the transfer window is really coming back to haunt him now. Ozil remains Arsenal’s most reliable player but he can’t do it alone, as other key players like Sanchez tire.
I find it especially annoying because I transferred
Cech in during the international break!
4.
Is Ronaldo worth the funds and striker spot?
Let's face it, barring that goal fest against
Espanyol, he hasn't justified his spot in our teams. Neymar has, and the
impending return of Messi also raises questions, especially with the ever so
valuable premium striker spots. Hell, even Higuain came off the bench and
scored, despite arriving late from Argentina. At a price of 16m, I am seriously
looking at selling Ronaldo off and buying another premium player (? See above) or
go cheap and use the extra funds to strengthen my team in other areas,
particularly the defense. It now depends
on whether or not Benitez stays, whose strategy and tactics to me is the key
reason why Ronaldo is not performing. If news says Benitez is staying, then
Ronaldo’s off my team.
Finally,
5.
When will Vardy stop scoring?
I humbly admit that I’m
consistently wrong about Vardy, thinking each gameweek that this is the week
his run comes to an end, preferring to stick with his reliable mate Mahrez. As
such, Vardy always fails to join my line up (probably why I’m still stuck in
the 200+ ranks) despite his cheap as chips price. I’m starting to think the
only way Vardy will stop scoring is if I actually do pick him up.
(Vardy-keepers beware!). He’s also so budget friendly you could stick GST on
him and it wouldn’t matter one bit.
That’s it for the
highlights. Elsewhere, we’ve got Kane and Lukaku on a hot run of form, Chelsea
finally winning and West Ham coming apart. It’s certainly an entertaining
league with lots of surprises!
Next up is the midweek
Champions League and Europa League matches, where no doubt more player injuries
will be on the horizon. See you next time!
No comments:
Post a Comment