Newcastle's Steven Taylor will likely play every week
In your regular life outside of fantasy football, you probably find those who have been recently promoted rather annoying and smug. But in the fantasy world, you need to make friends with them and bring them on to your side.
On paper, the three newly-promoted squads may look like the Premier League equivalent of the kids who always got picked last on the playground pitch. But in reality, even if the teams are getting beat up on a weekly basis in real life, Newcastle, West Bromwich Albion, and Blackpool all have players that are affordable — that will play every week — and that will even chip in points on occasion.
You want the grinders that will earn points on the cheap so you can afford the big stars. What you are looking for is someone who will give you the performances we saw last year from Wolves defender Jody Craddock – Birmingham’s Lee Bowyer — or Joe Hart, who shone in goal for Birmingham while on loan from Manchester City.
Anybody can pick Steven Gerrard or Wayne Rooney. But it takes skill and guts to pick up and start the right players from the newly promoted
squads. Here are some players worth considering…
Goalkeepers:
This is a risky proposition… but it should be noted that after only two weeks, all three keepers from the promoted sides have one clean sheet. Sure, two of the three also let in six goals in their other game (eep!)… but let’s focus on the clean sheets.
Newcastle’s Steven Harper is a quality premier league goalie and with his team likely poised to avoid relegation, he is the pick of this group.
Scott Carson: Man of Constant Sorrow? Or Points?
That said, I also like West Brom’s Scott Carson. He has Premier League experience, comes at a very low price, and is guaranteed to face a lot of shots. He may not get many clean sheets, but in most games, he will get you a bonus point for making three saves. And he’s already played his road game against Chelsea so you don’t have to worry about that fixture.
I would avoid Blackpool’s Matthew Gilks. I just don’t trust that Blackpool are going to have the kind of success their drubbing of Wigan in Week One would suggest.
Defenders:
Again, assuming Newcastle have a strong season, you can count on Fabricio
Coloccini being a constant presence along their back four. You can’t miss him, he’s the one with the huge mane of curly hair.
Jonas Olsson had a pair of goals and lots of playing time during West Brom’s last season in the Premier League two years ago.
Catchart traded Devil Red for Tangerine
And if you want to take a chance on a real cheap player, there is the rock bottom price for Craig Cathcart of Blackpool. I do think Blackpool will concede the most goals in the league this year, but Cathcart spent years training with Manchester United. Though he played very little with the Red Devils, he has played every minute of this young season with Blackpool.
Midfielders:
I have sung his praises in previous columns — and it has yet to pay off — but Chris Brunt of West Brom is a pleasure to watch. He signalled his intentions last weekend with a long range strike that was only kept from the highlight reel by the woodwork. He’s the most expensive player you can buy from West Brom — but still very cheap when compared to quality midfielders on other teams.
Barton: Solid tash, solid points earner
With two goals last week, Kevin Nolan is off to a strong start for Newcastle. The Magpies boast a solid midfield that also includes Joey Barton and Jonas Gutierrez. Barton scored a highlight reel goal last weekend, and there’s every reason to think we could see more of the same from him. Jonas is more of a grinder but does get a ton of playing time.
Strikers:
I don’t really trust any of West Brom’s strikers to score a lot of fantasy points and I still don’t know what to make of Blackpool’s Marlon Harewood. He’s puzzling. He’s kicked around on a few different teams in the Premier and Championship leagues over the past few seasons, but his two goals in Week One showed he could prove himself as a player who belongs in the top flight. At this point he is still a bit of a risk… but at least he’s a cheap one.
The cream of this crop is Newcastle’s Andrew Carroll. I feel a bit stupid on this one, because I gave strong consideration to putting him on my team based on his strong numbers in the Championship last season. But I didn’t do it, fearing what I’ve seen from other strikers who have flopped in the Premier League after good Championship seasons (Sylvan Ebanks-Blake for example). Nothing like a hat trick to boost your confidence though, and with his performance last week I think Carroll will continue to have a fine campaign.
And not to gloat but…
I selected five players for you to consider last week and four had huge weeks. Didier Drogba, Florent Malouda, Gareth Bale, and Joe Hart all
put up big numbers. Only Marlon Harewood was a bust.
This week with Chelsea at home to Stoke City, you still can’t go wrong with Malouda or Drogba. Fulham’s David Stockdale may be a fine bargain — he is on the road in net against Blackpool. The only risk with him is whether Mark Schwarzer returns to his starting role, but rumours persist that he will be transferred to Arsenal.
Speaking of the Gooners, Theo Walcott is looking good after his hat trick last week. His price is rising and now may be the time to pick him up while it’s still reasonable.
Scott Ferguson
