Week 7

All, this is my week 7 team.

Quick analysis on my team:

Green: Home match and fulham is without Dembele and Zamora
Bale: Point Shooter
Salcido: Attacking role
Kompany: even not get a CS, he will get a good points
VDV: SK
Malouda: I need at least 1 Chelsea player in my team. He the one.
Adam: Point shooter even own goal
N'zogbia: decent match against wolves
Obinna: On fire, sure score
Odem: On fire, sure score
K.Jones: only him can score for stoke.

I need your opinion which combination is good:

1) Nzogbia+Jones
2) Etherington+ Rodalega

Any comments and suggestions are really appreciated.

Thanks.

Week 5: Berbatov Crash Liverpool

At the end of last season, Dimitar Berbatov cut a dejected figure at Old Trafford. But a display of aerial prowess and, at times, sheer genius, has turned the Bulgarian into an indispensible asset to Manchester United’s title challenge

The striker was subbed with three minutes to go, and the standing ovation was a token of how the fans have finally warmed to a player who initially showed little work rate and desire to influence the game in the same fashion he had done at Tottenham Hotspur.

Being devoid of grit and determination has never been tolerated among the Stretford End faithful, and the Bulgarian was on thin ice, particularly as his ethic was compared with the dogged mentality of Wayne Rooney and Carlos Tevez, the latter whom Ferguson decided to sell to give Berbatov a more prominent role within the side.

But this season the striker has emerged as a vital part of the Premier League title challenge. And it was the Bulgarian who rescued United from squandering another two-goal advantage.

Roy Hodgson’s intent was to stifle United’s midfield, in a similar fashion to that of Rangers during their visit to Old Trafford on Tuesday evening. But Ferguson’s side started brightly and nullified a packed engine room by using their quality in wide areas.

After an initial ten-minute spell in which the visitors sustained heavy pressure from a United attack that was still reeling from being starved of goalscoring opportunities in midweek, Liverpool enjoyed comfortable spells in possession.

The home side used the greasy surface to create the best chance of the half. A slick interchange between Wayne Rooney and Berbatov eventually fed Nani, but the winger cut inside instead of shooting and having been given a second opportunity, the Portugal international screwed his effort wide.

The spirit of the tie appeared to reflect the amicable terms held between both managers. The fixture did not have the same build up as last term. The war of words involving Liverpool’s previous boss Rafael Benitez and Ferguson contributed to the intensity of the encounter. An affable Hodgson was a factor in keeping hostilities to a minimum and as a result, the game lacked the heated challenges of old.

What Ferguson and Hodgson have shared over the past few weeks is a problematic striker. For the hosts, Rooney’s extra-curricular allegations resulted in him being omitted from the side that drew with Everton last Saturday, and although the United manager insisted he made the correct choice in leaving out his number-one forward, the presence of Rooney was missed.

The England international was uncharacteristically subdued in the first half, although he received little of the ball, Rooney’s general linkup play wasn’t at its best and that was partly down to the rugged defending of Martin Skrtel, who ensured he clung onto his opposite number at every possible occasion.

For Hodgson, his headache has been the form of Fernando Torres. The Spaniard was as equally restrained in the opening 45, and despite the Liverpool manager insisting his fitness is still not at its peak, the striker’s lack of work-rate and energy made life easy for Nermanja Vidic, who typically has a torrid time in this fixture.

The opening half lacked clear-cut chances, and Liverpool had particular difficulty in feeding the ball to Torres, who equally had problems in finding opportunities due to the lack of support.

United took the lead three minutes before half-time through a Berbatov header. A Ryan Giggs corner was swept in and Torres wasn’t the correct side of the Bulgarian and subsequently allowed the striker to expertly place the ball into the corner past a sprawling.

The Berbanator | Bulgarian’s stunning hat-trick destroys Liverpool’s fight back

The hosts started the second half with a similar attacking verve and Berbatov had the opportunity to put his side two in front five minutes after resuming as he latched on to a deflected Darren Fletcher strike, but Reina read the situation and managed to get to the ball a split-second quicker than the Bulgarian.

Liverpool have proved in their opening games they are still heavily reliant on the drive of their captain Steven Gerrard. The dynamic midfielder struggled to make an impact on the game and his surrounding team-mates, the majority of whom are new signings, also failed to make sufficient inroads against United’s slick passing through the middle.

Berbatov added a second on 58 minutes and the Bulgarian’s first touch and subsequent finish showed why Ferguson decided to part with so much money for his services. Following another pinpoint cross from Nani, Berbatov appeared to control the ball with his knee and finish with his back to goal in one fluid movement. Reina could only watch as the ball sailed in off the bar and gave an early contender for goal of the season.

Four minutes later, Johnny Evans handed the visitors a lifeline after bringing down Torres in the area. Referee Howard Webb showed no hesitation in pointing to the spot and booking the Northern Ireland international. Gerrard sent Edwin van der Sar, who had been an observer up until that point, and brought his side back into the contest.

Liverpool needed their captain to get them back on level terms and United could have counted themselves fortunate John O’Shea only saw yellow for hauling down Torres just outside the box when he was last man. Fletcher was at fault for spitting from the wall in the resultant free-kick, and Gerrard slipped the ball through the gap to even the tie.

But six minutes from time Berbatov completed his hat-trick by exhibiting a final display of aerial prowess as he met O’Shea’s cross with a towering leap over Jamie Carragher and his header left Reina with little chance. And the Bulgarian finally secured his place in the hearts of the Old Trafford faithful.


Source From: Goal.com

Week 6

Dear All Fantasist,

Quick analysis on my team:

Draft 1

Foster: easy game
Bale: Sk
Hutton: Easy game+Great performance at week 5
Salcido: Great Player and play attacking role
Malouda: Against Man city and he sure play
Adam: SK
Pennant: SK but waiting his injury status
VDV: SK
Ben Arfa: thinking to swap with Barton
Drogba: SK
Chamakh: Easy games+ Van persie injured.

Draft 2

Harper: i'll drop him to Foster, but i need to downgrade others
Bale: Sk
Hutton: Easy game+Great performance at week 5
Salcido: Great Player and play attacking role
Malouda: Against Man city and he sure play
Pennant: I'll drop him to HLEB
VDV: SK
Ben Arfa: thinking to swap with Barton
Drogba: SK
Chamakh: Easy games+ Van persie injured.
Berbatov: his on fire now!!

Any comments and suggestions are really appreciated.

Thanks

Week 4: Last minute Tragedy

Everton 3-3 Manchester United

Manchester United were held to a thrilling 3-3 draw by Everton at Goodison Park with the Toffees grabbing two injury time goals to secure the draw and with Wayne Rooney nowhere to be seen.

Sir Alex Ferguson surprisingly left out the England striker, despite saying on Friday that he would play; with the United boss not willing to risk the England front-man in front of his former club’s fans. While Everton manager David Moyes left Jermaine Beckford on the bench with Tim Cahill and Marouane Fellaini starting in attack for the Toffees.

The home side started the brighter of both sides and Steven Pienaar found space in the United box within a minute, but his shot was blocked by defender Nemanja Vidic. Everton were looking energetic, their passing and moving causing early problems for United and when Pienaar was fouled by Gary Neville, Mikel Arteta stepped up and his free-kick just shaved the top of the bar.

Sir Alex Ferguson was celebrating his 700^th Premier League game as United manager, but he wouldn’t have been pleased with his start although they did manage their first attempt on 15 minutes with John O’Shea clipping the frame of the goal with a thunderous strike.

As the half progressed, Everton were still looking the livelier side although their shots failed to test Edwin Van der Sar in the United goal. Leighton Baines was the closest Everton player to score but his shot flew just wide. However just after the half hour mark, United should have been in front. Nani laid his free-kick into the path of Paul Scholes and his strike was destined for the net, only for Everton keeper Tim Howard to produce a brilliant save with his legs to deny the midfielder.

Manchester United were soon dominating the half and they had another glorious chance to pull ahead. Ryan Giggs, who was linked with the Wales job in the week, found space and his shot was saved well again by Tim Howard.

This was to prove decisive as just a minute later Everton were in front. A long ball up-field was collected by Arteta and although his shot was saved by Van der Sar, the ball found Leon Osman and his pass found Pienaar who slotted the ball into the empty net to give the home side the lead.

However the lead lasted no longer than a couple of minutes as United were soon level. A superb ball by Nani on the right was met by Darren Fletcher, who neatly placed the ball past Howard into the Everton net. There was one more chance, but Dimitar Berbatov shot wide and the teams were into the break level at 1-1.

The second half was as open and entertaining as the first with both teams looking to attack but it was Manchester United who created the first chance. Berbatov found space in the Everton half and his shot was blocked by Sylvain Distin for a corner. But from the resulting corner, United were ahead. Although the corner was headed out by Distin, Nani floated the ball back in to penalty area and his cross was met by the head of Vidic, who made no mistake as the ball flew past Howard into the net.

Everton were not lying down and still looked threatening going forward, with the impressive Pienaar curling a right foot shot straight into the arms of Van der Sar. But they also looked suspect at the back and it was Tim Howard who saved the home side again as he saved well from Nani. But again the Everton was punished just two minutes later. Paul Scholes’ superb ball found Dimitar Berbatov who raced past Distin to slot the ball past Howard to give United a 3-1 lead.

Although the win looked secured for the away side, Everton could have reduced the lead to one goal; however Baines saw his free-kick curl narrowly wide. and they had a better scoring chance with 15 minutes with just 15 minutes to go. Substitute Yakubu weaved his way in the united box and his pass found Osman who produced a fine save out of Van der Sar.

However deep into injury time Everton scored twice to rescue a point for the home side. First Tim Cahill headed past the United keeper, then Mikel Arteta struck a sweet shot past Van der Sar and earn a dersevedly point at Goodison Park.

Stoke 2-1 Aston Villa

A dramatic last minute winner from Robert Huth grabbed Stoke City all three points as the Potters beat Aston Villa 2-1 at the Britannia Stadium. Huth's 93rd minute winner and Kenwyne Jones’ 80th minute strike cancelled out Stewart Downing’s first half opener for Villa as Stoke grabbed their first win of the season.

Stoke manager Tony Pulis, who was not present for the first half following the death of his mother, made one change from the side beaten by Chelsea, with Marc Wilson making his debut at the expense of Andy Wilkinson following his deadline-day move from Portsmouth. New arrivals Jermaine Pennant and Eidur Gudjohnsen are on the bench.

Aston Villa caretaker manager Kevin MacDonald again selected their starting line-up in the absence of new manager Gerard Houllier, who was attending an awards ceremony in France. MacDonald made one change from the side which beat Everton, handing the Gabriel Agbonlahor his first Premier League start of the season in place of the injured John Carew.

Stoke started the game much more positive than their visitors and Robert Huth and Kenwyne Jones going close in the opening minutes. The first clear sight of goal fell to Jones again in the tenth minute, the striker was found by fellow new signing Marc Wilson but Jones’ low shot was well saved by Brad Friedel.

The home side continued to press and in the 15th minute they came close again, Matthew Etherington curled a right wing free kick into the penalty area towards the heads of Ryan Shawcross and Robert Huth. And it was the former Chelsea man Huth who reached the cross but he could only head the ball straight up in the air and Friedel was able to claim easily.

Villa’s first opportunity of the match came two minutes later through youngster Marc Albrighton. Agbonlahor held the ball up well on the edge of the penalty area before finding Nigel Reo-Coker who played the ball to his left to Albrighton, the midfielder stepped in from the left edge of the penalty but struck a right foot shot over the bar without troubling Thomas Sorenson.

In the 25th minute the lively Jones again tested Friedel, this time from long range. The striker pulled down a long ball from Sorenson 25 yards out from goal and fired a swerving left foot shot towards goal but Friedel was able to save well down to his right.

Villa were beginning to get back into the game and in the 35th minute they made their pressure pay as Stewart Downing gave them the lead. Agbonlahor delivered a left footed cross to the back post which was met by Downing diving at full length and he headed the ball into the bottom corner of the net for his second goal of the season.

Two minutes later the visitors survived a penalty shout from Stoke, a long throw from Rory Delap caused confusion in the Villa penalty area and from a header by Jones the ball appeared to hit the arm of James Collins but referee Lee Probert waved away the home side’s protests.

With five minutes of the half left Villa began to pile the pressure onto the home side and created four excellent opportunities to double their lead. The first chance came in the 40th minute from another dangerous cross from Agbonlahor. This time the cross came in from the left hand side, delivered with his right foot which found Ashley Young unmarked in the penalty area but the winger was unable to divert his header goalwards and the ball flew wide of the goal.

Three minutes later Villa created another chance as Downing delivered a low cross which wasn’t cleared fully by the Stoke defence. Reo-Coker challenged for the ball on the edge of the area and the loose ball fell into the path of James Collins but his shot was well saved by Sorenson.

And in the final minute of normal time another dangerous right wing cross, this time from Albrighton, found Downing at the back post but the wingers sliding shot was clawed off the goal line by Sorenson. Stephen Warnock got onto the loose ball but his shot was blocked for a corner.

Villa’s final chance of the half came in the second minute of injury time, a neat corner routine by Downing and Ashley Young on the left wing enabled Young to get into the penalty area but there was no-one there to touch home his low cross.

Stoke received a huge boost at half time with the arrival of their manager Tony Pulis and his players nearly gave him the perfect reaction five minutes into the second half. A Matthew Etherington free kick was met by Jones at the back post but his header was tipped over by Friedel.

Another long throw in from Delap in the 56th minute caused further trouble for the Villa defence. Friedel was able to palm the ball clear but only into the path of Etherington, but the winger’s left foot shot was blocked by Reo-Coker and Villa were able to clear the danger.

The second half was not as open as the first half and neither side really created many opportunities until the 68th minute when Stoke defender Ryan Shawcross nearly gifted Villa a second goal. The defender read a through ball from Ashley Young before it reached Reo-Coker, but the defender then played a weak back pass towards his goalkeeper which enabled the Villa midfielder to get onto it and had Sorenson not been quick off he would have doubled his side’s lead.

After putting lots of pressure on the Villa defence Stoke were finally rewarded in the 80th minute as Kenwyne Jones scored his first goal since joining the club this summer. The home side worked hard to keep the ball alive during an attack and when substitute Ricardo Fuller played a ball into Etherington inside the penalty area the winger was able to chip a cross onto the head of Jones who powered a header past Friedel and then celebrated with his customary acrobatic celebration.

Stoke were finishing the game much stronger than their opponents and in the 87th minute Fuller again caused problems in the villa defence again, he took on Collins before firing a left foot shot towards goal but Friedel was able to tip the ball wide.

In the final minute of the match Stoke grabbed a dramatic winner through Huth, Etherington’s free kick was not cleared and from a low left wing cross Huth poked the ball past Friedel to give the Potters their first win of the season.

Source From: Goal.com

Week 5

All, below is my week 5 team:

Quick analysis on my team:

Foster- easy game and Birmingham has good defender
Bale: SK
Squilacci: cheap
Terry: Clean Sheet
Malouda: seems he did not play 90minutes at week 4, Ancelloti will line up him at week 5
Barton: Point shooter
Pennant: He is new comer but from his play stat, he may gain a good point
Van der Vart: easy game
Drogba: Must have
Chamakh: RVP injured.
Gyan: Cheap and luckily hold him at week 4

Any comments and suggestions are really appreciated. Thanks

Kuyt faces four weeks out

Liverpool forward Dirk Kuyt will miss the next four weeks after suffering a shoulder injury.

The 30-year-old Dutchman will miss a number of important games for the Reds after suffering the problem during training with Holland as the Oranje prepared for their Euro 2012 clash with Finland.

He returned to England on Monday for tests and is now set to be sidelined for approximately one month.

Club doctor Peter Brukner said: "Dirk has damaged his shoulder at the A-C joint, which is between the collar bone and the shoulder.

"He is likely to be out for four weeks."

Kuyt will miss Premier League clashes against Birmingham City, Manchester United and Sunderland as well as Europa League games versus Steaua Bucharest and FC Utrecht, and a Carling Cup tie with Northampton.

Liverpool's tireless worker will be particularly disappointed that he will miss the trip to Utrecht, as he played there for five years up until 2003.

This latest news will be a blow to Reds boss Roy Hodgson, who is looking to rebuild the Anfield outfit after a tough campaign last time out.

Source From: Sky Sports

GUNNERS AWAIT WALCOTT ASSESSMENT

Arsenal's medical team will today assess the extent of Theo Walcott's ankle injury, which could sideline the England winger for the rest of the month. Walcott had been in decent form for the Gunners, scoring four goals in three games before the international break. However, the 21-year-old - recalled by Fabio Capello after being omitted from his ill-fated World Cup squad - was taken to hospital on Tuesday night for precautionary X-rays after turning his ankle in the build-up to Wayne Rooney's opening goal in the 3-1 win over Switzerland in Basle. Initial fears of a break were dispelled by Capello after the match, suggesting the player felt the injury was "not a big problem". However, even if it is just a bad sprain with no torn ligaments, then Walcott - who has a history of niggling injury setbacks - is almost certain to miss Saturday's Barclays Premier League visit of Bolton as well as the Champions League opener against Braga. Walcott would be unlikely to be risked in the Carling Cup clash at rivals Tottenham, and may have to sit out the trip to Partizan Belgrade - but if all goes well could be fully match fit in time to face title rivals Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on October 3. The loss of Walcott is another blow to Gunners manager Arsene Wenger, who has seen Holland striker Robin van Persie sidelined until the middle of next month with an ankle problem. With Nicklas Bendtner also unavailable because of a groin injury, summer signing Marouane Chamakh looks set to lead the line for the next few weeks. Midfielder Samir Nasri is recovering well from knee surgery, while defender Sebastien Squillaci made his first appearance for Arsenal following a move from Sevilla in the reserves' win over Blackburn at Underhill and could make his Premier League debut this weekend. Source From: Sporting Life

Summer Transfer: Player In

Arsenal

Marouane Chamakh (free) Laurent Koscielny (undisc.) Sebastien Squillaci (undisc.)

Aston Villa

Stephen Ireland (undisc.)

Birmingham City

Jean Beausejour (loan) Matt Derbyshire (loan) Ben Foster (undisc.) Alexander Hleb (loan) Martin Jiranek (undisc.) Enric Valles (free) Nikola Zigic (undisc.)

Blackburn Rovers

Mame Biram Diouf (loan) Benjani Mwaruwari (signed)

Blackpool

Chris Basham (undisc.) DJ Campbell (undisc.) David Carney (free) Craig Cathcart (undisc.) Elliot Grandin (undisc.) Marlon Harewood(free) Dekel Keinan (free) Richard Kingson (free) Malaury Martin (free) Matt Phillips (£325,000) Ludovic Sylvestre (undisc.) Luke Varney (loan)

Bolton Wanderers

Marcos Alonso (undisc.) Robbie Blake (free) Tom Eaves (undisc) Ivan Klasnic (free) Rodrigo Moreno (loan) Martin Petrov (free)

Chelsea

Yossi Benayoun (undisc.) Tomas Kalas (undisc.) Ramires (undisc.) Matej Delac (free)

Everton

Jermaine Beckford (free) Magaye Gueye (undisc.) Jan Mucha (free) Joao Silva (undisc.)

Fulham

Moussa Dembele (undisc.) Rafik Halliche (undisc.) Jonathan Greening (undisc.) Carlos Salcido (undisc.) Philippe Senderos (undisc.) Lauri Dalla Valle (undisc.) Alex Kacaniklic (undisc.)

Liverpool

Fabio Aurelio (free) Joe Cole (free) Brad Jones (£2.3m) Milan Jovanovic (free) Paul Konchesky (undisc.) Raul Meireles (£11.5m) Christian Poulsen (£4.5m) Jonjo Shelvey (£1.7m) Danny Wilson (£2m)

Manchester City

Mario Balotelli (undisc.) Jerome Boateng (undisc.) Alex Henshall (undisc.) Aleksandar Kolarov (undisc.) James Milner (undisc.) Yaya Toure (undisc.) David Silva (undisc.)

Manchester United

Bebe (undisc.) Javier Hernandez (undisc.) Chris Smalling (undisc.)

Newcastle United

Hatem Ben Arfa (loan) Sol Campbell (free) Dan Gosling (free) James Perch (undisc.) Cheik Tiote (undisc.)

Stoke City

Florent Cuvelier (free) Salif Diao (free) Eidur Gudjohnsen (loan) Kenwyne Jones (£8million) Jermaine Pennant (loan) Jon Walters (£2.75million) Marc Wilson (undisc.)

Sunderland

Ahmed Al-Muhammadi (loan) Marcos Angeleri (undisc.) Titus Bramble (undisc.) Asamoah Gyan (undisc.) John Mensah (loan) Simon Mignolet (undisc.) Nedum Onuoha (loan) Cristian Riveros (undisc.) Danny Welbeck (loan)

Tottenham Hotspur

William Gallas (free) Stipe Pletikosa (loan) Sandro (undisc.) Rafael van der Vaart (undisc.)

West Bromwich Albion

Craig Dawson (undisc.). Marc-Antoine Fortune (undisc.) Pablo Ibanez (free) Boaz Myhill (undisc.) Peter Odemwingie (undisc.) Steven Reid (free) Paul Scharner (free) Nicky Shorey (undisc) Gabriel Tamas (undisc.) Somen Tchoyi (undisc.)

West Ham United

Pablo Barrera (£4m) Tal Ben-Haim (loan) Thomas Hitzlsperger (free) Victor Obinna (loan) Frederic Piquionne (undisc.) Winston Reid (undisc.) Lars Jacobsen (undisc.)

Wigan Athletic

Antolin Alcaraz (undisc.) Steven Caldwell (free) Franco Di Santo (undisc.) Ali Al Habsi (loan) Mauro Boselli (undisc.) James McArthur (undisc.) Ronnie Stam (undisc) Tom Cleverley (loan)

Wolverhampton Wanderers

Marcus Bent (loan) Jake Cassidy (undisc.) Steven Fletcher (undisc.) Adlene Guedioura (undisc.) Stephen Hunt (undisc.) Michael Mancienne (loan) Steven Mouyokolo (undisc.) Jelle Van Damme (undisc.)

Source From: Sporting Life.com

Gyan happy to have joined Sunderland.

Asamoah Gyan is looking forward to making an impact in the Premier League after finalising his club-record move to Sunderland. The Black Cats have splashed out in excess of £13million to secure the Ghana striker on a four-year contract from Rennes. The 24-year-old was a long-term target for Sunderland boss Steve Bruce and Gyan is happy to have pitched up at the Stadium of Light. "It's been a long day, but finally I'm happy to be here and my family and friends are also happy for me," Gyan told the club's official website. "My family is in England already and I am happy this is the right place for me. "The Sunderland coach has faith in me because he has been following me for two years now. "I am pleased I have the opportunity to come to England." Gyan believes he will be suited to playing for Sunderland and he is also relishing his opportunity to turn out in front of the Black Cats faithful. He added: "I follow English football and I know Sunderland have incredible fans. "I especially know about the derby when they play against Newcastle. That is something incredible. I have witnessed that myself. "The Sunderland fans never say die. They keep cheering their team on for 90 minutes. That gives me confidence to play maximum football. "I am here to do my best and show what I can do. I have watched Sunderland play before - I think it will be good." Source from: Sporting Life