Gameweek 5 Preview

There's a change of pace for this week's preview as I feel the game-by-game run-through often just tells you what you already know (Gerrard is a good play against Burnley - no kidding) and doesn't give you what you really want. I will therefore focus on 4 categories to help you make your decisions:
- best clean sheet bet
- captain rankings
- game predictions
- long term strength of schedules (for forward planning).

Let me know what you guys think and if any of the features are particular useful or if you could do without them. With that in mind, let the weekly preview begin . . .

Gameweek 5 fixtures

Blackburn v Wolves
Liverpool v Burnley
Man City v Arsenal
Portsmouth v Bolton
Stoke v Chelsea
Sunderland v Hull
Wigan v West Ham
Tottenham v Man Utd
Birmingham v Aston Villa
Fulham v Everton

Clean Sheet Rankings
1. Liverpool
2. Blackburn
3. West Ham
4. Sunderland
5. Bolton

I don't like that many teams this week for clean sheets with Liverpool looking like the only odds on bet. Blackburn-Wolves looks like it has 0-0 written all over it, much like Rovers' stalemate with the Hammers in week 4, who themselves look like they might be involved in a low scoring affair at the DW Stadium. Check the long term strength of schedules below before picking players from these teams though as the fixtures aren't easy enough to warrant burning two transfers on.

Captain Rankings
1. Steven Gerrard
2. Fernando Torres
3. Wayne Rooney
4. Ashley Young
5. Nicholas Anelka

As with clean sheets above, there aren't a great array of captain option this week due to United, Arsenal, City and Spurs going at it in two titan contests. Chelsea's trip to Stoke is also tough which might limit Lampard and Drogba's effectiveness this week. Of the Chelsea players, Anelka's pace could expose the Stoke defense who might deal better with the power of Drogba. I love the pair of Gerrard and Torres this week and the Liverpool captain will hope to round out a great week after his midweek brace against Croatia. United always play Spurs well though did fail to score in the corresponding fixture last season. Rooney has been in hot form of late and I would back him over all non-Liverpool players this week. After a quiet week 1 followed by the bye, Young has been largely overlooked this season but a goal, two assists and three bonus points in the last two games suggest good things to come for Young. I like him to shine in the Midlands derby this week and is a good outside bet for your armband this week.

Game Predictions
Blackburn 1-0 Wolves
Liverpool 3-0 Burnley
Man City 1-2 Arsenal
Portsmouth 0-0 Bolton
Stoke 0-1 Chelsea
Sunderland 1-1 Hull
Wigan 0-1 West Ham
Tottenham 1-2 Man Utd
Birmingham 1-2 Aston Villa
Fulham 2-2 Everton

The two headline games are the clashes at Eastlands and White Hart Lane where two pretenders - City and Spurs - face off against two European football giants. I am backing against them both (just!) and neither game is likely to provide a fantasy windfall for any single player. Adebayor against his old team looks like a tempting bet as does the aforementioned Rooney. I would avoid all defences in these games if possible.
A few games on the flip side look fairly dull which normally means they either (a) end up very dull or (b) surprise everyone and dish out 4 goals or so. Of the four predicted boring games at Blackburn, Portsmouth, Sunderland and Wigan, the most potential probably comes at Wigan where Martinez and Zola both encourage good football from their respective sides.

Strength of Schedule

Defenders - Best
1. Everton
2. Hull
3. Portsmouth
4. Aston Villa
5. Tottenham

Looking forward a few weeks for those wanting to move players on, the key target is Everton defenders, as I wrote about earlier in the week. After this week they get Bla, @Por, Sto, Wol, @Bol, Ast which all look pretty nice. All these games should also be helpful to the Everton forwards who have struggled a bit this year, and with the return of Yakubu, the Nigerian striker and Cahill look like decent pickups. Even with the favourable matchups, Hull and Portsmouth are too weak to consider right now though Villa and Spur are more intriguing. With a decent fixture this week, Villa might be a good source of talent though it isn't crystal clear who will play. Young and Davies look set to miss out with injury which leaves five defenders to fight for four spots. Warnock (4.9) is the assumed choice at left back and might be the best best. The sleeper pick is Collins (4.5) who is very cheap and showed midweek that he can even add the odd goal. The more likely partnership in the middle is Dunne and Cuellar though so perhaps Collins is too risky for now.
As for Spurs, after next weeks trip to Chelsea the fixtures look pretty great with only the derby trip to the Emirate looking scary until mid season. Bassong (5.2)is struggling for fitness now but should be healthy by the time you would to bring him in for week 7. Asou Ekotto (5.1) and Corluka (5.4) are also worth consideration for this favourable run of games.

Defenders - Worst
1. Fulham
2. Bolton
3. West Ham
4. Blackburn
5. Chelsea

The middle three teams enjoy good fixtures this week though any production is likely to go downhill soon so unless I would not advise bringing these boys in unless you can spare another transfer to move them on soon. Despite the fixtures Chelsea defenders will always carry some value, and although some tricky opponents lie in wait (Spurs, Liverpool and United), they all come at home so I wouldn't run away from in form players like Ashley Cole just yet.
Fulham worry me a bit and I've been thinking about the future of Aaron Hughes (4.9) in my team all week. They have conceded four in the last 2 games but both were quality opponents - Villa and Chelsea - so its harsh to abandon them just yet. The fixture don't get really nasty until week 7 so I advise given the Cottagers two more weeks to prove their worth after which you might want to move them on anyway (Ars, @WH, Hul, @MNC, Liv). Note though that from week 12 on Fulham have great fixtures and a double week so if you can afford the luxury it might be worth holding out until then through the aforementioned sticky patch.
Midfield/Forwards - Best
1. Everton
2. Portsmouth
3. Arsenal
4. Hull
5. Birmingham

I mentioned Everton and Portsmouth above, so lets focus on the other three teams here. Hull and Birmingham lack top level talent but I rate both Altidore (5.0) and Jerome (4.5) very highly, though Jerome's injury status rules him out of fantasy consideration. If Phil Brown would just play Altidore, I am sure he can be a 12-15 goal a season player but until he gets regular minutes he is a major risk. As for Arsenal, the player I liked best to benefit from this run of games was Arshavin, but he now looks likely to miss a couple of games. Fabregas played with and scored for Spain in midweek and looks to be gaining full fitness ready for this favourable schedule. I therefore expect Lampard/Gerrard like production over the next 2 months and with Chelsea's tough fixture list some Lampard owners (including myself) might want to look at Cesc as a way of freeing up some cash for the next few gameweeks. Van Persie's (10.0) value has been hurt somewhat by the 4-3-3 as he is yet to find the net despite Arsenal scoring 11 in the first 3 games. He has added 3 assists though and I think he can generate big time points in the coming weeks and would rank him ahead of similarly priced players such as Adebayor, Anelka and Drogba in that period.

Midfield/Forward - Worst
1. West Ham
2. Sunderland
3. Stoke
4. Man City
5. Fulham

These rankings are a blow for mid range striker believers as Bent, Cole, Jones and Beattie all appear to be risky bets in the coming weeks. West Ham's schedule is particularly brutal with trips to City, Stoke and Sunderland compounded by the visits of Liverpool, Arsenal, Everton and Fulham - all at least solid team. These rankings wouldn't scare me off the likes of Jimenez, Malbranque, Lawrence or Murphy as you are better having the central point of a team against a tough opponent that an average player on a weak team playing Portsmouth. I am scared off with City a bit though and any plans I had to bring Adebayor in have been shelved for now. Ireland owners might consider upgrading to Fabregas or switching to a Young or Lennon and using your cash elsewhere.

I hope you found the above useful in picking your team for the week/making transfers and please post any comments or suggestions below. Also, for those on Twitter, why not tweet your lineup decisions to @plfantasy and I'll post them with answers here before Saturday's deadline.

International Roundup

England 5 -1 Croatia
Braces from Lampard and Gerrard along with a goal for in-form Rooney served to underline the strength of the top fantasy players available. Lennon also played well and has all but convinved me that he is the logical choice to replace Modric for those with the extra bit of cash - 0.3m - to spare. The main thing is that there were injuries and a goal for Eduardo will also be welcomed by the Arsenal fans.

Scotland 0-1 Hollland
De Jong, van Persie and Kuyt all played a part here and got through the game unscathed. Kuyt should have scored at least once where as van Persie was largely quiet. Kuyt looks like a great bet this week at home to Burnley and he will take confidence from another good performance here, though his booking for diving was not good to see. Hutton, Alexander and Fletcher were all in action for Scotland with, again, no injuries noted. Elia's goal was brilliantly taken and I think we might here more than that boy in the future.

Serbia 1-1 France
Eventful game in Serbia involving a whole host of Premier League players including Vidic, Ivanovic, Milijas and Tosic for Serbia and Evra, Gallas, Sagna, Anelka, Malouda and Clichy for France. Milijas added a goal from the spot for Serbia, while the French boys were largely restricted having been reduced to 10 men when keeper Lloris was sent off after just 10 minutes. No injuries to note which is great news for Arsenal, Chelsea and all the other teams watching this one on the edge of their seats.

Wales 1-3 Russia
Arshavin and Pavlyuchenko played for the Russians tonight while the Welsh side featured Hennessey, Ricketts, Gabbidon, James Collins, Ramsey and Bellamy. Arshavin failed to find the net but the ran the game all day, showing the kind of pace, power and composure that convince me he can join Gerrard and Lampard in a new big three. He grabbed an assist for the first goal with a lovely through ball. Villa new boy James Collins (4.5m) responded with a header from a Ramsey cross, and with Davies out for O'Neill's men, it could get better for the Welshman as he looks to establish himself in the Villa first team.

Spain 3-0 Estonia
Premier League stars Fabregas and Torres played here and enjoyed distinctly different nights. Fabregas was excellent on his way to a man of the match display, and even added a goal to complete his evening. Torres however was very quiet and failed to impress again for La Furia Roja. The main thing for fantasy players is that they both got through the game without injury as Fafbregas will go to back alongside Diaby instead of Xavi and Torres will get his old friend Steve Gerrard back, so don't read too much into these displays. Torres is probably the top captain pick alongside Gerrard this week as Liverpool welcome Burnley to Anfield.

Elsewhere
- Michael Ballack converted a penalty in Germany's 4-0 win over Azerbaijan
- Rosicky played his first game in 20 months, playing just shy of an hour in the Czech's 7-0 demolition of San Marino.
- Martin Skrtel played 90 minutes for Slovakia in there 2-0 victory over Northern Ireland. With his fitness confirmed he should be the logical choice to replace Insua if you cannot afford Aurelio.
- Bendtner scored as Denmark drew with Albania though don't get the idea that this makes him a legitimate fantasy option just yet.

Sweet Toffee

In prior years, many fantasy players' defensive strategy has been to pick 4 players from the big four and watch the points role in, with very little need for tinkering. Three factors have conspired to reduce the effectiveness of this strategy:

- the big four's defenses have not been excellent this year with Liverpool and to a lesser extent Arsenal looking vulnerable at the back
- injuries and rotation have lessened the number of every week starters who are guaranteed to suit up for their respective sides. Arsenal look settled with Clichy, Gallas, Vermaelen and Sagna but each of the other big four sides have seen some form of rotation due to injury of to rest players.
- several middle tier sides have emerged with improved defenses, most notably City, who are yet to concede this season and Stoke, whose home form is again stellar.

Defensive points are the consistent lifeblood of any fantasy team as no striker can match the consistency of a 8 game clean sheet run, or the 25 total clean sheets kept by United last year. It is becoming increasingly necessary to play the schedule, picking in-form defensive teams with weak opponents, rather than just plugging in the likes of Carragher or Terry and waiting for the massive points haul to come in.

Right place, right time
Everton have struggled a bit so far this season with a devastating home 6-1 loss to Arsenal followed by defeat at Burnley in week 3 (after a bye in week 2). However, the defense is showing signs of turning round and the arrivals of Distin and Heitinga should speed up this process. Their upcoming six games are simply mouth watering with three of their opponents having failed to score a goal this season at the location Everton face them (Fulham at Craven Cottage, Portsmouth at Fratton Park and Stoke on the road). The other three at home to Blackburn, home to Wolves and away to Bolton look like they could bear defensive fruit as well.

The slight sticking point is who will play in the coming weeks, a situation that will be muddied further with the return of Phil Jagielka. Two players stand out here as both look relatively assured of a first team place and offer good value for different reasons:

Sylvain Distin
One of my favourite strategies when picking defenders is to simply pick the cheapest player available in a defensive unit, as you are generally benefiting from a team's success rather than an individual. On this basis Distin (4.9m) is a steal and will surely be due for a price rise once Everton's clean sheets start to come. The new arrival from Portsmouth is all but guaranteed a starting spot until Jagielka returns, and even then might be able to keep his place. Although not really an attacking threat, for 4.9m he could offer top 6 value for a bottom 6 price.

Leighton Baines
Baines' penalty at the weekend could make him one of two defenders in charge of spot kicks, with Graham Alexander of Burnley being the other. Baines had a great season last year, leading the league in PPMS and would surpass 150 points this year even if he only featured in 30 games and scored at the same rate. Baines' 7 assists last year are also appealing though his lack of bonus points are a bit disappointing. Everton's slow start has caused Baines' value to fall to 6.3m and now could be a good time to bring him in. He looks like a perfect replacement for those moving Insua on or anyone who has lost faith in Liverpool or Arsenal's defense.

Based on the ease of fixtures I would recommend considering both of these players and would certainly get a least one in before next week's home game against Blackburn.

Play your (wild)card right

Four weeks in and I'm already ahead of last year's team. I played my wildcard in week 3 last year after picking too many risk-reward players that didn't pan out. The season turned out okay and I ended up 7,000th overall, after briefly flirting with the top 100 in mid season. The lesson being of course that playing your wildcard early in the season isn't necessarily a bad thing. Let's look at a couple of strategies you might want to consider for your wildcard:

Play it early on
It is essential in fantasy football to be near the top of your league early on as it becomes increasingly hard to make up ground on the opposition as the season unfolds. Teams tend to converge and often employ 5-8 players that seem to be present on most teams (see Ronaldo, Lampard, Gerrard, Vidic, Bosingwa and Schwarzer in 2008-09). It therefore makes sense to get your team right early on before it is too late.
A further advantage to playing your wildcard early on is that you can buy the hot players now before their price rises too much. Assuming your team is currently still worth 100m, you will be able to buy more for your money now than in 3 months time.
The disadvantage of course is that if you pickup injuries or your players lose form later in the season it will take you several weeks (or alot of points) to rectify the situation.

Play it when the injuries start to mount up
So far, not too many fantasy quality players have been injured, with Modric and Fabregas the only big names to pick up injuries so far (though the likes of Ferdinand, Zhirkov, Santa Cruz and Arteta have yet to feature for their respective teams). It is inevitable that some injuries will come and it is useful to have your wild card stashed away to rescue you in this situation.
The Champions League starts on 15 September, with the group stages running until 09 December. This is prime territory for injuries and rotations so the wildcard might be well played during this period. This is definitely the safest option and the one that will likely be used by most players.

Save the wildcard for a late season push
If your team is in contention by, say, week 25, the ability to repick your team and get all the form players could tip the league in your favor. You will be able to ride teams with something to play for and avoid those who are just playing the season out. For example, right now we would consider Villa defenders a fairly poor choice but come February when the new signings have settled in and the team might be pushing for Europe, they could be a great option.
The risk here is that your team is so far behind and that teams all look so similar that the wildcard's value is diminished.

My advice
The more I think about it, the more I think that playing your wildcard early on is the way to go. I'm not saying pull the trigger in week 5 if your team is okay but if you get a couple of injuries over the international break and a couple of your squad players aren't panning out then using your wildcard to get players such as Shawcross, Lennon or Adebayor will be beneficial before their price rises further. I am aiming to use mine in approximately week 8-10 when we have a good idea of how teams are shaping up after the transfer window, as well as the rotation consequences of the champions league.
Remember, when you do decide to play the wildcard, especially if you take this decision early, you must make long term decisions and not be too concerned with a favourable game that week. Many get overly concerned with double gameweeks and easy matchups and therefore make short term decisions which cripple their flexibility for the future. Good luck making this important call and let me know how your cards fall.

Pulling the Strings from the Cheap Seats

It is a well established fantasy principle to stock up on premium goalscoring midfield talent like Gerrard and Lampard but can we get these kind of players for less? Lets look at the midfield maestros pulling the strings for their respective teams who can be had without sacrificing cash that can spent elsewhere:

Tom Huddlestone (5.1m)
2 assists, 2 bonus points, 13 shots

I for one did not envision Huddlestone playing every week in Redknapp's lineup but recent talks of Jenas leaving for Villa suggest that Huddlestone is going to be a fixture in the middle for Spurs this year. The arrival of Palacios last season has transformed Huddlestone's role from a holding player (think Yaya Toure) into a probing 'quarterback' type player, whose long passing and consistent touch allow him to control the game in front of him (think Xavi). Last week's chalkboard shows that Huddlestone is often operating in an advanced role and managed to play a couple of key passes, one of which resulted in a goal. A look at the past 4 games shows that Huddleston has had an incredible 13 shots, more than all the other players discussed below put together, and more than fantasy leaders Lampard (12 shots), Arshavin (6) and Lennon (9). In the sub 6m category, Huddleston currently trails Hunt, Diaby, Palacios and Elliot but these players' points have come from goals which are unlikely to continue all year with perhaps the exception of Hunt. At 5.1 Huddlestone is great value and could well be one of the league leaders in value when all is said and done.


Danny Murphy (6.3m)
1 bonus point, 1 shot

Murphy had a wonderful 2008-09 but has started slower this season and missed last week's game against Villa with a calf injury. This slow start have caused his value to slip which could lead to a bargain for other owners. The week 1 victory over Portsmouth show Murphy's influence over the team with consistent passing demonstrated all over the field. They key to Murphy's success last year was his 26 bonus points and as Fulham haven't added any stars but still look like a decent side, these bonus points should continue to flow in future weeks. Murphy should still be on penalty duty and takes the majority of corners and free kicks so it is reasonable to expect another 5 goals and assists this year. The key is that Murphy will play every week and this makes him a useful player to hold alongside stars such as Gerrard and Lampard.



Barry Ferguson (5.0m)
4 bonus points, 1 shot

Having once been rated the star of the SPL, Ferguson has bounced around of late and hasn't really delivered the goods south of the border. However, a successful start to the season, including a man of the match performance against Portsmouth, have given the Scottish midfielder 4 bonus points already. Ferguson didn't contribute in the two games against good sides (United and Spurs) but added 4 and 6 point hauls against Portsmouth and Stoke. He therefore looks to be a great bench option who you can rely on to bring in when your mid level players have tough fixtures or are benched/injured at the last minute. Ferguson is a given to start and Birmingham's decent defense and his bonus point ability should ensure plenty of 3 and 4 point games.





Mark Noble (6.2m)
1 goal, 1 assist, 3 bonus points, 3 shots

I think Jimenez (5.0) might be the better player when the season is finished and I certainly think he has more talent, but Noble's consistency (see his incredible passing performance against Wolves to the left: 37 of 38 passes completed) and decent shot should ensure that he contributes a steady inflow of points and if the matchup is right he will be a good play. At 6.2m he isn't a steal and his lack of shots are a concern going forward. West Ham's fixtures are also terrible with Liv, @MNC, Ful, @Sto and Ars on the horizon. Probably stay clear for now but if Noble can continue this form then he is a genuine every week player for a bench player price.

Transfer Day Deadline Deals

No huge deals happened but a couple of lower profile trades could have significant fantasy impact:

Michael Turner (4.5)
Turner has joined Sunderland in a 6.5m deal which certainly has some fantasy value. Turner led all defenders with 4 goals last year and now he the chance at some clean sheets he looks to be good value. Ferdinand and Bardsley can be had for the same price but Turner's attacking ability and bonus point potential make him excellent value and possibly the biggest winner in the window's final dealings.

Niko Kranjcar (6.9)
I am a big fan of Kranjcar's ability and his 2m deal to Spurs comes at the right time with Modric out with a fractured leg. At 6.9m he was overvalued at Pompey but playing opposite Lennon and alongside Huddlestone and Palacios should breath life back into the Croatian's career. The natural replacement for Modric is Lennon (7.8) but for those wanting to save a bit of cash, Kranjcar looks like a great bet at 6.9. In the long term (when Modric returns) his value will be limited as he won't be an every game starter but until then he will be a nice temporary option.

Johnny Heitinga (unknown)
David Moyes continues to do good work in the transfer market bringing in the experienced and well rated Heitinga for 6m, making 16m after Lescott's move to City. With Distin (4.9) arriving too Everton's defense are a buy, especially considering their next 6 fixtures. Unless listed at a bargain price, Heitinga is unlikely to offer better value than Distin or Baines (6.3) whose penalty this week showed that he could hold great value going forward.

Danny Collins (5m)
Not quite sure what to make of this as with the arrival of Huth (4.5) and Stoke holding on to Shawcross (4.8) it looked as if the centre back pairing was set. Perhaps Collins will share time with Higginbotham (4.5) on the left but either way at 5m he is overpriced compared with his new teammates and so is not worthy of fantasy consideration.

Ivan Klasnic (unknown)
Klasnic has joined Bolton on a season long loan arrangement from Nantes and should bolster the Bolton forward line that has managed just 1 goal this season. The Croatian arrives with an excellent scoring record in Europe (Bremen and Nantes) though Elmander's record was equally impressive and he has been the definition of bust since arriving last summer. Klasnic will probably be priced in the 6.5 range (like fellow Croatian Kalinic) and is probably worth monitoring as he could become a decent rotation option if he can hold down a first team place.

James Collins (4.5)
If you believe the revamped Villa defense can return to last season's form when they ranked 5th in overall defense, Collins will be an absolute steal at 4.5. The arrival of Collins, along with Dunne (5.0), Warnock (4.9) and Beye (5.0) earlier in the summer mean that O'Neil could be fielding a totally new back line on a weekly basis. If Collins can establish himself as a regular then he is good value as only Warnock's attacking ability suggest he should be priced higher than Collins. The presence of Curtis Davies may limit of these new arrivals but if Collins establishes himself then add him to your shortlist of players to watch.

Diniyar Bilyaletdinov (6.5)
The arrival of Bilyaletdinov for 9m didn't register much on the transfer news wires but the tricky Russian has plenty of skill and a sweet left foot and could contribute this season. Ex-Premier League players Andrei Kanchelskis and Dmitri Kharine both suggest that the winger could be slow to settle in and I would therefore echo this sentiment and hold off purchasing him too soon. However, he could be worth a look once he settles in and for 6.5 would fit nicely in a rotation of other similarly priced players (Malbranque, Jimenez etc).

Play Profile: Emmanuel Adebayor

Is Adebayor ready to join the ranks of the fantasy elite? Is he worthy of not just a roster spot but also the captain's armband? Let's take a look at the facts . . .

Today's goal at Portsmouth maintained Adebayor's 100% strike record for the season and thrust him forward in the argument for the league's best fantasy striker. I have said previously that this is going to be the year of the big name striker and for the first time in memory, you might want to invest upwards of 20m on front men rather than defenders and midfielders from the big four (or six as the case might now be). Five top strikers are starting to distance themselves this year, namely Torres, Rooney, Drogba, Defoe and Adebayor. In terms of value (points per million spent) Adebayor (.867) is currently top of this list ahead of Drogba (.816), Defoe (.811), Rooney (.746) and Torres (.554). Lets look at how his future production compares with his fellow strikers:

Goals
The five strikers noted above have all scored either four (Defoe and Rooney) or three goals (Adebayor, Drogba and Torres) so far this year. They have all played 4 games except Adebayor who has only played 3. Based on last year's defensive records, Adebayor has had the easiest schedule to date (1.41 goals per game) with Torres facing the toughest (1.29 GPG). Defoe and Rooney also bring some extra value here due to their penalty taking duties. I think there is a possibility of all five strikers reaching 20 goals this year and the difference between them may come in the other scoring categories.

Assists
The key difference between Adebayor and Drogba comes in the assist category, of which Drogba has 3 and Adebayor has none. This trend is likely to continue all season as Adebayor is the focal point of a 4-3-3 system where as Drogba has a partner (Anelka) to square to for valuable assists. A look at their week 4 chalkboards shows the situation nicely (Adebayor: left, Drogba: right)

While Drogba is being played into the channels to then cross for Anelka or pull back for Lampard, Adebayor is holding up the ball a bit deeper to then play in runners such as Wright Phillips and Ireland who will then cross to someone else for the goals. Adebayor's assists will therefore be limited all year long unless Robinho or Tevez are pushed alongside him into a more natural partnership role. Rooney, Defoe and to a lesser extent Torres are also affected by this and so Adebayor only really loses ground to Drogba here.

Bonus points
I would have crowned Rooney king of the bonus points (9 in 4 games). but with Ade's 3 points today, he now has 8 in just 3 games. Points when a player gets a hattrick or dominates a game are one thing, but the key is those that are given in games when no-one really excels. Ronaldo and Lampard were the kings of these phantom points last year and Rooney appears to have taken Ronaldo's crown. Whether or not Adebayor can be added to the list is yet to be seen, but for now he is certainly as good as anyone in this category. Drogba and Torres suffer the most here as they is competing with Lampard and Gerrard though Defoe's 4 points are also a bit worrying.

Upcoming schedule
No massive differences here with each player facing a number of easy and tough games. After the next two weeks (Arsenal, @Man United) City's fixtures looks great until weeks 13-15 when they face Liverpool and Chelsea. Rooney faces the toughest schedule as trips to Spurs, Stoke, Liverpool and Chelsea look unlikely to give him too much joy.

Conclusion
Overall I think that Adebayor is a great pick for the upcoming season and he has proven that he will be legitimate star for City this year. The question is when to bring him in as the next two games look tough but his price looks set to rise immanently as he has net transfers in of 20,000 in week 4 and another 6,000 already in week 5. I plan to start the cogs in motion (freeing up cash) to get the Ciy hitman and wouldn't hesitate to advise the same for anyone who has faith that the former Arsenal man can continue to repay City for the hefty transfer fee they paid for him.