Fantasy Football Preview

I’m starting with a ‘get well soon’ to all Fantasy Football managers out there. I really hope you haven’t gone into severe depression after the disaster that game week 2 was.

The good news is that it can’t get any worse.

The bad news is it could, if you have Chelsea and Aston Villa players in your team.

Chelsea and Villa don’t play this weekend, so we have nine matches to make the most of and repair the damage game week 2 brought with itself.

1. Manchester City vs. Hull City – Can’t possibly go wrong with this two weeks in a row. Someone has to face the backlash of beating a team brimming with millions, and it looks like it is Hull City. Hull beat Norwich 1-0 at home, with former Manchester United winger Robbie Brady scoring the winner. But away at the Etihad, against the fire power City have, it looks highly unlikely that Hull will make anything out of it.

Picks: Sergio Aguero, Edin Dzeko, David Silva, Pablo ZabaletaMisses: Hull defenders

2. Norwich vs. Southampton – Southampton have done well to get four points from their first two games, and will relish a visit to Norwich, who have looked out of sorts to an extent. Ricky Lambert was one of the bargain picks of the season, and you could have him as a cheap temporary option to replace your Bentekes and your Torress.

New Norwich signing (LOAN) Johan Elmander is a Fantasy Football veteran. Cheaply priced and with a wealth of Premier League experience behind, he has a fair amount of goals and assists in him.

Picks: Johan Elmander, Ricky Lambert, Steven Whittaker, Ricky van Wolfswinkel

3. Liverpool vs. Man United: One of the two big games for Super Sunday. Manchester United have lost just one of their last five clashes, but have won only once in their last five trips to Anfield.

Liverpool has been excellent this season, winning both their games. Daniel Sturridge will once again spearhead Liverpool’s attack.

United’s defense featuring Ferdinand and Vidic will be a hard nut to crack though. Mignolet and Liverpool’s defense have kept two clean sheets, with Enrique and Johnson racking up the points. Kolo Toure is out with a groin injury though.

The assurance that Wayne Rooney is going nowhere could play a huge part in United’s intent. Rooney behind a certain Dutch striker will be a headache for the Liverpool defense all night long.

We are picking Nani as the dark horse this week. Welbeck was wasteful on the left wing against Chelsea, and with quotes from the Juventus director general Giuseppe Marotta about Nani staying, this could very well be his breakthrough season.

Picks: Robin Van Persie, Wayne Rooney, Sturridge, Phil JonesMisses: Kolo ToureDark Horse: Nani

4. Arsenal v Tottenham: There is something about this fixture that excites you as a neutral and a Fantasy Football manager. While the Liverpool-United clash is expected to be a cautious affair, the North London derby is just the opposite.

Teams traditionally throw caution to the wind and go for broke. The North London derby has seen 26 goals in the last five Premier League clashes between the two teams. The fact that Tottenham have conceded five in their last two visits to the Emirates might not inspire confidence in them, but with their numerous summer signings, this side will not simple roll over and die.

Giroud and Walcott are must haves. Giroud has scored in both opening Premier League games and Walcott likes playing against Tottenham, having scored more goals against them than anyone else.

Vermaelen, Podolski and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain are all out due to injury. Aaron Ramsey has been in red hot form this season, and you’d do well to find a place for him in your team. Aaron Lennon is out with injury for Spurs.

Picks: Walcott, Giroud, Cazorla, SoldadoDark Horse: Andros Townsend

There you have it. The Final Team that I’ll bet my house on this week.

Note : It would be advisable to keep at least one Chelsea midfielder/defender on the bench, rather than selling all of them and starting afresh. They will come back next week and it will be business as usual.

Final Team: