Plans and Changes for FPLH: 2012-2013 Premier League Season
Greetings all! I hope you are having an enjoyable (football-free) summer especially now that England have been dumped out of another international competition on penalties, with the same old excuses. To think that all we needed to do was to keep possession of the ball and pass it more often. C'est la vie.
I thought it best to provide an update on my blog plans and changes for the upcoming season, as follows:
First and foremost, I will continue to post FPLH's weekly blog team before each gameweek. However, this will now be under a weekly post rather than the "My GW team" page (which will be archived).
Secondly, I will continue to highlight a recommended player for each GW but will provide that information in a more streamlined/easy-to-digest manner as opposed to dedicating a whole post to it.
Moreover, as a new feature for 2012-2013 I will also post a new segment called "FPLH's hot picks", which will aim to show you the best players for each gameweek, regardless of our blog team. This will provide you with extra insight on who to pick and will supplement FPLH's weekly blog team.
Aside from the above, I will continue to post random ad hoc football posts as and when I can. Also keep an eye out for guest writers' making their returns or debuts to FPLH.
Finally, I leave you with a tutorial on how to take a penalty. Do note: Class and composure needed!
England's Euro 2012 Squad: Analysis, hopes and expectations
I must make it clear that I wish England all the best at Euro 2012. However, with Gary Cahill's injury over the weekend and Martin Kelly's call up, the England squad for Euro 2012 now consists of 6 Liverpool players. That is more than a quarter of the squad from a dire Liverpool team that sacked their manager after finishing 8th in the league. Don't get me wrong Martin Kelly is definitely one for the future. But as for the present they should have picked a suitable experienced replacement, i.e. Rio Ferdinand. In my opinion he was the next best pick for "football reasons", regardless of what Hodgson says. Yet ultimately this was not the case, in part due to the John Terry saga.
It is a shame to think that Rio Ferdinand, one of England's best ever centre backs, will never have played in a European Championship (not picked in '00, suspended in '04, didn't qualify in '08 and unfairly not picked in '12). The 2012 squad is probably one of the weakest England squads at a tournament for generations. Even Keegan's Euro 2000 squad puts the 2012 bunch to shame. Apart from Steven Gerrard and Andy Carroll, I believe that the four other Liverpool players have in effect stolen their places from other talented alternatives. If I had it my way I would make the following changes:
Glen Johnson (out) / Micah Richards (in). Richards won the league with City in May and was also unfairly snubbed by Capello. Sure he wasn't a regular for City through out the season, however he is more of a better choice than Johnson who had a mediocre season at best and still carries the defensive baggage of World Cup 2010.
Stewart Downing (out) / Joe Cole (in). Joe Cole avoided Liverpool's poor season and instead had a fantastic time on loan at Lille. He bagged 9 goals to boot as he rediscovered his form. Instead of picking him, Hodgson overloaded on wingers and picked Downing who has never shown true class at the international stage. Joe Cole could have provided the spark to change a match with his creativity, sadly Downing doesn't possess such an attribute.
Jordan Henderson (out) / Paul Scholes (in). Capello missed a trick by not speaking to Scholes early enough ahead of World Cup 2010. It appears that Hodgson has done the same. Scholes came out if retirement and almost steered United to another Premier League title. Despite his age he showed that he still has the hunger and passion to succeed at the highest level. Alas, Henderson hasn't done the same this season, despite his glints of promise at Sunderland during the 10-11 season. Barring anymore injuries, Henderson will be a backup in the squad, a role that Scholes could have fitted into perfectly with his experience.
Martin Kelly (out) / Rio Ferdinand (in). I accept that Rio Ferdinand has been suffering from regular bouts of injuries since 2010 and is passed his best. But in truth he has had a relatively satisfactory 2012 and as a result should have been picked in the squad at the very least. Martin Kelly has not had many starts for Liverpool, in fact he only has a few minutes of international duty to his name, Hodgson should have brought Terry and Ferdinand together in the hope of forming a temporary truce for Euro 2012. At the very least he should have spoken to Ferdinand, alas this doesn't appear to be the case.
In terms of England's performance, I believe realistically we can expect the following:
GS: France 1-1 England
GS: Sweden 1-2 England
GS: England 0-0 Ukraine
(England finish 2nd with 5 points and face Spain in the quarter finals, provided Spain finish 1st in their group)
QF: England 1-1 Spain
(Spain win 5-4 on penalties)
Unfortunately, I believe that the above is realistic hope that borders on inflated optimism. Thus don't be surprised if England's weakened squad end up doing the following:
GS: France 2-0 England
GS: Sweden 1-1 England
GS: Ukraine 0-0 England
(England finish 3rd or 4th with 2 points in their group and get knocked out)
Probable final:
Germany v Netherlands
(If so, Germany to win it on penalties of course...)
Don't worry. The above is mere speculation...
England could yet still do a Denmark '92, Greece '04 or an England '96!
Since being launched the official FPL has pretty much stuck to its original format. This in part has contributed to its success. However, I believe that there is room for improvement. My 5 recommendations are as follows:
1. Bonus Points - Updates Release
In previous seasons it was common for bonus points updates to be released a couple of hours or so after a match. Some people complained that the quick release led to inaccurate bonus points allocations. However, the new PPI-system has brought up some strange bonus points outcomes this season. Moreover, the delayed bonus points can be frustrating, so much so that people can become disincentivised from playing FPL. Thus, the administrators of FPL should work to speed up their release of bonus points, even if it means reverting back to the old system.
2. Assister's Assist
Of course FPL gives attacking points in the form of goals and assists. But I think it is missing out on a trick by not awarding any points to the players who often create the plays that sets up the goals, i.e. "assister's assist". This means that players such as Modric, Cabaye, Ramsey, etc. who don't score or assist as much but are integral to pre-assist plays fail to receive the credit they deserve. Consequently, it would be beneficial if FPL awarded 1 point to the player that assisted the assist so as to recognise the importance of such talent.
3. Defensive Midfield
In relation to the assister's assist, there is also another type of player that warrants points recognition - defensive midfielders, i.e. Carrick, Tiote, Song etc. In particular it is the tackles that they commit. At least with defenders they are awarded with 4 points for a clean sheet. Not so for defensive midfielders, only 1 point which is across the board for midfielders. Perhaps FPL can come up with a system to award 4 points to midfielders for every 6 successful tackles they commit in a match? Alternatively, increase midfielders' clean sheet point from 1 to 2.
4. Player Prices - Valuations
For the past few seasons the "usual suspects" tend to be priced the highest, £11M+ i.e. Lampard, Gerrard, Tevez, etc. What is all the more frustrating is that their prices remain almost static with no significant price drop when they are heavily de-selected or ignored by FPL gamers. Of course tinkering with their prices could be problematic. Moreover FPL operates a semi-price freeze in certain conditions so as to avoid wholesale manipulation by FPL gamers via inappropriate pricing. My suggestion would be for them to practically base their prices solely on the previous season, rather than taking all of the past few seasons or (projected performance) into account. If this is not possible, FPL should offer to revise player price prices of high-priced lowly selected players (i.e. £10m+ and only owned 5% or less) after 3 or 6 month intervals so as to add a level of realism to the game).
5. Vice Captain Points v "Cameo Captains"
Unlike previous seasons where a vice-captain could only be selected upon the criteria of form or value, 2011/2012 allowed you to directly pick the vice-captain. This was beneficial as it didn't tie you down to 1 or 2 options. However, the vice-captains points only kick in if your captain hasn't played a single minute of the match. This can be problematic if your vice-captain has had a fantastic Gameweek, where as your captain has only made a 1 minute cameo as you would lose out on a galactic scale. As a result, I would suggest that vice-captains points should come into play more often, i.e. so long as the captain has played only up to 10 minutes. This way you could be spared the unfortunate 2 points for a cameo captain.
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MID: Walcott (ARS), Mata (CHE), Dempsey (FUL), Bale (TOT)
FWD: Rooney (MNC), Van Persie (ARS), Aguero (MNC) *The team is not necessarily based upon FPL points, but on general
performance, value-for-money or due to their exceptional impacts upon
their respective teams.
City's late late finish lets them clinch the title in sensational fashion
Michael Thomas move over. On Sunday we witnessed the most
amazing end to a top flight season. 1-0 up you would think that Mancini's men
would cruise to a comfortable finish. Not so as Cisse bagged an
equaliser and things then became oddly complicated with Barton's red
card. Mackie defied the odds to make it 1-2. With 90 minutes on the
clock the title was heading to United, but some how City's never say
never attitude came to the fore as Dzeko and then Aguero sensationally
scored to make it 3-2. With that City won their first top flight title
since 1968 and first ever Premier League title. QPR didn't get
relegated despite the defeat as results elsewhere went in their favour. United win against Sunderland but fail to win the title
Fergie's men knew that they had to win against Sunderland and
hope that QPR could shock City to win the title. Rooney's solitary goal
gave United victory and as the whistle blew at the Stadium of Light,
City were 1-2 down with United on course for the title. QPR certainly
shocked City till the 90th minute, but it wasn't enough as City claimed
victory in injury time. The title was decided on goal difference. To think that the Reds held an 8 point lead
before their failure to defeat Wigan, Everton and City. Fergie's men
end the season trophy-less and will know that they can't afford any more
slip ups next season, as City become rampant.
Relegated Rovers end season with defeat at Stamford Bridge
With an eye on the Champions League final, Chelsea rested some
of their key players as they were not playing for league position.
Goals from Terry and Meireles ensured a 12th league home victory as
Blackburn lost their 11th away match of the season and finished 19th.
Geordies become stuck against terrific Toffees
Newcastle's slight hopes of Champions League football came
crashing as they lost to Everton and results went against them
elsewhere. Jelavic got on the score sheet again and helped Everton
extend their unbeaten run to 9, where as Newcastle ended the season with
back to back defeats.
Villa's bad form continues as Canaries win
Norwich continued their fine season form with victory to allow
them to finish 12th. Unsung hero Grant Holt scored again, before
Jackson added a second. It meant that Villa failed to win in their last
10 matches of the season and ended up in 16th place. Villa's poor form
proved costly and McLeish has subsequently been sacked.
Bolton are relegated after only achieving a draw against Stoke
They battled hard in the end, but it wasn't enough to save
them. A win was a must with the two Davies' giving them some hope, but
Walters cancelled them out on each occasion. Their ultimate failure was
their inability to win. They should have won their penultimate match
of the season and they failed again on the final hurdle. As a
consequence Bolton were relegated and will now be in the Championship
next season.
Cool Swans add to Liverpool's league woes
Call them Barcelona Lite or Swancelona. The
superlatives to describe Swansea's creative style of play and results
are endless. They were marked for the drop by many at the start of the
season yet finish 11th after a 1-0 victory against a timid Liverpool
team. Kenny's men may have won the League Cup and ended up as FA cup
runners up, but their league form in turn has been disastrous. So much
so that Dalglish has now been removed as the manager of Liverpool.
Tottenham regain form to reactivate their Champions League hopes
A comfortable 2-0 win against Fulham in the end secured
victory and 4th spot for Spurs. Their finish could have been all the
more easier had they not let their form spiral out of control from
mid-February to April. To think that they held a 11 point lead over
Arsenal, yet finished 1 point behind them is remarkable. Despite
finishing 4th Spurs could lose out on a Champions League spot, if
Chelsea can secure victory in the Champions League final.
Hodgson's reign at WBA ends in a 5 goal thriller defeat
Arsenal had to work hard to secure 3rd spot as they narrowly beat
West Brom 2-3. Van Persie failed to add to his season's tally, but that
didn't stop the Gunners scoring 3. The defeat will not do any damage to
WBA. In the space of a year and a half Hodgson transformed his men
from relegation near certainties to a Top 10 team. As for Arsenal, it
will be interesting to see if they can keep hold of Van Persie and
secure another Top 4 finish for next season. Boyce's brace is ace as Wigan hit three past Wolves
Wigan ended their season on a high with a 3-2 victory against Wolves.
The win meant that they won 7 of their last 10 matches and finish 15th,
despite being in the bottom 3 for the majority of the season. Questions
remain on whether Martinez will stay as manager at Wigan and if he
doesn't will Wigan escape the drop again next season?
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The final Gameweek of the season was bad for the FPLH Blog Team. Firstly, our recommended player doesn't start, nor is on the bench. Thus the -4
calculated risk backfires. Walker hobbles off injured on the 49th
minute, which meant that I lost 5 more points. Caulker and Evans are rooted to my bench and score 14 points between them, where as my choice of Gibbs
and Clichy score 1 each. Apart from my captain Aguero (16) bailing me
out, as well as assists from RVP and VDV, nothing good came from my team. My team slipped in the overall rankings from 73rd to 110th following this awful Gameweek. Looking on the bright side, the FPLH Blog Team had a
decent finish following excellent results in recent weeks. With
hindsight it was job well done considering our recent FPL form and in
turn securing a very respectable overall ranking. In summary, this season has been productive and as a result a high benchmark has been set for next season.
‘Mid-table mediocrity’ is a phrase that has haunted Fulham FC for the majority of their Premier League existence. However, there seems to be light at the end of the tunnel for the Craven Cottage outfit. Martin Jol has continued to build upon the foundations laid by Roy Hodgson and Mark Hughes, and now the West London club are within touching distance of reaching their highest ever Premier League points total (53). They are pushing for European football again, and it seems, are moving away from the football abyss that is mid-table mediocrity.
Paramount to this revival is the introduction of many fresh, young and talented players. One of the latest introductions is the 20 year old Swede, Alex Kacaniklic. He is an exciting left sided winger who has a keen eye for a pass, as well as a deadly left foot. Making his debut in English football at the Liverpool academy, Kacaniklic helped his team to a 2-1 victory over Arsenal in the Youth Cup final. He scored a thunderbolt of a goal in the that game, and went on to show Liverpool exactly what they have been missing, as he was part of the Fulham side that secured their first ever victory at Anfield in the Premier League.
At only 20 years of age, the young Swede still has time to mature into a cultured left winger. His confident displays whilst on loan to Championship side Watford earned him a recall to the Fulham first team in March. With players such as Clint Dempsey and Moussa Dembele on the radar of some of the Premier League’s elite, Kacaniklic may have a big role to play at
Fulham next season.
To sustain success in the Premier League, it is essential to have flair players who aren’t afraid to shoot from distance: this is exactly what Kacaniklic brings to the team. He likes to hug the touchline and often cuts inside to fire powerful shots at goal. In addition to this, the former Liverpool man also poses a threat from set pieces. In this sense, it is difficult to ignore the glaring comparison to fellow Scandinavian, Morten Gamst Pedersen; a left sided winger
notorious for his free-kick abilities.
Overall, the future is looking bright for Fulham FC, and particularly, Alex Kacaniklic. He is the type of attacking player who can ignite a game, and may well provide the catalyst for another impressive season at Craven Cottage next season.
I am a final year English student at the University
of Portsmouth. I am extremely passionate about sport, and my burning
ambition is to write for a national newspaper. You can find my blog at: samuelballs.wordpress.com or follow me on twitter: @Sam_Balls
And so it comes to this. A Gameweek shoot out that will determine the champion. 32 entered, but only one can win it. Our inaugural FPLH Cup has reached its final stage for this season. The FPLH Blog Team has maintained its consistency by topping the preliminary group and reaching the final. One more push is required by our flagship entrant, but this time against the 6th seed challenger. Can we do it? Stay tuned...
Recommended Player for Gameweek 38 - Juan Mata (Chelsea)
I had to incur a -4 transfer hit to purchase him for the FPLH Blog
Team. But I think he could be worth it as the Premier League comes to
an end for another season. My recommended player for Gameweek 38 is
Chelsea's Juan Mata.
Some may say that he is a surprise
endorsement considering his lack of league football of late. Of course
he didn't start in Chelsea's last league match and hasn't played a full
90 minutes in the Premier League for over a month. But can you blame
him or Chelsea for that? The fact of the matter is that the Blues have
also been busy with their FA Cup and Champions League runs that has led
to Mata being subbed off early during league matches. His lack of
league play time has not been due to persistent injury or lack of form.
In fact the last time he played an hour's worth of football in the
league he managed to bag four assists (v QPR).
Some may say
that he may not play a full 90 minutes v Blackburn (Chelsea's final
league match of the season), due to the Champions League final the week
after. This could be true. However he would have a week's rest for
it if he plays on Sunday (also he was rested in the league match v
Liverpool on 8th May). This makes me believe that he should hopefully
play an hour's worth against Rovers, with Chelsea hoping to end their
league season on a high despite not playing for position.
The
Spanish international is currently the Premier League's joint-top
assister. This is complimented by his 6 league goals. All the more
remarkable considering that he is playing in his inaugural Premier League
season. Such statistics highlight his attacking and creative nature.
Moreover, Chelsea on average have scored 2.17 goals per league match
this season. On the other hand Blackburn have conceded 2.39 goals per
league matches this season. In effect their match is a clash between
one of the Premier League's best home attacking records against one of
the worst defensive away records. Surely he can make the most of this?
At
9.7 Mata is value for money considering his on-field output per
minute. The World Cup winner has proven pedigree that can come to the
fore against the best and worst of teams. He may have the Champions
League final and Euro 2012 to look forward to, but he still has
unfinished business against relegated Blackburn. The 24 year old will
hope to end the league season on a high and he should in theory do well
by making a significant impact in Gameweek 38.
I will post My GW 38 Blog Team (with confirmation of my selected captain and vice-captain) at least a night before the Gameweek commences.
