English Premier League Fantasy Draft Review

Fantasy Football is great.  Fantasy English Football is sadly lacking.  Can you believe with all the coverage the English Premier League has been getting in the US the last few years that there still isn't and EPL Fantasy Draft based league out there?  All the leagues are lame salary cap leagues.
To remedy this, my friends and I created our own draft league starting with the 2007-08 season.  Things are pretty serious now.  With the uncertainty of transfers, new players, 2 weeks before the transfer window ends, the draft is always the funnest night of the year.
Here is a recap of the 2012-2013 EPL Fantasy Draft.  I will give you the first two round of picks to see how things work, show you my entire draft, and then end with some good picks/ bad picks.

Round One
1.Wayne Rooney - The safe number one pick, will score goals regardless of the addition of Van Persie
2. Sergio Aguero -My pick here, think it was a good one.  Aguero will put in his goals
3. Fernando Torres - The only real top striker on a team with loads of creative midfielders.  Can he find his form?
4. Lucas Podalski - This manager does not take players from Man U, Man City, Liverpool, Tottenham, or Chelsea.  That's the only thing that makes this pick make any sense.
5. Robin Van Persie - People are worried about Rooney and Van Persie fitting in together, but if anyone watched Man United last season, they would see that Rooney plays deep, almost as a center midfielder sometimes.  RVP will lead the line.
6. David Silva - Best midfielder last season, but tailed off a bit toward the end.  With such a strong squad, not sure if he is a top 6 pick
7. Luis Suarez - Horse-faced racist diver, but a good player.
8. Gareth Bale - Good pick here, maybe the best midfield fantasy player in the league
9. Carlos Tevez - A bit risky this high, but it looks like he'll play this season, and if he plays, he scores
10. Oliver Giroud - Hmm, scored a lot for Montpellier, but this is  the EPL.  He won't be a Chamahk, but he also won't be a Van Persie
11. Papa Cisse - Incredible scoring record last season, but I don't see he having that same form
12. Rafael Van der Vaart - Ooh, is he still in the league?

Round 2
13. Juan Mata - Great midfielder player, should get lots of assists, but will he bag enough goals
14. Nani - good fantasy player, but gets in Ferguson's doghouse from time to time
15. Santi Cazorla - New boy from Spain will be needed to provide a create spark for Arsenal
16. Joe Hart - First goalkeeper taken
17. Vincent Kompany - Best defender on the best defensive team in the league
18. Steven Gerrard - Great pick if this was 2004
19. Clint Dempsey - Maybe a bit high, especially with transfer status in the air, great midfielder, though
20.Denis Hazard - Talented midfielder, should be another of Chelsea's creative talents, should  get a lot of assists if his strikers can put in some goals
21. Thomas Vermaelen - Arsenal, lots of injuries, but a great player
22. Mario Balotelli - Great summer for Balotelli, but will be get enough starts with all of City's talented strikers?
23. Nikica Jelavic - Great scoring record of Everton last season.  He should do more of the same with a team that only plays one striker and has a good number of attackind midfielders and defenders
24/25. John Terry/Frank Lampard - Pretty much the same pick here.  Great histories with Chelsea and will somehow continue to put up points despite playing less

Now my full picks
Round 1. Aguero
Round 2. Jelavic
Round 3. Vidic - Injuries could be an issue, but Man U was second in least goals against last season
4. Micah Richards - Clicy was picked right before Richards and I really wanted a Man City defender, so I might have reached a bit
5. Vertonghen - I like this pick, a defender on a strong team, but lacking a strong center defender.  He'll coem in right away and score some goals
6. Oxlade-Chamberlain - Ready for a break out season
7. Cabaye - Looked good for France in Euros, should comtinue to do what he did last season
8. Heitinga - Should be the started for Everton with Jagielka, or maybe even play a defensive midfield position
9. Moses - Strong attacking midfielder, but if he moves to Chelsea, he'll get much less playing time
10. Fellaini - Moved up the field a bit after Gibson came to Everton and put in goals and assists, see more of the same this season
11. Mirallas - Coming to Everton, should be a nice second forward or attacking mid - led the Greek league in goals last season
12. Adam Johnson - Plays strong for England, will now get some playing time at Sunderland, a team in need of some creativity
13. Cameron - USA, USA - Stoke has a strong defensive record, especially at home
14. Schwarzer - Nice value pick here
15. Begovic - good to have options between the posts
16. R. Taylor - eh, kind of a throw away pick here

 Verdict: Strong strikers undoubtedly, a strong defense, but not as strong in years past for me, and a definite unproven midfield.  I will need someone in that midfield to step up to grab a top 2 spot.

Good Picks:
4th Round: Baines - Good value in 4th round.  Everton actually had the 3rd least goals against last season and Baines will continue to put in goals and even more assists
5th Round: Kagawa - Should fit in will at Man U and set up Rooney and Van Persie,  Adebayor - One of the most underrated players in the league.
6th Round: Ben Arfa - attacking young player on the rise, Howard - strong 'keeper, good defensive team, Peinaar - Looked great at the end of last season when he joined Everton, look for more of the same linking up with Baines
8th: Dzeko - He'll put in his goals
9th: Distin - Could start for Everton, Kaboul - should start for Tottenham
10th: S. Taylor - Missed a lot of last season, but should be back strong for Newcastle, Michu - Interesting attacking player new for Swansea, Agger - staying put Liverpool, Fellaini - above

Questionable Picks
4. R. Ferdinand - High for Ferdinand, he's old, slow, and injury prone.  This isn't 2005.
6. Graham - Scored a lot last season, but I don't see the same happening this year
7. Santos - What is he, 3rd choice at Arsenal?
8. Dawson - Injury prone to the max
9. Pennant - Defender, midfielder, what team is he even on?
10. Kolarov - Set to leave City
11. Scholes - doesn't play enough, Kane - who???
13. Barry - Defensive midfielder, Savic - 4th choice at city

Overall, teams look a lot more equal than in years past.  People are finally figuring out how to draft.  I really don't know how to predict the league. Even Serg as a pretty good team  This is definitely the least confident I have felt post draft.  Not even certain to finish in the top half this year.
Dustin looks good with Van Persie and strong midfield, should challenge once again
BJ - reliant on Arsenal and will need to get enough from his Everton and Villa players to challenge for the top
Worth - lots of Liverpool, but does have some decent attacking power with Suarez, Dzeko, Berbatov, Nasri, and Yaya Toure
Raubert - very solid team from 1-11, should challenge for the title
Junkie - If Rooney can get hot, he can challenge for the top 3, if not, I see a midtable team
Jerry- strong in the back with Hart, A. Cole, Luiz, and Zabaleta, but really only has Tevez on the attacking side.  I see a bottom half finish
Carlo - average at best, high scorer will likely be Peter Cech
Mort
Andy - I see Mort and Andy battling it out for last place, but have to predict Andy will go from first to worst.
Bryan - with strikers Grant Holt, Danny Graham, and Moussa Dembele, I see a bottom half finish for Bryan
Serg - Soild team all around, will need midfield production from Ben Arfa, Marin, and N'Zogbia to challenge

English Premier League Fantasy Recap Part II

Check the post below for part I.

Now is the time where I get to praise and rib people for their picks. I'm pretty good at the ribbing part.

Good picks:
Martin Skrtel - 6th Round - A nice pick up here in the 6th. He is one of the most consistent defenders in the league and always gets the start for Liverpool.
Gabbi Agbonlahor - 8th Round - Not a top level striker, but this guy was a probably a 3rd round striker just a couple years ago, should continue to work well with Bent.
Dimitar Berbatov - 7th Round - Last years joint leading scorer in the 7th round. I don't expect another 20 goal season, but good value this late.
Seamus Coleman - 7th - Coleman would be a top class defender if not for his injury, still good value in the 7th round for an Everton that will start slow anyways.
Carlos Tevez - 8th - Similar to Berbatov, but much more uncertainty about his future. Still high reward pick for the 8th round even if he only stays until January
Mark Schwarzer - 10th - Last quality 'keeper on the board. A steal considering Given went in the 7th and Howard in the 4th.
Roman Pavlyuchenko - 10th - Tottenham's best striker right now, strong end to last season, finally in good graces at Spurs.
Stephane Sessegnon - 12th - Strong attacking midfield option at Sunderland
Ramires - 12th - Seems to be settling in the starting XI at Chelsea, especially with Essien injured.
Leon Osman - 13th - Great run at the end of last season, should get lots of starts as Everton are lacking wingers.
Alan Hutton - 13th - Should be the starter at right back for Spurs
Romelu Lukaku - 16th - Not sure how much PT he'll get, but a good shot with your final pick

Not so Clever Picks:
Malouda 1st Round, Kalou 4th Round - Good players, but drafted too high especially on a Chelsea team with loads of attacking options.
Bobby Zamora - 4th - He'll get lots of games, but too high at the 4th round
Scott Sinclair - 5th - This pick got a number of laughs, but no, it wasn't a joke. Maybe he thought it was the 15th round.
Alex - 5th Round - Didn't you learn from taking Alex too high before Junkie? He is not first choice at Chelsea and has been heavily linked to a move to Italy.
Gareth Barry - 9th - Gareth Barry used to be good. Then he moved to Man City.
Phil Neville - 15th - Listed as a midfielder, not a defender. Ouch.
Morten Gamst Pedersen - 8th - A bit high at the 8th round.
Grant Holt - 9th - Obviously early for a Norwich striker. Mort, did you know he is fat? Here are some of his facebook groups - "Grant Holt is a Fat Prick", "Get off the ground you fat cunt! Nan please, that's Grant Holt", "Grant Holt is a diving scum". Despite what it appears, I have nothing against Grant Holt. I hope he does well.


Teams
Carlo - 1. Rooney 2. Vidic 3. Cech
A strong start for Carlo. His first half of the draft was great, but then he started picking a slew of defensive midfielders - Gareth Barry, Lucas, Alex Song, Whitehead - spelling fantasy disaster.
Prediction - Strong foundation and good picks with Coleman and Taarabt in the 7th and 8th, but the second half of the draft will see Carlo languish in the mid table.

Andy - "TheWengerBoysAreComing" - 1. Van Persie 2. Baines 3. Yaya
Took Samba (4th) and Henderson (6th) too early. With defenders from Everton, Wigan, Newcastle, and Fulham, I'm not sure if his defense will be strong enough. Lots will depend on Van Persie's health.
Prediction - Should be a marked improvement from last year, but won't challenge for the top spots.

BJ - "There's something about Gabi's smelly cunt" - 1. Bent 2. Walcott 3. Dempsey
BJ sticks to his morals and does not select players from Chelsea, Man U, Man City, Liverpool, or Tottenham. Despite this hindrance, he finished second in the league last year. He got Dempsey and T. Cahill 3rd and 4th and Gibbs and Koscielny 6th and 7th.
Prediction - Despite his limitations, BJ should again challenge for the league. A lot will depend on Arsenal's defense, and how well Villa and Fulham perform this season.

Serg - 1. Malouda 2. A. Cole 3. Gyan
Serg left after round 10 of the draft. His team got better once he left.
Prediction - Relegation

Rory - "My dad wasn't really elected" - 1. Lampard 2. Chichirito 3. Gervinho
Rory had our first ever proxy drafting for him. He had a pretty detailed list, but I think his absence from the draft will hurt him early on.
Prediction - Overall his team is good, but not flashy - mid table

Junkie - " The fantasy team formerly Jobless for Life, formerly Down for Brown" 1. Drogba 2. Nasri 3. Evra
Good start to the draft for Junkie, then a quick decline - Alex, Chamakh, Riise, Gallas, David Dunn. He has a solid midfield, with the potential for more depending how Nasri settles in.
Prediction: Relegation battle

Jerry - 1. Suarez 2. Bale 3. Reina
Good draft for Jerry, but a lot will depend on who gets playing time. Jerry pick a lot of players who are not guaranteed starters - Lescott, Adam Johnson, Phil Jones, Tevez, K. Toure, Fabio, SWP
Prediction - Should challenge for a European spot, but not the title

Bryan - "Pippa Middleton XI" - 1. Van der Vaart, Kuyt, N'Zogbia
I don't see any of Pippa's first three picks performing as well as last season. Bryan does have a strong but not flashy squad, though, with stalwarts like Kenwyne Jones, Kevin Davies, Shay Given, Jamie Carragher and a couple nice later picks like Osman, Moses, and Enrique
Prediction - I see Bryan putting together a side that will see him achieve his best position ever. But that isn't really saying much.

Dustin - "I hate Eric Ellsworth for ruining our fantasy draft by running his restaurant into the ground and forcing us into Raubert's super sweaty living room Wanderers" (FC) - 1. Silva 2. Terry 3. Gerrard
Dustin is strong at all positions, with the exception of striker. Good value picks with Smalling and Brunt 8 and 9.
Prediction: Dustin is a proven EPL fantasy manager and should challenge for the title

Worth - "It takes a Man to Raise a Man" FC - 1. Carroll 2. A. Young 3. Modric
A very solid start for Worth, getting Dzeko in the 4th and Valencia in the 5th. He has a good squad. Some questions with Zabaleta, Richards, and Anelka and basically threw away his last 2 picks.
Prediction - Worth's best ever finish was 2nd two seasons ago. Can he best that? I don't think so, but he should finish near the top

Mort - 1. Aguero 2. Sniejder 3. Vermaelen
Some questionable picks by Mort as I mentioned earlier, but some nice ones too - Dawson, Adam, and Distin 6th-8th rounds. I see a very inconsistent season for the newcomer.
Prediction - It will be a rough first time out. Look for some good weeks and bad weeks. I see a low midtable finish - but not last place.

Raubert - "Cos's Cavernous Condoms" - 1. Nani 2. Hart 3. Ivanovic
Very strong D for Raubert. his mid is a bit lacking other than Nani. His strikers should be just good enough to allow him to challenge for a finish in the money.
Prediction - Near the top of the table

Tony - "Gia's Afterbirth Sack-lunch" - 1. Torres 2. Arshavin 3. Kompany
Prediction - I'm not as confident as last year. A repeat will be tough, but I should still finish in the top 3. I know fantasy soccer.

There you go kids. Feel to add to the fodder in the comments section below.

English Premiership Fantasy Draft Review 2011

Time for another English Premier League fantasy draft. As you EPL fans know, there are no good fantasy English leagues out there. They are all salary cap based as opposed draft based which we like here in America. Also, they have stupid scoring systems where you get points for starts, substitutions, shots and a different number of points for goals depending on what position you play. It doesn't take an expert to know that in soccer, all goals count for the same number of points.
To rectify this situation, my friends and I created our own draft league. We keep it simple - points for goals, assists, team of the week, negative points for own goals, goals against, and red cards. Each team drafts 16 players and starts a 4-4-2 every week with a captain having their points doubled. The draft totally changes strategy. Only one team gets Wayne Rooney, Frank Lampard and the like. There are a finite number of strong defenders and scoring midfielders. Do you go with offense or defense first? You also have all the transfer uncertainty before the season. Big decisions.

Let's take a look at this years EPL Fantasy Draft.

Round 1
1. Wayne Rooney - Striker - Manchester United - This was the right pick. I took Rooney first last year. He is the most reliable, most consistent player. He may not lead the league in goals, but he will get his points. There is no such certainty with any other player.
2. Robin Van Persie - Striker - Arsenal - Van Persie tore it up at the end of last season. He is a top striker, but can he stay healthy?
3. Fernando Torres - Striker - Chelsea - A bit of a risk here. Torres has not had a good year. He has shown the pedigree in the EPL and seemingly should turn things around at Chelsea.
4. Darren Bent - Striker - Aston Villa - This pick might be a bit of a surprise this soon, but if you look at the stats over the past few years, Bent is a top 3 Premier League striker. Also, due to moral reasons, the manager picking here does not take players from Chelsea, Tottenham, Liverpool, Man United, or Man City.
5. Florent Malouda - Midfielder - Chelsea - The first midfielder taken. I would not have expected Malouda to be the first taken. Malouda does get his points, but really tailed off during the second half of last season. I question this pick.
6. Frank Lampard - M - Chelsea - Lampard has been one of the best fantasy players over the course of the league. He didn't do as well last year. There is a lot of clamoring about him getting old, but if you look at the games he played, he put up high points.
7. Didiger Drogba - S - Chelsea - Drogba is another player who used to be a certain top 3 pick, but has a few question marks due to injuries and age.
8. Luiz Suarez - S - Liverpool - Interesting choice between Carroll and Suarez. Either could have a break out year or a disappointing year.
9. Rafael Van der Vaart - M - Tottenham - Van der Vaart was a revelation last year, full of goals and assists. He fell off a bit at the end of the year. Can he repeat?
10. David Silva - M - Man City - I like this pick. Silva came on strong last season and is the play maker on a talented city side. He'll have loads of assists and a few goals to match.
11. Andy Carroll - S - Liverpool - See pick #8
12. Sergio Aguero - S - Man City - New players to the EPL are always a risk, but I like this pick. Plug in Aguero for Tevez do you have 20 goals again? We shall see.
13. Nani - M - Man U - Nani I think was the second leading midfield scorer last season. He gets assists and goals. His benching by Sir Alex in the Champions League final does raise some questions.

Round 2
14. Joe Hart - Goalkeeper - Man City - With no Van der Sar and the lack of a true number 1 at Arsenal, 'keepers are at a premium. I think this is a bit early, but you can't really question it.
15. Wesley Sneijder - M - Inter - Wow. Earliest pick for a non-premier league player ever. Lots of rumors, but a HUGE risk this early in the draft. Wow.
16. Ashley Young - M - Man U - A perennial early round pick with Aston Villa. Now at Man U. That raises his value in my book. Nice pick.
17. John Terry - Defender - Chelsea - Terry is the only player to make the fantasy league team of the year all 4 years of the league. First defender taken and rightfully so.
18. Dirk Kuyt - M - Liverpool - Always under rated at midfielder. Kuyt will play as an attacking midfielder every game. Good pick.
19. Gareth Bale - M - Tottenham - Bale is a good player, but maybe not a top 20 fantasy player. He needs some consistency to become that. Maybe this will be another break-out season, with the stats to match the hype.
20. Samir Nasri - M - Arsenal - Time will tell on this one. If he stays and Fabregas goes, great value at 20, but if he goes to City, where does he fit in?
21. Chicirito - S - Man U - A bit early at 21. I'm not sure if he can match his success of the previous year.
22. Ashley Cole - D - Chelsea - Good pick - a certain starting defender for a top team and he gets forward.
23. Theo Walcott - M - Arsenal - With Walcott you can count on a few great games, frequent poor crosses, loads of speed, and a couple injuries each year.
24. Andrei Arshavin - M - Arsenal - See 23 but with less speed and less injuries
25. Leighton Baines - D - Everton - Baines gets forward, takes great free kicks, will get loads of assists and a few goals. But how many clean sheets can he get with Everton?
26. Nemanja Vidic - D - Man United - A rock in the Man U defense. He is a sure starter and throws in some set piece headers as well. Strong pick as the final one of the second round.

Ok, I'm only giving you the first two rounds. I can't have this blog be too epic. Now I'll take a look at my picks, followed by selected good and bad picks and a brief rating of each team.

My picks:
Round 1: Torres
Round 2: Arshavin
Round 3: Vincent Kompany - D - Man City - Like I mentioned earlier, there are only a handful of defenders you can pencil in every week for the Big 5 (Man City joins as well). I would put this list as Cech, Ivanovic, Cole, Terry, Luiz, De Gea, Evra, Vidic, Reina, Skrtel, Johnson, Hart, and Kompany. This is a short list. These players should be at a premium. Last year, Man City and Chelsea were tied with the lowest goals against. And Kompany is the only sure starter on D for Man City. That's why I took him so early.
4. David Luiz - D - Chelsea - Very happy to get Luiz here. He was number 16 0n my big board and I got him with pick 50. Nice.
5. Mario Balotelli - S - Man City - Head case. High Risk, hopefully high reward.
6. Brad Friedel - GK - Tottenham - Maybe a bit early, but I needed a goalie, and it was him or Given.
7. Mikel Arteta - M - Everton - Good value at round 7 barring any more injury issues.
8. Rafael - D - Man U - If Rafael gets the majority of starts at right back, I'm feeling very good about my team.
9. Marouane Fellaini - M - Everton - Ready for a bounce-back year. Good value in round 9.
10. David "Junior" Hoilett - M - Blackburn - This was my sleeper pick. I probably took him a round or two early, but I did not want to lose him. He is listed as a mid and should start a lot of games as a striker. Break-out year baby.
11. Louis Saha - S - Everton - Getting a starting striker for a top 7 team in the 11th round is great. Injury issues, though.
12. Ryan Shawcross - D - Stoke
13. Youssouf Mulumbu - M - West Bromwich Albion- Good back-up midfielder, another break-out candidate.
14. Ryan Giggs - M - Man U - The old man still has it. But how do you know when he will start?
15. John O'Shea - D - Sunderland
16. Steven Taylor - D - Newcastle - If you can't get a top defender, differentiation in the back is key. This way, goals against are usually balanced out by clean sheets.

There we go, a strong team. A championship team? I am not as confident as last season, but I feel pretty good looking after looking at other teams. Things that will tell the tale are Rafael's starts and if Torres or Balotelli can find consistent form.
Stay tuned for more to come!

Everton in DC

As I said for the US/Jamaica game, there are some perks due to living in DC. Ok, this perk -Everton vs. DC United - might not be too big of a perk for some people, but it does the job for me. I was pretty psyched when I found Everton was coming to my city. Here is a quick little review of their time here.

Practice - Everton had an open practice Friday morning, and of course, I went. It was 100 degrees and sunny, a bit different than Liverpool. There were only about 100 fans and it was kinda weird. Probably the weather, but most people were pretty subdued. I give a nice "Alright Timmy" as Tim Cahill came out and he sent over a brief salute, maybe more of a wave, or at least some sort of acknowledgment.
The practice was nothing too crazy. Warm-ups, one offense drill with a couple variations and a small sided game. Beckford was probably most impressive, but a small sided scrimmage is where he would thrive. Distin and a few others had trouble with the heat. Props go to Leighton Baines. If you didn't know any better you'd think he was a young kid trying to make an impression on the coaches. He went through every drill at full speed while a lot of the more veteran players took water and stretch breaks and did other stuff. He did not slow down despite the heat.
Oh, and Arteta came out in a walking boot and crutches, not looking good.
The best part about the practice was that all the players and Moyes came over to the fans and signed autographs and took pictures. It was definitely a great way to show thanks for all fans that braved the heat. I know the last thing you want to do after a hot practice is go talk to people you don't know. Much appreciated. Now I'm too mature for that fanboy autograph shit, but I did get some nice pictures. Check them out below with a few player observations.

Game - The game was fun. The upper bowl at RFK was not open. I'd say about 12,000 fans, but that might be generous. Both teams mixed their squads with reserves and starters. Everton scoring twice in the first 15 minutes really made things easy for Everton, but also lacking drama. Everton weren't great, but totally moved the ball better than DC. They had a lot of chances, but DC had some good outside shots too, but it's really hard to glean the big picture from this game. Instead, let's look at a few individual players performances.

Ross Barkley - I didn't know who this guy was at the practice. He is big, like Rodwell, not as strong yet, but tall, more like a defender than midfielder. He got the start on Saturday and looked good - not great, but good. Like most young guys, he worked hard and was trying to do all he could. Best part, only 17 years old. We got to keep this young Liverpool born talent.

Apostolos Vellios - This 19 year old Greek striker might be my new favorite player, mostly because the great picture above, but also due to his strong potential. He was the first player I got a picture with and seemed a nice humble guy, happy to be there. He too got the start Saturday and looked good. He seems to be the strong target man the Everton are lacking. He showed for the ball a lot, showed good control and touches and game IQ. I'd love to see him up top with Saha or Beckford. But will Moyes do that?

Victor Anichebe - Man, this guy is a BEAST in person. Ridiculously strong, maybe too strong for soccer. He scored a nice goal, but still has a few injuries. Pre-season will be big for him. Oh, and he much better at looking at the camera than me.

Conor McAleny - This was another guy I did not know before the weekend. He was probably the most eye-catching at the practice. He worked his ass off and was very crisp. Some are comparing him to Michael Owen. We'll see. Again, though very young and full of promise.

Tim Cahill - Timmy likes the heat. Oh yeah, Timmy's ready! Timmy's got some new moves. He's an Aussie. Tim played much deeper than he usually does, but he said the summer is all about fitness.

Magaye Gueye - Magaye was my new favorite player coming into the weekend, but that spot might be usurped by Vellios due to the pic. Magaye will soon be a stud, though. He has pace and skill. He can play as a second striker, on the left wing or the right wing, all spots we will need people this year. The heat looked a bit much for him, but he did get his 3rd goal in 3 games this summer, which is a huge positive. On the goal in the game, what was most impressive was his great pass to set up Beckford. Excited for more!

Sylvain Distin - A mountain of a man. He was not a fan of the heat, but a beast on the field against DC. Distin!

Jermaine Beckford - Strong in practice, but only got about 20 minutes in the game. I am not sold on this guy. At least twice he took a shot from outside the box when he had open players on his flanks. A nice setup for Magaye, though He is going to have to show better decision making if he is going to become a starter under Moyes.


There you go, just the mostly meaningless preseason, I hope Everton had as good a time in DC as I did. Let's hope it actually contributes to a strong start this season! C'mon you Boys!

English Premier League Fantasy Wrap-Up

For the forth straight year, my friends and I ran a EPL English Premier League Fantasy Draft-based League. A fantasy draft in an EPL fantasy league is hard to come by, so my friends and I just do the league on our own. It provides for good fun. See the draft review here. Actually, I'm the one running the league, I do all the stats and collect weekly line-ups. This provides me with a huge advantage as I see every play who scores, every player who has a clean sheet, and every player that gets an assist. This come up big in the early parts of the season and in the middle part of the season when players get benched or injured.
Bottom line, I won the league again. Let's take a look at the league.

Defense wins championships. I put together an amazing defense, drafting Edwin Van der Sar, Joe Hart, Ashley Cole, Rio Ferdinand, Phil Jagielka, Silvain Distin, and Robert Huth. Bomb.
I would like to dedicate my championship to my midfield midseason pick-ups. I drafted Theo Walcott, and then a whole lot of nothing - Niko Kranjcar, Stephen Ireland, Shaun Wright-Philips, Steven N'Zonzi, and Mesut Ozil. Wow, pretty horrible. Throughout the course of the season, I picked up Ramires, Stuart Holden, Jordan Henderson, and lastly Thomas Hitzlesperger. Yes! Those midfielders along with my defense won me the championship.

TEAM OF THE YEAR
GK: Joe Hart 38 points (Jerry/Tony)
D: John Terry 62 points (Serg)
D: Ashley Cole 61 points (Tony)
D: Branislav Ivanovic 55 points (Carlo)
D: Vidic 51 points (Junkie)
M: Rafael van der Vaart 119 points (Raubert)
M: Ashley Young 74 points (Serg)
M: Nani 64 points (Dustin/Jerry)
M: Arshavin 58 points (Rory)
S: Carlos Tevez 166 points (Jerry/Dustin) PLAYER OF THE YEAR
S: Didier Drogba 127 points (Dustin/Jerry)
Manager: Carlo Ancelotti 15 points (Bryan)

Bench: Cech (Bryan), Zabaleta (Serg), Baines (Jerry/Worth), Fabregas (BJ), Kuyt (Dustin), Rooney (Tony), Robin Van Persie (Carlo/BJ)

Team-by-Team

BJ - Again, not picking players from Man U, Liverpool, Tottenham, Chelsea, and now Man City, yet somehow still challenging for the top spot until the last week, an impressive managerial display. Van Persie's hot streak helped him move up the table, along with Charles N'Zogbia and Asamoah Gyan pick-ups. Led the league in transfers - having everyone from Joey Barton to Landon Donovan to Steed Malbranque at one point.

Dustin - Last year's champ ended up third. Did his mid-season trade of Carlos Tevez for Didier Drogba cost him the league? I don't think so, but it would've put him much closer. Strong attacking lineup with Bent and Kuyt as well, but lack of a true scoring defender hurt him.

Raubert - Raubert, the league's inaugural winner 2008, came on very strong in the middle and end of the season, winning the Cup Competition. His early pick-ups of Peter Odemwingie and Rafael Van der Vaart turned out to be the best ones of the year.


Jerry - Started strong with Drogba killing at the start of the season and then picked up Tevez to keep momentum going. In the end, reliance on Man City players and failure to change his lineup sent him down the standings.

Rory - Rory was another early leader, in first place until about March. His team went the way of his players Berbatov and Kevin Nolan - great starts, but no points after January pretty much.

Serg - Shows if you stick with the same lineup every week, you will get players with a lot of points - Terry, Zabaleta, Ashley Young - but that will not get you enough points to challenge for the title, especially when you count Victor Obinna, Eidur Gudjohsen, and Yuri Zhirkov among those starters.

Bryan - Lack of a premier striker hurt Bryan. Strong midfield with Osman, Cahill, Bale, and Lee, but nothing great up-top.

Worth - Torres, lots of Liverpool defenders, lots of transfers, and too many Birmingham defenders makes for a poor season to go with poor career endeavors for our favorite former restaurant owner.

Andy - Questionable managerial moves not starting Charlie Adam and dropping Charles N'Zogbia. He actually drafted a strong team, but when Jermaine Defoe is your best player, things aren't going to be too strong.

Carlo - Yeah, when Chamakh is your best player, it is a sign you aren't really doing too hot, or playing too hard.

Junkie - Worst team in the history of the league. I actually liked the start of his draft with Gerrard, Vidic, and Vermaelen, but injuries and lack of depth killed him. Started John Pantsil, Paul Scholes, and James Milner all year, ouch.

Ah, I'm sorry that just turned into me making fun of everyone else. But that is what you get Dustin for starting Bolton's Paul Robinson.

Worst Players - Pienaar (Rory), Carrick (Carlo), Barera (Carlo), Zhirkov (Serg) - all started for much of the season but did not score a single point.
Kaboul (Junkie) -2, Warnock (Andy) -3, Kyriakos (Worth) -2, Phil Bardsley (Worth) -2, Aurelio (Worth) -4, Roger Johnson (Worth) -6
And worst player of the season - Wayne Bridge (Jerry) -8. Nice.

There you go folks, another great you. If anyone new is interested in joining, or creating their own league, let me know. Historical stats after the jump.

2009-2010
527 Dustin
492 Tony
464 Worth
455 Serg
435 BJ
436 Carlo
406 Raubert
398 Nik
363 Junkie
359 Bryan
270 Jesse


2008-2009
Tony 511
Worth 471
Junkie 469
Serg 446
BJ 437
Bryan 432
Tyler 364
Joe 328
Jesse 308
Raubert 299
Dustin 299

2007-2008
Raubert: 524
Tony : 490
Jesse: 488
Junkie: 459
Dustin: 415
Nik: 409
Loeser: 381
Worth: 367
Joe: 361
James: 348
Serg: 280


Team of the Year
2009/2010
GK: Cech 43 Points (Raubert)
D- John Terry 100 points (Serg)
D - Thomas Vermaelen 60 points (BJ)
D - Ashley Cole 58 points (Serg)
D - Patrice Evra 57 Points (Dustin)
M - Frank Lampard 198 points (Dustin) PLAYER OF THE YEAR
M - Cesc Fabregas 140 points (Tony)
M - Andrei Arshavin 66 points (Bryan)
M - Steven Gerrard 65 points (Carlo)
S - Wayne Rooney 184 points (Raubert)
S - Carlos Tevez 134 points (Carlo)

Bench: Reina 39, Dunne 53, Malouda 54, Torres 129, Drogba 123



2008-09
GK -Reina 61 points (Raubert)
D - Vidic 84 points (Junkie)
D - Bosingwa 75 points (Tony)
D - Alex 63 points (Bryan)
D - Terry 53 points (Serg)
M - Gerrard 168 points (Worth) PLAYER OF THE YEAR
M - Lampard 130 points (Serg)
M - Ronaldo 129 points (Tyler)
M - Ireland 49 points (Bryan)
S - Anelka 104 points (Junkie)
S - Robinho 95 points (Tony)

2007-08
GK- Reina 51 pts (Worth)
D - Rio Ferdinand 129 points (Joe)
D - Jolean Lescott 73 points (Jesse)
D- John Terry 71 pts (Tony)
D - William Gallas 68 pts (Loeser)
M- C. Ronaldo 242 pts (Raubert) PLAYER OF THE YEAR
M - Steven Gerrard 117 pts (Worth)
M - Fabregas 116 pts (Junkie)
M- Frank Lampard 86 pts (James)
S - Torres 185 pts (Jesse)
S - Adeboyor 132 pts (Nik)

EPL Fantasy Draft Review

Time for another fantasy English Premier League fantasy season. This is the fourth year my friends and I are running our own league. This year we are up to 12 teams, one more than last year, with a few dropping out and a few new additions, or promotions and relegations as we like to call them. We do our own league because there is not a draft based EPL fantasy league out there. Everything is based on salary cap. We do a draft. That makes it more fun, more entertaining, more cut throat, and more fragile. Every pick counts. The scoring is pretty simple with goals, assists, clean sheets, and team of the week getting points, and red cards own goals, and goals against getting negative points.

What sets the EPL fantasy draft apart from other fantasy leagues is the high level of uncertainty. Players are constantly moving between European Leagues. It’s possible that one of your top picks could not be in the Premier League in a few weeks time. Just imagine if you drafted Greg Jennings and he only played one game with the Packers before moving to the CFL. There is also a high amount of uncertainty among starting lineups. There are only a few defenders for the top teams that you can be sure will start every game. And unlike the NBA and NFL, for the most part, you do not want players from bad teams. Because scoring is so scarce and bad teams give up lots of goals, there are not players like Stephen Curry or Andre Johnson out there.
Ok, let’s get to the draft.

Round 1

1. Wayne Rooney – Striker – Man United – I had the privilege of drawing the number one pick. I was deciding between Rooney and Drogba, but went with Rooney because I feel even in a down season, he’ll still score 15 goals. Drogba could get 35, but he could also get 7. Rooney was the safer pick.
2. Cesc Fabregas – Midfielder – Arsenal - This manager is a super Arsenal fan and refuses to take players from Tottenham, Chelsea, Man U, Liverpool, or Man City. Obviously, he is handcuffed, but Fabregas is definitely a top 5 pick. Speculation of a move to Barcelona has ended, so he should perform this season.
3. Didier Drogba – Striker – Chelsea - Definitely the right pick here. His hat trick in the opening weekend has already proven that.
4. Frank Lampard – Mid – Chelsea- Due to being his fantasy team captain last season, Lampard was the league’s leading point getter. He has performed at a very high level all four years of this league, and there is no reason he should stop now.
5. Steven Gerrard – Mid – Liverpool – Gerrard was last year’s #1 pick, but injuries kept him from reclaiming that honor again. He will get points and will probably be in the fantasy team of the year. The only question mark is how Liverpool will play this season.
6. Robin Van Persie – Striker – Arsenal – Van Persie is one of the best goal scorers, when he plays. He seems to be injured a lot, so this pick has a bit of a risk.
7. Carlos Tevez – Last year’s third leading scorer after Drogba and Rooney, there was a little uncertainty if Tevez would stay at Man City, but now, he seems the only City striker who will get the start virtually every week.
8. Fernando Torres – Striker – Liverpool – Injuries are a concern, but Torres is dynamic when he plays.
9. Nicolas Anelka – Striker – Liverpool – I’d say the top 8 picks are pretty cut and dry – all are clearly in the top 10 and would only move up or down a few picks, but after that 8, things are a bit less transparent. There are a lot of good players, but as you’ll see by the next picks, not of the caliber of the first 8. I see Anelka as a player on the way down, so I would not like him at #9.
10. Andrei Arshavin – Mid – Arsenal – Probably the midfielder with the best upside remaining in the draft, but tailed off last year after an amazing first 4 months in the league.
11. John Terry – Defender – Chelsea – Probably not the player you foresee taking with your first pick, but pretty safe as the Champions will get lots of clean sheets and Terry will start every game despite his World Cup woes.
12. Antonio Valencia – Mid – Man U – This is probably the first pick I truly question. Valencia is a great player, but not a huge goal scorer. I think better midfielders were available.

Round 2
13. Petr Cech – Goalkeeper – Chelsea - Getting the best goalkeeper available is a good move, not sure if he is 13th pick worthy, maybe a bit safer than the last pick.
14. David Silva – Mid – Man City – A big risk here. City has loads of midfielders and Silva is unproven in the EPL, but it could be a stroke of genius before the end of the season.
15. Patrice Evra – Def – Man U – Of the big four, Man U and Chelsea are your surest bets for cleansheets. And on those two teams, there are probably only 4 defenders you can be certain will start every week. Evra is one of those.
16. Florent Malouda – Mid – Chelsea – For my opinion, better than Valencia and Silva. He seems to score goals every season and still be underrated.
17. Glen Johnson – Def – Liverpool – A great attacking defender. He will chip in some goals and assists, but will Liverpool’s defense consistently produce the clean sheets like years past?
18. Darren Bent – Striker – Sunderland – Streaky striker. I like the pick, but I’m not sure if he can match last year’s form, especially at Sunderland, especially without his strike partner Kenwyne Jones.
19. Joe Cole – Mid – Liverpool – A bit high at 19. I don’t recall Joe Call having a strong fantasy season in the four years of this league. Too many injuries. Maybe the new club will help.
20.Thomas Vermaelen – Def – Arsenal – Surprised to see Vermaelen, last year’s top scoring defender fall this far. He scores goals. He defends very well. Arsene Wenger has an eye for talent. Maybe people are not convinced about Arsenal.
21. Pepa Reina – Goalie – Liverpool – Not much about this pick, right place I guess.
22. Aaron Lennon – Mid – Tottenham – Has the potential to be one of the best fantasy midfielders in the league. Seems a little high, but maybe not at the rate midfielders are going.
23. Marouane Chamakh – Striker – Arsenal – I think Chamakh will be a very important player for Arsenal. Look for him to pair well with Van Persie, but I’m not sure that necessarily means fantasy success.
24. Ashley Cole – Def – Chelsea – I was thrilled to get Ashley Cole with the 24th pick. I see him as a scoring, assisting, cleansheet producing defender, definitely a first round talent.

Alright, I won’t bore you with all 17 rounds. Instead, check out my stellar team.
1. (1.) Rooney
2. (24.) Ashley Cole
3. (25.) Edwin Van der Sar – Goalie’s were going fast, and I think Van der Sar was the best bet only the board, especially already having a first choice striker.
4. (48.) Rio Ferdinand – Injury problems and getting old, but I still consider it a steal at 48.
5. (49.) Theo Walcott – Attacking midfielders on good teams are always a good bet. Walcott did not really perform last year, but I’m looking for him to find his best form this year.
6. (72.) John Carew – Good value for your second striker
7. Phil Jagielka – Strong defender, now playing for England. Everton should be good value in round 7.
8. (96.) Niko Kranjcar – With only one midfielder, needed proven goalscoring. Not flashy and not certain to start, but I’ll stand by it.
9. Johann Djourou – Def – Arsenal – If this guy starts even just half the games, this is a steal, but with injury issues, it might be a waste.
10. (120.) Stephen Ireland
11. Shaun Wright-Philips – This was a tandem pick here. I figured one would stay at City and fight for a spot and the other would go to Villa and take the place of Milner. Good picks. Best case scenario, both leave City
12. (144.) Sylvain Distin – Its possible Distin will be on the bench, but I again see Heitinga playing a number of different positions and Jagielka and Distin teaming up in the middle with Yobo the odd man out.
13. Joe Hart – This was kind of a defensive pick here. I know that a few people still had not picked a goalie and I know Hart had a chance of starting at City. If he didn’t he could go to Arsenal, Sunderland, or Fulham, which are not bad alternatives. I won this round.
14. Robert Huth – Stoke defender
15. Steven Nzonzi – a bit of a reach for the young Blackburn midfielder. I saw him score a tight goal against Everton, so I see a bright future.
16. Mesut Ozil – Not really a gamble, no down side, but no upside in the end. Real Madrid?
17. David Moyes – This year we are experimenting with taking managers. I don’t think it will have much effect, but either way, got to go with Everton.

I like me team. This is the most confident I’ve felt after a draft. Late round pieces like Hart and Ireland will make those early round picks even better. I could be derailed by injuries and poor form by Rooney. Other than that, I’m feeling good.


Here are some other draft hits:
Mikel Arteta – 5th pick in the 4th round – 6 goals and 2 assists in 13 EPL games last season
Maruone Fellaini – Another Everton player returning from injury, good value in the late 8th round
Milan Jovanovic – Attacking midfielder on a good team in the 9th round – steal
Johnny Evans – Another 9th round steal, will start a lot for Vidic and Ferdinand
Stephen Pienaar – Ok, I rate Everton players, but you can’t complain with Pienaar in the 10th round
Ryan Shawcross – Stoke defender in the 14th round, scored some nice goals last year and broke someone’s leg
Scott Parker – Good midfielding option in the 15th round
Luke Young – 16th round – should get some starts with Villa’s injury problems
Verdun Corluka – 11th round, nice

Some not so clever picks:
Yossi Beneyoun – Too high in the 5th round. Won’t start. Other players drafted around him much more valuable – Milner, Modric, Cuellar, Dunne, Downing, Saha
Zhirkov- 5th round. Ouch! Manager thought he was classified as a defender. Not a good pick either way.
Maxi Rodriguez – 8th round. 19th appearances with Liverpool. 1 goal.
Jonas Gutierrez – 8th round. Interesting choice.
Daniel Sturridge – 9th round. Probably would have been available in the 19th round
Charles N’Zogbia – 6th round, high even if he does stay in England


Teams – I think Rory did well for a newcomer. Usually there is a tough learning curve for new players. With picks like Evra in the 2nd, Berbatov in the 4th and Downing in the 5th, he seems to know what he is doing.
I expect the veterans Worth and Dustin to again challenge at the top, maybe more due to their transfer prowess than their drafts. For Dustin, I don’t expect Dunne and Gomes to have as good a season as last.
BJ – too reliant on Arsenal. Big surprise.
Junkie – a strong start with Gerrard, Vermaelen, Vidic, and Milner. Not sure if his depth will hold up.
Andy – a mixed bag, no big four defenders will give him inconsistent weeks.
Jerry – newcomer showed his naivety with some picks, but Drogba should help out.
Carlo – If Adebayor and Boateng play well for City, he has a chance to challenge for midtable, if not, he’ll be wishing Jesse were still in the league.
Serg – wishing Jesse were still in the league. Good thing he transferred for Balotelli
Raubert – Similar to Junkie, strong beginning to draft, may have what it takes to challenge the leaders
Bryan – I predict another season of languishing in the bottom half of the table.

A few random notes:
BJ has 7 Arsenal players
By the end of the week, Serg probably will have drafted 3 players who are not in the league
11 of Serg’s players have Italian managers
Bryan love Cahill’s, having both Tim and Gary, I believe Trevor is open for the Oakland A’s
Carlo has Paulo Ferreira and Pablo Barrera

Gomes, undrafted last season, 4th round this season

Bridge 7th round last year, 16th round this year
Robinho 1st round last year, 14th round this year

There you go, mostly random thoughts. Thanks for putting up with my over confidence and ribbing. I will own this league.

English Premier League Preview

Tomorrow is the start of another English Premier League Season. Exciting. I now know what I will be doing most Saturday mornings. This year due to the World Cup, we did not have much of an off season, but I am excited nevertheless. Last year my picks were pretty good, picking Chelsea to win, Tottenham and Man City to challenge for a Champion's League spot (but I predicted it at the expense of Arsenal, not Liverpool), and picking two of the three relegated teams.
Here are my predictions for an exciting season.

I believe things at the top are the most exciting they have been in years. In years past you really only had two or three times that could legitimately challenge for the title. This year, I think there are 5 - Chelsea, Man U, Man City, Arsenal, Liverpool. And then you have the second tier of teams that could finish in the top 4 and will consistently challenge the big boys - Tottenham, Everton, Aston Villa.
After that top 8, though, there is a large drop off.
You have your comfortable midtable teams - Fulham, Stoke, Birmingham
And them pretty much everyone else is in the relegation battle.


1. Manchester United - I'm really sure why, but I'm not feeling like Chelsea will win it again. Terry is getting old. Lampard cannot repeat his performance of last season. Man United hasn't really added too much, but they always seem to be having lots of young players coming up at all times. Look for Berbatov to finally tally some goals in Man U shirt. I think it comes down to depth, though. Man U has much more than Chelsea. Look at defense - Vidic, Evra, Ferdinand, Evans, Smailling, Raphael, Fabio, Wes Brown, Gary Neville. These are all competent defenders. And the midfield is much of the same.

Player to Watch - Chicharito

2. Chelsea - Took take the title again. Drogba coming back from injury, Anelka getting old, Terry getting old. Chelsea will need a few more additions to fully stake the claim as favorites.

Player to Watch - Solomon Kalou - I'm thinking Drogba or Anelka get injured.

3. Arsenal - One of the few top teams to really better themselves in the offseason. Van Persie will be mostly healthy to start the season. Chamakh provides a reliable 2nd striker. Fabregas did not leave. Gallas, Campbell, and Silveste left. There is a little uncertainty in the central defense, and a lack of a true defensive midfielder, but look to Arsenal to play their normal brand of exciting football - scoring lots, losing the occasional game to a bad team, losing to the best teams, playing well in Europe.

Player to Watch - Nasri - I'm feeling a breakout season for the Frenchman Nasri.

4. Manchester City - Lots of money, lots of players. A few more additions in the weeks to come. Uncertainty among who will actually play, they have so many players. It's kind of ridiculous. Two great keepers, loads of midfielders, strikers for days. I see talent only getting them so far. They will not gel until the end of the season.

Player to watch -Adam Johnson, one of the few unproven players at City.

5. Everton - Might be a bit of a homer pick here, but Everton has their strongest side in years. They have depth and competition for places. Look for breakout seasons for Jagielka and Arteta. Hopefully Everton can consistently beat the lower level competition and keep up the high level of play against the top teams. The lack of European football will actually help them. Look for a FA Cup or Carling Cup final as well as a strong league finish.

Player to Watch - Jack Rodwell - future England star.

6. Liverpool - They have the quality and are bringing in good players, but I don't think their defense is where it was a few years ago. Torres has had lots of injury problems. Joe Cole and Milan Jovanovic are good additions, but I think Liverpool are on the way down.

Player to Watch - Jovanovic - Young attacking talent, scored against Germany in the World Cup

7. Tottenham - Champions League will have an adverse effect on Tottenham. They'll be a bit stretched and will not be able to recreate the form of last year. They are a quality team, but not top 4 material.

Player to Watch - Michael Dawson - young(ish) defender, played great last year. Look for him to get better and be the only real rock on that defense.

8. Aston Villa - Loss of coach a week before the season. Their best player will soon be leaving. Things are going downhill fast for Villa. Lucky for them the teams below them are not really strong.

Player to Watch - Stuart Downing - Was a great young English player, but missed much of last season with an injury. He will have to step up with the impending loss of Milner.

9. Fulham - Nothing really excites me about Fulham. Last year the made it to the UEFA Cup final. Wild. I don't think they have a strong enough midfield to really challenge the big boys.

Player to Watch - Andy Johnson - Missed much of last season with injury. Can he return to his Crystal Palace/early Everton form? If so, Zamora and Johnson will be a dangerous combination.

10. Stoke City - Stoke are one of the few teams on the rise. The addition of Kenwyne Jones definitely signals this. Stoke know the brand of football they play, and in England, in the current EPL, it really works (at least against the bottom half of the table.)

Player to Watch: K. Jones

11. Blackburn - Much like Stoke, Blackburn play hard, physical football. Blackburn lack the quality strikers that Stoke have, but hard nosed midfield and defense will have them be a clear mid table team.

Player to Watch - Steven Nzonzi - Young midfield prospect, scored a cracking goal against Everton, so that's how I know him.

12. West Ham - Not too much to get excited for in Avrem Grant's West Ham. Charlton Cole is a quality striker and Scott Parker runs things well in the midfield. Defensive and consistent scoring are suspect.

Player to Watch: Barera

13. Bolton - Another industrious, physical, unimpressive on paper side. Kevin Davies epitomizes this team. They often times give teams like Liverpool and Arsenal problems, yet lose to Hull the next week.

Player to Watch - Matt Taylor - flair for great goals

14. Birmingham - I don't see Birmingham following up on their success from last year. They just don't have enough quality players and some of their best performers from last season are getting old.

Player to watch: Cameron Jerome

15. Newcastle - Back in the top league. I think they will struggle, but ultimately be safe. They want to be a big club again, but that will have to wait a few years while the maintain secure Premier League footing. Oh, and their players don't have the look of a big club, except the Big Sol Campbell.

Player to Watch - Andy Carroll - Exciting young striker, great in the air. Switching from number 39 to 9, though.

16. Sunderland - Some people are tauting Sunderland to challenge for the top 10. I see them barely avoiding relegation. They do have Darren Bent and young talent like Cattermole and Frazier Campbell, but their defense does not measure up and look for their offense, much like their striker Bent, to be dreadfully inconsistent.

Player to Watch: Frazier Campbell - will get lots of chances with Jones moving on.

17. West Brom - West Brom is the ultimate "yo-yo" club, but I think their EPL experience will help them hang on for another year.

Player to watch: Chris Brunt

18. Wigan - I have picked Wigan to go down for about 4 straight years now. I feel this will finally be the year. Rodallega cannot possible have a year like last year and their best midfielder N'Zogbia will be leaving.

Player to Watch: Alcarez

19. Wolves - Lots of bad teams around the league this year.

20. Blackpool - They have about 17 total players.

Player to Watch: Charlie Adam.


There you go. Enjoy the start of the season.

EPL Fantasy Draft Review

OK, time for a little fantasy football draft analysis. The fantasy football here would be English football in the English Premier League. It's tough to find a quality EPL fantasy league as all of them are salary cap based, so my friends and I created a league with a traditional American football format. We have 11 teams in the league which is a very good amount. You get points for goals, shutouts, assists, team of the week and negative for goals against and red cards. Each team has 16 players - 11 starters, 5 reserves - so by the end you are dipping into some little known players, but at the same time you don't need Burnley backup defenders or anything like that.
Last year I won the league with a drafted team of ....
Cesc Fabregas
Yakubu
Deco
Bosingwa
Theo Walcott
Andy Johnson
Aaron Lennon
Gary Neville
Ryan Nelson
Scott Carson
Robinho
Tom Huddlestone
Leighton Baines
Ben Haim
Steven Pienaar
El -Hadji Douif

And an ending team of
Fabregas
Bosingwa
Walcott
Johnson
Lennon
Robinho
Pienaar
Baines
James Beattie
Tim Howard
Rafael
Curtis Davies
K. Richardson
Sol Campbell
Jonny Evans
Mikel Silvestre

Yeah, so half of my team at the end of the season were players I originally drafted, and I would say other tops teams would have around the same % of original players. Thus, picking up quality players and I'm pretty sure most of my pickups were drafted this year, some in high rounds, is just as important as the draft.
But anyways, we will look at this years draft and criticise some people.

Here is how the draft went

Round 1
1. Steven Gerrard (Liverpool) - New edition Carlo stole Stevie G from Worth. Smart pick as Gerrard was the Fantasy LeaguePlayer of the Season last year
2. Fernando Torres (Liverpool)- Best forward in the league?
3. Frank Lampard (Chelsea) - Obvious pick, could've went #1, will have triple digit points again this fantasy season
4. Wayne Rooney (Man U) - This would've been my top pick, especially because I don't pick Liverpool players, but I feel Rooney is due for his huge year.
5. Nicolas Anelka (Chelsea) - Last year's leading goal scorer. Will be solid, but maybe not as dynamic as Rooney, Torres, or Robinho
6. Robin Van Persie (Arsenal) - This manager does not take Chelsea, Man U, Tottenham or Liverpool players, so Arsenal's best player is an obvious choice, probably glad he didn't get a higher pick.
7. Adrei Arshavin (Arsenal) - Took the league by storm last season even though it was only for half the year. Great midfielder pick
8. Emmauel Adebayor (Man City) - Great striker, but a bit of a risk because City has a load of quality stikers.
9. Didier Droga (Chelsea) - slipped this far due to injury problems and possible move to Inter Milan, but could end up the leading goal scorer.
10. Cesc Fabregas (Arsenal) - Injuries and possible move to Barca make him slid this far, but everything Arsenal does goes through him.
11. Robinho (Man City) The steal of the draft last year in the 11th round (cuz he was on Real Madrid). Good pick at the end of the first round. Will start every game, albeit as more of a winger than an out-and-out striker.

Round 2
12. Rio Ferdinand (MAN U)- Surprised to see him go so high. I would've thought Terry or Vidic would be the first defender taken.
13. Berbatov (MAN U) - Huge disappointment last year, but I see him settling in at Man U, especially in the absense of Tevez
14. John Terry (Chelsea) - Strong pick at 14, one of a handful of marque defenders in the league.
15. Ashley Young (Aston Villa) - I love Ashley Young, think he will have an even better year than last, a steal at midfielder.

16. Gabriel Agbonlahor (Aston Villa) - Not a big fan of this pick. I see Agbonlahor getting similar points to Young, but Young is much more valuable due to his midfielder status.
17. Theo Walcott (Arsenal) - One of my favorites, but might be taken a round or so early.
18.Vidic (Man U) - Strong pick, good steal for last season's top scoring defender
19. Peter Cech (Chelsea) - First goalie taken, will get lots of shut-outs, probably more valuable than Van der Sar to to the latter's injury.
20.Patrice Evra (Man U) One of the Big Four defender you can pencil in to start every game. Wouldn't have been my choice, but I can't hate on it.
21. Dirk Kuyt (LIV) - Scored a lot of points last year, and this year his midfield eligibilty makes him even stronger. Watch out.
22. Pepe Reina (LIV) - Perphaps a little high, not sure if Liverpool is as strong desensively as in past years.

There you go, I won't bore you with every round. I'll just look at my team and some high and low light picks. Interesting note, only 6 teams were represented in the first 22 picks. and the next 3 rounds would only bring in two more teams (Everton and Fulham). Definitely a top-heavy league.

My Picks
1 (10 overall) Cesc Fabregas
2 (13) Berbatov
3 (32) Gael Clicy - Possible a bit high, but I see him as Arsenal's best defender. I really wanted Ashley Cole here, but he was taken the pick before.
4 (35) Jolean Lescott - Everton at the time, now Man City. Will that matter?
5. (54) Gareth Barry - Not sure about this one.
6. (57) John O'Shea - Quality Man Defender, will get lots of starts
7. (76) Robbie Keane - Got some ridicule for this pick, but at the end of the season I will stand by it.
8. (79) Micah Richards - last starting Man City Defender and looking at the other picks in this round - Deco, Giovanni, Shorey, C. Cole, C. Davies, Yobo, Carrick, Dempsey, Crouch, Nasri - I think I won this round. (Is Micah Richards the English version of me?)
9. (98) Michael Ballack - Good pick up for round 9
10. (101) Stuart Downing - Injured, but will boast the team come December
11. (120) Phil Neville - another Everton defender, most people forget about him
12. (123) Andy Johnson - Only player I have had all three years, got him round 2, round 6, now round 12.
13. (142) - Abu Diaby
14. (145) - Lucas Neill
15. (164) Jussi Jaaskalinen
16. (167) David Silva - didn't catch my Robinho this year

I am not as confident in my team this year as last. The league seems to be much more even as people are more used to it. But, i'm sure it will be spread out eventually. I really like my picks 7-9, but am uncertain about 3-6. I'll again need to steal pickups.

Here are some steals I saw in the draft
Ricardo Carvalho - Taken in mid 5th round, when Alex, his backup, was taking with the 1st pick in the 4th round and the other three starting Chelsea defenders were taking in the 2nd and 3rd rounds.
Yakubu - Another 5th round steal, when the last two years he was taken in the second round
Aaron Lennon - Taken mid 7th round. Don't be surprised if this guy is the 5th best midfielder in the league. I should've taken him over Barry.

John Pantsil and Aaron Hughes - Two Fulham defenders, the rest of the starters went in rounds 4, 6 , and 9.
Jonny Evans and Wes Brown - Two Man U defenders taken back to back in the 13th round, both could start regularly
Charles N'Zogbia - nice to get a reliable midfielder in the 15th round

Not So Clever Picks
Rosicky and Eduardo in the 5th round. About two rounds too early for each
Jo - 6th round - 3rd choice striker on a team that plays one striker
Daniel Agger - 7th round - not sure if he will play at all
Danny Murphy - 7th round - a reliable midfielder, but probably could've got him much later
Zhirkov - 7th round - will he play at Chelsea or be another Alexi Smertin/Tiago?
Titus Bramble - 13th round - Hmm, team of the week in the first week, -4 the second week, more like I expected
Daniel Sturridge 14th round - Might as well have picked Tab Ramos



From the looks for peoples teams I see Jesse and Carlo struggling.
I like Dustin's team, but I think his tandem up top of Kevin Davies and Eduardo is too weak.
Despite the high number of Croatians, I really like Nik's team.
Worth should do well again, if only because he puts in much effort. Might be to relient on Liverpool, just like BJ is too relient on Arsenal.
Raubert has a marked improvement on last years team and could challenge if he gets rid of some of his dead weight.
Junkie has a strong squad, but that Alex pick may hurt. Too early to call out the teams to beat. It'll be another fun year!