Saturday 27 August 2016

Filler

A very brief Football Circus this week, mainly to keep you up to date with our Fantasy Football and avail of any last minute tips for your own team…





Football Circus Roundup

Christian Benteke joined Crystal from Liverpool this week, although nobody seemed to inform the Belgian striker, who thought he had signed for Burnley.

A hotel in Liverpool now features a hologram of Bill Shankly in their bar. That’ll really make the customers feel comfortable.

A Manchester United fan has celebrated the club’s big summer signings in truly horrific fashion…

Arsenal’s Alexis Sanchez has set up an Instagram page for his dogs…


Fantasy Football



Week 2 of Fantasy Football has come and gone and we’re still faltering. A measly 59 points was all our mish mash of bargains and stars could muster. Sergio Aguero was again the stand out player and thankfully we captained him, gaining us 26 points. Captain Aguero aside, only Luke Shaw and Wes Morgan could register respectable tallies, gaining 17 points between them. Here’s how the the points worked out:



And what of our Game Week 2 suggestions? Well here’s how they fared:

Ben Foster £4.5m – 2 points

Stephen Kingsley £4m – 1 point

Jordi Amat £4m – 1 point

Leroy Fer £5m – 3 points

Gaston Ramirez  £5.5m – 1 point

Alvaro Negredo £6.5m – 10 points

Jermain Defoe £7m – 2 points

Well. The less said about that, the better.

So where do we go from here? We’re tempted to use our wildcard but we’ve decide to resist until after the international break. Thereafter, quite a few names will be on the chopping block. For now though, we need to ditch Andy Carroll as the West Ham striker has been ruled out for six weeks. Bacary Sagna has also picked up and injury so as we’re foregoing the wildcard option, we’re taking a 4 point hit. We’ve opted to draft in Daley Blind as Sagna’s replacement. The United utility man is priced at £5.5m and with Chris Smalling out injured, is playing regularly in United’s back line. With Carroll out, we’ve splashed out slightly on our replacement. Middlesbrough’s Alvaro Negredo was one of our recommendations last week and he got himself on the scoresheet for the second week in a row. His price tag has resultantly risen from £6.5m and is now available at £6.7m. We’re bringing him now before it rises further. Even with these transfers, we still have £1.8m in the bank. Here’s how the team shapes up for week 3:




Game Week 3 Suggestions

Goalkeepers

Tom Heaton £4.5m – Heaton has racked up 14 points for Burnley thus far and at just £4.5m could be worth an investment. Likely to make multiple saves per game as Burnley’s defence is sure to be tested throughout the season.

Defenders

Gareth McAuley £4.6m – Already off to a better start than his similarly priced WBA centre back partner, Jonny Evans. 7 points in each of the opening two games, one of which included a goal, prove that McAuley should not be overlooked.

James Collins £4.6m – The West Ham defender has also amassed 14 points in just two games, helped by a clean sheet and a goal. While West Ham have gotten off to a shaky start, Slaven Bilic can be trusted to steady the ship and with Collins at the heart of their defence, it would be foolish not to consider the Welshman.

Midfielders

Etienne Capoue £4.6m – Perhaps Capoue’s early season form will have us scratching our heads come May, but 19 points in the opening two matches is nothing to be sniffed at.
Victor Wanyama  £5.1m – Wanyama notched up 10 points in Game Week 2 and as a holding midfielder, it’s a feat unlikely to be repeated regularly. That being said, he’s sure to start most games for Spurs and at £5.1m, could be a handy sub.

Forwards

Abel Hernandez £6.0m – With many fantasy managers already building their teams around Ibrahimovic and Aguero, budgets are tight when it comes to spending on a third forward. The likes of Andre Gray, Alvaro Negredo and other reliable budget option forwards, are priced northwards of £6.5m. Hernandez will save you £0.5m and recorded 5 and 6 points respectively in his opening two matches.



Football Recommendation of the Week

-      Joe.co.uk Premier League Ground Quiz; This will kill a few hungover minutes over the weekend.




Non-Football Recommendation of the Week

-      Dublin v Kerry, All Ireland Senior Football Championship Semi-Final; When it comes to Gaelic football, Dublin and Kerry are historically the two most successful teams in Ireland. The pair clash in this year’s All Ireland semi-final on Sunday, to determine who will face Mayo in the final and it’s sure to be a barnstormer.





That’s it from us for this week…keep checking back or follow our Facebook page or Twitter for future editions.

Thursday 18 August 2016

The Fall of Brazilian Football and the Hope of the Olympics

This week’s Football Circus sees us shift our focus away from the domestic season. With only a week gone in the new season, there is plenty of opportunity ahead to dissect Pep versus Jose, the success and failure of summer signings and title and relegation battles. Therefore, we are this week going to take a look at the fallen giant that is the Brazilian national team ahead of the Olympics final against Germany on Saturday.





The Fall of Brazilian Football and the Hope of the Olympics

Brazilian football has been on a downward spiral over the past number of years. This fact was punctuated when the national team were knocked out of the 2014 World Cup by Germany at the semi-final stage, emphatically losing 7-1. The World Cup stirred up a great deal of controversy in Brazil. Demonstrations took place prior to the competition taking place due to the amount of public money pumped into the event. In fact, protests which occurred during the 2013 Confederations Cup, also hosted in Brazil, suggested that the World Cup would be marred by public unrest. Nevertheless, there was hope, that Brazil would once again be reunited through footballing success.

On paper, the 2014 Brazil squad looked average in comparison to those of World Cups past. Neymar’s name stood out however. The Barcelona forward represented all that was good about Brazilian football - Youthful exuberance, pace, natural ability, skill and most importantly, an ability to find the back of the net. So it was almost seen as a national tragedy when the diminutive striker picked up an injury in the quarter-final against Colombia and found himself sidelined for the semi-final clash with the might of Germany. As the Canarinho lined up before the semi-final kickoff, goalkeeper Julio Cesar and defender David Luiz held a “Neymar Jr. 10” jersey aloft in honour of their fallen teammate, as they proudly sang the national anthem. That very moment, before a ball was even kicked, all but confirmed that this particular Brazil team, was doomed.



A football team’s reliance on an individual rarely results in ultimate glory. Just ask Lionel Messi and Argentina. Better yet, ask Lionel Messi and Barcelona. The Catalan side are acutely aware that one swallow does not make a summer. The Spanish giants would be devastated were they ever to lose the Argentine. That being said, they haven’t been afraid to contemplate the possibility and in recent summers have splashed out on Luis Suarez and the aforementioned Neymar. Not bad backup plans.

Unfortunately for Brazil, the luxury of the transfer market is not an option. They must produce the players themselves. Neymar is realistically the only success story to have emerged since the days of Ronaldo, Rivaldo and latterly, Ronaldinho. So why has the conveyor belt of talent seemingly come to a standstill? To a certain degree, Brazil has become a victim of its own success. For years, decades in fact, Brazil has been hailed and renowned as the home of the world’s best footballers. The beaches and favelas have combined to become a hotbed of raw talent. Street football and futsal are played from dawn till dusk and more often than in any other country (Brazil has a population of 200 million), diamonds emerge from the rough.

In the past two decades, cash rich European giants have swooped in to sign Brazilian youngsters who have displayed even a modicum of potential, in the hope that they may become the next Ronaldo or Ronaldinho. While Neymar is the exception, having spent a healthy four years at Santos before joining Barcelona at the relatively mature age of 21, there is an endless list of Brazilian talent who have moved to Europe as a teen only to see their potential unfulfilled: Denilson (formerly of Arsenal) moved to Europe at just 18; Rodrigo Possebon (who later declared for Italy in the hope of international football) started his career at Manchester United at just 18; Robinho, despite winning club honours in Spain and Italy, moved to Real Madrid at just 19 and failed to make an impression on the international scene.

Fast forward to summer 2016. Brazil is playing host to a less anticipated, if equally monumental, sporting event, in the Olympic Games. Football is but a footnote compared to track and field events which feature internationally heralded names such as Usain Bolt. Brazilians have little to no vested interest in such events, regardless of the focus from the rest of the world. Because Brazil loves football. But there within lies a beacon of hope. In the midst of opening ceremonies, Usain Bolt’s records and furore surrounding boxing decisions, the men’s football tournament has reached the final stage. The contestants? Brazil and Germany.

Neymar has unsurprisingly been the star as the Samba Stars have progressed through the tournament, recording scores such as 4-0 and 6-0 along the way. Two of his teammates both go by the name of Gabriel. One is Gabriel Jesus, aged 19, recently signed by Manchester City from Palmeiras. The other is Gabriel Barbosa, also 19, currently plying his trade with Santos.  Both players are seen as forwards and have notched up an impressive 43 goals between them in a total of three years. Jesus will join up with City in January. Barbosa remains contracted to Santos, but is the subject of serious interest from Leicester City and Manchester United.

A victory in Saturday’s final against Germany may signal the rejuvenation of Brazilian football. Certainly, dreams of World Cup and Copa America success will be rekindled for many. But with their emerging stars already prepared to succumb to the appeal of European football, is this new generation destined for failure before they’ve really been given a chance? Time will tell…


Football Circus Roundup

Juan Sebastian Veron is coming out of retirement at the ripe old age of 41, as confirmed by Estudientes’ Twitter account.



Nelson FC have found themselves a new fan in the form of Spiderman…



Wayne Rooney and Zlatan Ibrahimovic shared an awkward moment in their post-match interview with Sky Sports, as they were informed that teammate Eric Bailly, and not one of the two forwards, had been awarded the Man of the Match award.



Petr Cech’s day went from bad to worse after Arsenal lost to Liverpool as the Czech keeper crashed his car leaving the Emirates Stadium on Sunday.



47 year old former Croatia international Robert Prosinecki has told Croatian newspaper Jutarnji of his shock over €90 million Juventus signing Gonzalo Higuain’s fitness levels:
“When I saw him I was shocked. He’s even fatter than me!
Juventus paid €90million for Higuain and a pig arrived in Turin instead. I can imagine Max Allegri’s shock after insisting so much on his signing.
In the end though, I’m sure they’ll get him in shape quickly”.

Fantasy Football


After week one of our Fantasy Football efforts we’ve returned a respectable 54 points, albeit with little assistance from the bargain players we included. Here’s how our team scored:



Included in the lineup were “potential bargains”: Valdes, Sagna, Sane, Downing, Carroll and Musa. We also had Darren Fletcher and Leceister duo Morgan and Simpson on the bench. The points accumulated by the bargains in the starting lineup totalled an embarrassing 9 points. Man City new boy Leroy Sane failed to even make the Citizens’ squad against Sunderland. Luckily, Darren Fletcher brought 3 points off the bench, sparing our blushes somewhat. It was left to Philippe Coutinho and captain Sergio Aguero to haul in most of our game week one points.

And what of the rest of our recommendations for week one? Like the bargains we included in our lineup, the majority of our other suggestions failed to make an impact. One man did stand out though – Nathan Redmond of Southampton.  With the Saints midfielder priced at £6m, it was folly of us not to pick him in our squad and he racked up an impressive 10 points.

So what changes do we suggest for game week two? Well Sane has to go. He may well come into contention for Pep Guardiola but Fantasy Football waits for no one, not even Leroy Sane. Therefore with our only free transfer going into game week two, we’ve opted to replace the German with the aforementioned Redmond. We’ve decided to keep the rest of the team intact for the moment. We’ll reassess the situation after game week two but if the likes of Downing, Sagna and Musa continue their low scoring, an early wild card is looming.



Game Week 2 Suggestions

Goalkeepers

Ben Foster £4.5m – The WBA keeper scored 10 points in game week one and in hindsight, may have been a more solid option than Victor Valdes.

Defenders

Stephen Kingsley £4m – Swansea didn’t really splash the cash this summer and as a result, Kingsley could see game time. At just £4m, the defender might need to be snapped up early before his price increases. Score 8 points in week one.

Jordi Amat £4m – See above (5 points in week one).

Midfielders

Leroy Fer £5m – The Dutch midfielder was signed by the Swans on a permanent basis this summer and has already managed to get on the scoresheet. Likely to pay on a regular basis, Fer’s price tag of just £5m looks a bargain.

Gaston Ramirez  £5.5m – Linked up well with Negredo for Boro’s goal at the weekend, getting points for an assist. It’s early days but it already looks like Ramirez will be a vital player for the Teesiders in 2016/17.

Forwards

Alvaro Negredo £6.5m – We’d written off Negredo as a has-been before he moved to the north of England but he’s already gotten his name on the scoresheet and Middlesbrough will hope he makes it a habit this season.

Jermain Defoe £7m – Write off this man at your peril. He may be 33 years old but the seasoned striker showed against the might of Man City that he’s still more than capable of finding the net.


Football Recommendation of the Week

-       Olympics Men’s Football Final, Saturday 20th August; Will Brazil conquer their European adversaries like a canary-coloured phoenix from the flames? Or do they stand more chance of getting a smile out of Angela Merkel?




Non-Football Recommendation of the Week

-       Shame (Young Fathers); Despite the questionable interpetive dance routine in the video, this tune from Mercury Prize winning Scottish hip hop group, Young Fathers, is one of our most played songs on Spotify at the moment.



That’s it from us for this week…keep checking back or follow our Facebook page or Twitter for future editions.


Thursday 11 August 2016

The Return

We’re back…After almost a year’s hiatus due to this blog becoming overly time-consuming, we’ve decided to return – Possibly for a one off blog, possibly longer, quite frankly we don’t know at this point in time. What we will say is that this edition of the blog and potential future editions will have a somewhat different complexion to the Football Circus you once knew. Gone will be the Balotelli updates (his HILARIOUS madcap antics gave us a laugh but a weekly report on a player whose career continues on a downward trajectory, was a strain to say the least). Also gone will be the Italian Football Story of the Week and the Artist’s Impression of the week. Instead, whilst we will continue to scour the internet and media for stories which confirm our fears that football has indeed gone completely bonkers, the blog will focus more on opinion.  And now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, let’s proceed to the first edition of Football Circus since October 2015.





Clown Quote of the Week

“They’re all just headphones!” – Chris Waddle after England’s Euro 2016 exit.


2015/16 Season Predictions Review

As the 2016/17 season grows nearer, we feel it only right to take a look back at our predictions for last season to see how we fared. 
1. Manchester United fail to reach the Champions League proper, then finish outside the top 4  in the Premier League, resulting in Louis Van Gaal's sacking.
- Well we can feel quite smug about this one. Nail on head.
2. Arsenal to win the Premier League.
- Nope. Had we any inclination that Leicester City would go on to win the Premier League we would now most likely be being lauded as descendants of Nostradamus. Due to Spurs’ end of season capitulation, Arsenal ended up second. Nearly there never won the (title) race however and it certainly didn’t do our overall predictions score any favours.
 3. Juventus to win Serie A.
- Perhaps not our most outlandish prediction but we definitely got this one right as Juve strolled to another Serie A title victory.
4. Barcelona to win La Liga.
- Again, we could hardly be seen as visionaries for this one but right again.
5. Bayern Munich to win the Bundesliga.
- See above.
6. PSG to win Ligue 1.
- And see above again.
7. Pep Guardiola to be gone from Bayern Munich by June after again failing in the Champions League, but he will not go to Man City.
- Hmm. It’s hard to argue with the first part of this prediction but after leaving Bayern, Guardiola was swiftly announced as the new City manager. Shame on us for doubting red top rumours. We’ll give ourselves half a point on this one.
8. Mario Balotelli to leave Liverpool in the last week of the transfer window but will again fail to make an impact wherever he goes.
- Left Liverpool to join AC Milan on a season long loan. Check. Date of transfer, 27th August 2015. Check. Brutal showing in Serie A. Check.
9. Nicklas Bendtner to score at least five goals.
- “Lord” Bendtner only managed a measly return of 4 goals for the season. Muppet.
10. Zlatan Ibrahimovic to get sent off at least once this season.
- Ibra managed to keep his temper relatively in check in his last season as a PSG player. Not a single sending off, unfortunately for us.
11. Rafa Benitez to be gone from Real Madrid by June, but the team will reach the Champions League final nonetheless.
- Correct on this one. Real went on not only to reach the Champions League final, but to win it. Meanwhile Benitez moved to Newcastle where he failed to save the club from relegation.
12. Jose Mourinho to fall out with Roman Abramovich again, blame his own shortcomings on anyone and everyone but himself and be gone from Chelsea by June.


13. Ravel Morrison to wow Serie A.
 - Eh…No.
14. Harry Kane to have a difficult season and fail to reach the heights he did last season.
- Young Harry proved us totally wrong and fair play to him. We hope for Spurs’ fans sake however that his poor form at the Euros doesn’t continue into the 2016/17 domestic season.
15. A frustrated Cristiano Ronaldo's form will finally start to decline as age begins to catch up with him.
- This really comes down to a matter of opinion. Down from 56 goals and 22 assists in 2014/15, to a paltry 53 goals and 15 assists in 2015/16. Let’s be realistic. Real Madrid still could not do without him and he still rivals Messi’s best player in the world status. That being said, the common consensus seems to be that Ronnie has lost a certain edge – A downturn in form may be more apparent in the next two years. Nothing to be ashamed of as he’s had a stellar career and cemented himself as one of the all-time greats.  As for our prediction, we’ll give ourselves half a point.

Overall score: 9 (including our two self-awarded half points) out of 15. Not too shabby.
And so, that brings us to the 2016/17 season. Despite Leicester catching us completely unawares with their Premier League triumph last season, we somehow don’t envisage a repeat performance…


2016/17 Predictions

     1. Chelsea to win the Premier League.
     2. Juventus to win Serie A.
     3. Real Madrid to win La Liga.
     4. Borussia Dortmund to win the Bundesliga.
     5. PSG to win Ligue 1.
     6. Liverpool to secure a Champions League spot.
     7. Leicester City to finish in the bottom half of the Premier League.
     8. Arsene Wenger will finally call it a day at Arsenal.
     9. Luis Enrique to be sacked as Barcelona manager.
    10. Joey Barton to be sent off at least twice for his new club, Rangers.
    11. Mario Balotelli to be transferred out of Liverpool again and not be on the books of his new club come the end of the 2017/18 summer transfer window.
    12. Wayne Rooney to lose the captain’s armband for England.
    13. Lionel Messi to come out of international retirement.
    14. Rafa Benitez to be gone from Newcastle by the end of the season.
    15. Football Circus to return in the form of a podcast / video podcast.

Yes you read that last one correctly. We’ve been mulling over the possibility of developing Football Circus into a podcast / video podcast for quite some time. Whether it comes to fruition or not is as good a guess as anyone’s, but it is certainly an avenue we’re eager to explore. Quite whether you would be able to tolerate our voices / mushes, is another issue entirely. As for predictions 1-14, there are few that could be rendered totally audacious, certainly not as audacious as our “Bendnter to score at least five goals” prediction last year, but we’re confident of equalling or bettering our previous tally of 9 from 15.


Football Circus Roundup

Pre-season never fails to throw up a few ludicrous scenarios and once the last ball of the domestic season is kicked, we’re inundated with what is essentially, nonsense. If you’ve clickbaited your way through more transfer rumours than you thought imaginable, fear not. There’s plenty more going on in the world of football to kick your filthy, football-addicted brains ticking over and the red top journalists in employment. For example, here’s Arsene Wenger being presented with a sword, before Arsenal took on Norse side Viking in a friendly.


Over in Italy, a Napoli restaurant, bitter Gonzalo Higuain for joining Serie A rivals Juventus, are offering a €1 pizza every time the striker gets injured for his new club. 


Will Ferrell has told CNN he could play Jamie Vardy in the Leicester striker’s biopic (albeit his “later, fatter years”)…




Fallen great Adriano is reportedly back living in the favelas of Brazil…


And Cristiano Ronaldo’s latest fashion statement is eh…painted toenails.



Fantasy Football


Last but not least on this edition of Football Circus, we’re going to delve into the gravely frustrating world of Fantasy Football. Many football fans will attest to the fact that Fantasy Football points can make or break a weekend. At this stage of the season, you’ll find yourself drafting and re-drafting your team, only to find yourself using your wildcard after the first game week. In an effort to alleviate your stress, we’ve scoured through the players on offer to suggest a few potential bargains.

Goalkeepers

Victor Valdes £4.5m – Cast aside by Louis van Gaal and latterly, Jose Mourinho, the ex-Barca shot stopper is a sure fire starter for Premier League new boys Middlesbrough.  With Boro investing heavily over the summer, they’ll be unlikely to get caught in a relegation dog fight, barring a QPR-like disaster. With that being said, their goalmouth could be barraged with shot attempts, increasing Valdes’ potential for saves.

Kasper Schmeichel  £5m – In spite of Ron Rob Zieler’s arrival at the King Power Stadium, Schmeichel Jr. is expected to start the season as Leicester’s number 1. With the majority of higher-ranked keepers being priced at £5.5m, the Dane could prove a shrewd investment at half a million less.


Defenders

Bacary Sagna £5.5m – Luke Shaw aside, starting fullbacks for the top seven or eight Premier League teams appear to cost a minimum of £6m. What differentiates Sagna from Shaw is that he racked up 116 points last season and has a superior injury record. Likely to start for City as well, as Guardiola has spent Sheikh Mansoor’s cash on other areas of the team.

Wes Morgan £5m – Although it would surprise us to see Leicester repeat their 2015/16 heroics and equally surprise us to see Morgan amass the 139 points he earned, at £5m the Leicester captain could be a quite a purchase.

Danny Simpson £5m – See above.

Midfielders

Leroy Sane £8m – After spending £40 million on the Schalke winger, Pep Guardiola would have quite a few questions to answer were he not to start the German. For that reason, we believe Sane could be worth a gamble.
Nathan Redmond £6m – Joining Puel’s revolution at Southamption, Redmond will anticipate a starting berth in the Saints’ lineup. Accumulating 110 points from a relegated Norwich side was no mean feat and if Southampton somehow continue to impress as they have done in the past few seasons, £6m spent on Redmond could be a snip.

Jesse Lingard £6m – This could be a shot in the dark. Lingard’s place in United’s starting eleven is far from guaranteed, particularly with the signing of Henrikh Mkhitaryan. However after the winger scored in the FA Cup final and Community Shield, in addition to him being one of the few United players to impress in pre-season, Jose Mourinho’s hand may forced to play him.

Darren Fletcher £4.5m – A total of 103 points saw the Scot finish last season as West Brom’s top points scoring midfielder. As a guaranteed starter for the Baggies, Fletcher’s £4.5m pricetag makes him a must have as a backup midfielder and will free up much needed funds for the rest of your team.

Stewart Downing £5.5m – Hear us out on this one. When Downing joined Middlesbrough from West Ham last summer we thought it was pipe and slippers time for the winger and he’d taken the easy option by dropping down a division. However he’s only spent one season in the Championship and was a vital part of Boro’s promotion. What’s more intriguing is that in the 2014/15 season, Downing’s Fantasy Football points totalled a whopping 160. On closer inspection, we found that he’d finished six of his nine Fantasy Football seasons on over 100 points. Definitely worth consideration.

Forwards

Divock Origi £7m – Bargains appear hard to come by in the forwards department this year and it seems to be the position which has most fantasy managers scratching their heads, with a lot of untold forces in the mix. Liverpool fans seem to be quite keen on the Belgian striker though. With Daniel Sturridge perennially injured (picking up a knock against Barcelona at the weekend, in fact) and Christian Benteke set to be shown the door by Jurgen Klopp, Origi’s game time could increase at Anfield.

Marcus Rashford £7m – The United youngster burst onto the season in the latter stages of last season but will find it difficult to hold down a starting place at Old Trafford after Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s arrival. With that being said, if Rashford’s form continues, he may see more game time than expected.

Andy Carroll £6.5m – Drafted into many fantasy football team’s towards the end of last season after a scoring streak, Carroll will continue his attempts to force his way into Slaven Bilic’s West Ham team. Should he do so, it will be down to one reason – Goals. Unorthodox he may be, but if he hits a run of form, Carroll could be a great buy at just £6.5m.

Ahmed Musa £7.5m – Brought in by Claudio Ranieri as a partner for Jamie Vardy, Musa looked explosive in pre-season, notching up a brace against Barcelona. Having arrived from CSKA Moscow, Musa would be a gamble as he has not yet proven himself at the top level, but if he hits the ground running his price could sky rocket.

Others

There a handful more potential bargains to be had should certain players be transferred in the coming weeks.

Juan Mata £7.5m – The Spaniard’s time at Manchester United looks to be drawing to an end and were he to move (Everton have been linked), he’d walk into most Premier League teams’ first eleven. At £7.5m, Mata could be worth a punt.

Christian Benteke £7.5m – If Benteke secures a move away from Anfield and replicates the form he showed at Aston Villa, the Belgian striker could be a steal at £7.5m.

Saido Berahino  £6.5m – West Brom seem loathe to part with the stroppy striker but if they do and his new club get the best from him, we could see an influx of goals. He managed 148 fantasy points in 2014/15.
Using some of our suggestions, here’s how your team could look…




Football Recommendation of the Week



Non-Football Recommendation of the Week

 - The Night Of; HBO’s latest offering is quite simply stellar. Originally due to feature James Gandolfini before his untimely passing, then Robert deNiro (until he allegedly fell out with the makers), The Night Of casts John Turturro as lawyer John Stones. While Turturro’s performance alone makes this gritty mini-series worth watching, this thrilling murder investigation will have you hooked from the start.




That’s it from us for this week…keep checking back or follow our Facebook page or Twitter for future editions.