This thread will pick up where the \"Fantasy Soccer\" thread left off......

Gameweek 25 points:

CB Chargers - 56 - Adebayor 2, Gerrard
Kaba Montreal - 55 - Adebayor 2, Davies, Gerrard
Granicar - 43 - Adebayor 2
Come On Pelican - 38 - Gerrard

The emerging Kaba club came within a breath of taking the week. Emmanuel Adebayor is proving to be a key to success, extending his scoring streak to 6 matches, totaling 8 goals in the process. Cesc Fabregas is starting to find his own form, as well, so this weekend\'s tie with the generous Blackburn should prove beneficial.

I\'m also expectiong some fireworks from Everton/Reading, as the Royals have given up more road goals than any other club, and only 4 sides have scored more at home than the Toffees. Spurs, who have struggled all year on the road, visit Derby....they almost have to improve on their dismal road performance.

*****

Overall Points (through 9 weeks):

Granicar - 541
CB Chargers - 534
Come On Pelican - 462
Kaba Montreal - 458

Granicar keeps their overall lead, despite a hiccup. Kaba continues to build momentum, and is threatening COE for 3rd.

*****

Your weekend FSC schedule (all times EST):

Saturday: (10) Everton v. Reading (12) Derby v. Tottenham (4:30) Bolton v. Portsmouth
Sunday: (11) Chelsea v. Liverpool

Good luck, all......

UPDATED INFO:



The 2009/10 Season Is Almost Here......Time To Start Getting Ready!

The Barclays Fantasy Premier League Game is up and running, and The Rotoworld Cup is ready for competitors.

In order to sign up, go to: http://fantasy.premierleague.com/

Once you\'ve selected your colors and players, go to \'Leagues\' and in the box next to Join a Private League, enter the following code: 216307-55868

Teams are made up of 15 players, including: 2 Goalkeepers, 5 Defenders, 5 Midfielders, and 3 Forwards (strikers). Each week, you select a starting 11 with a variety of formation options to use. The extra Goalkeeper and Bench players will be automatically substituted into the lineup if any starters do not play, provided it fits into a legal formation.

You also choose a Team Captain, who will earn Double Points for the Week. A new feature to the game is Emergency Captains; if your the player you select as Captain does not play, another player will automatically be chosen for you, based either on their Price, or their recent play (Form).

The top returning scorers at each position will be posted in the Fantasy Futbol forum, check it out for some ideas on how to plan out your squad.

Good luck....and Game On!

Do you want me to move the fantasy soccer thread into here and merge this one with it?

Seriously gutted Torres got injured 2nite playing for Spain, hamstring injury. Gonna be a big loss if he isn't fit for Sunday. He better be back for the Inter Milan game

Sure, why not?

thanks!

If you're going to post in the thread, then join the competition.

There's 13 weeks left to play, starting Saturday, and I can get you signed up in no time.

Thanks,
Tim

Will Voronin be able to help pick up the slack, or is Rafa going to have to juggle the rotation?

Voronin is a piece of crap. I imagine he'll play a 4-5-1 with Crouch upfront, and Gerrard, Pennant & Benayoun all supporting the attack, while Alonso & Mascherano sitting back. It is Rafa tho so I never have a clue what he'll do!

Gameweek 26 Points:

CB Chargers - 49
Goal: Adebayor; Assists: Petrov, Young; Clean Sheet: Howard
Granicar - 48
Goals: Adebayor, Benjani; Assist: Chimbonda; Clean Sheet: James
Kaba Montreal - 46
Goals: Adebayor, Benjani; Assist: Petrov; Clean Sheet: James
Come On Pelican - 44
Goal: Benjani; Assist: Hleb

Emmanuel Adeabyor's 9th goal over his now 7-match scoring streak capped off a generally low-scoring weekend around the league. The clubs earned many of their points on Clean Sheet bonuses; Tim Howard's was his 5th in his last six matches (1 goal allowed, total).

Overall Points (through 10 weeks):

Granicar - 589
CB Chargers - 583
Come On Pelican - 506
Kaba Montreal - 504

The tight point totals carried over into the overall standings. We could see a different alignment as soon as next week.

----
We have a break for the FA Cup tournament next weekend. FSC will be showing matches Saturday, Sunday, Tuesday and Wednesday, with ManU v. Arsenal the highlight on Tuesday.

League play resumes on Saturday, February 23.

Arsenal...Ouch!

Yeah, they're hurting these days. Sitting Adebayor didn't help.

How about Barnsley knocking out Liverpool?

I'm interested in seeing Fulhamerica this coming weekend....Rovers/Bolton should be entertaining.

Ay, no need to rub it in! I'm so happy I sold my ticket for the game. I just knew we were gonna play badly, didn't think we'd actually end up losing like! Oh well, bring on Inter

Believe me, I'm not.....my club is facing the drop!

lol

Yeah, it's hysterical.....especially considering that 5 of their last 12 matches are against teams in the top half of the table.

The 20 additional points (or so) that they'll need is looking like a long shot.

Back to the Championship for 08/09......maybe it's just as well that we didn't bring in Guzan or Altidore.

Gameweek 27 points:

Come On Pelican - 71
Goals: Ronaldo 2, Bentley, Lescott Assist: Ronaldo Clean Sheet: Green
Granicar - 70
Goals: Ronaldo 2, Lescott Assists: Adebayor, Ronaldo Clean Sheet: James
CB Chargers - 60
Goals: Lescott, Young Assists: Adebayor, Cahill, Young Clean Sheet: Howard
Kaba Montreal - 38
Goal: Shorey Assist: Adebayor Clean Sheet: James

Christiano Ronaldo's pair of goals on Saturday earned major points for the week's leaders, particularly Granicar, who gave him the Captain's armband, and watched him acount for more than half the club's total. All four clubs saw their keepers toss shutouts, as the scoing rebounded greatly after a couple of weeks of getting by on scraps.

Emmauel Adebayor's string of goal-scoring matches ended, in a match that was costly to Aresenal in a couple of ways: they failed to clinch a win over Birmingham by giving up a late penalty kick, but more importantly, lost in-form forward Eduardo to a broken leg (photos are NOT for the faint of heart). BC's Martin Taylor has received death threats in the aftermath, as Eduardo's foot was in jeopardy. As it stands, he's looking at 9 months of recovery.

(thanks, FoxSports):


Overall Standings:

Granicar - 659
CB Chargers - 643
Come On Pelican - 577
Kaba Montreal - 542

Ronaldo's brace gave Granicar some breathing room ahead of Chargers; it also kept COE safely ahead of Kaba.

Liverpool and West Ham both play twice during the upcoming Gameweek. They play each other on 5 March, and while the Reds get a gimme at home vs. Bolton Wanderers, the Hammers get to host 3rd place Chelsea, fresh off a disappointing loss to Tottenham in the FA Cup.

Your FSC viewing schedule for Gameweek 28:

Sat, 1 March: (10) Arsenal vs. Aston Villa (12) Manchester City vs. Wigan (4:30) Newcastle vs. Blackburn
Sun, 2 March: (11) Everton vs. Portsmouth

Gameweek 28 points:

Come On Pelican - 65
Assist by Adebayor
CB Chargers - 64
Goals by Cahill, Gerrard; Assists by Adebayor, Gerrard
Kaba Montreal - 44
Goal by Gerrard; Assists by Adebayor, Gerrard
Granicar - 21
Assist by Adebayor

Chargers reclaimed the lead by giving the Ronaldo owners a taste of their own medicine in the form of Liverpool skipper Steven Gerrard. Their Captain amassed 17 points for them over two matches, with a bonus total of 34.

None of the other Dream Team members are in League lineups, creating a feast-or-famine situation. For the first time in several weeks, none of the League keepers kept clean sheets.

Speaking of Ronaldo, his owners had to be disappointed by the decision to use him as a substitute in United's visit to the relegation zone at Fulham. His single point was likely a dozen or so short of what was expected.

Overall points (through 13 weeks):

CB Chargers - 707
Granicar - 680
Come On Pelican - 642
Kaba Montreal - 586

In addition to losing the overall lead, Granicar now has COE breathing down their neck. Kaba is still in the mix, and just needs to gain a few points per week to get in the mix. With 10 weeks remaining, there is still some time.

----

Manchester United and Bolton Wanderers have other commitments this weekend; ManU faces Portsmouth in the FA Cup, Wanderers have a UEFA Cup replay with Sporting Lisbon. Therefore, all of the clubs will need to make lineup changes.

On FSC this Gameweek:

Sat, March 8: (10) Blackburn vs. Fulham (4:30) Reading vs. Manchester City
Sun, March 9: (12) Wigan vs. Arsenal
Wed, March 12: (6) Aston Villa vs. Middlesbrough

The Points for Week 30:

Kaba Montreal - 54
Goal and Assist by Gerrard
CB Chargers - 54
Goal by Gerrard; Assists by Gerrard, Young; Clean Sheet by Almunia
Come On Pelican - 52
Goal and Assist by Gerrard
Granicar - 45
Goals by Berbatov (2), Barry; Assists by Arteta, Chimbonda

The League saw the tightest scoring in weeks as goal-scoring was the order of the day throughout the EPL. Steven Gerrard didn't just pace Liverpool's 3-0 pounding of Newcastle, he led three of our clubs as well. Spurs' Dimitar Berbatov and his pair of tallies was another shining light as Tottenham lay waste to West Ham, 4-0. Pompey's Jermain Defoe had a brace of his own as Portsmouth did in Birmingham.

But it was Chelsea's Frank Lampard as the star of the week, hitting the back of the net 4 times and racking up 25 fantasy points in the Blues' demolition of last-place Derby County. Too bad none of us had him in the lineup!

The Overall Points (through 14 weeks):

CB Chargers - 761
Granicar - 725
Come On Pelican - 694
Kaba Montreal - 636

Chargers gained some breathing room, as COE and Kaba continued their surge toward 2nd. Granicar rebounded with a solid effort, and should still be considered a threat to reclaim the lead.

----

The scores should be high this week as four teams have two matches in the Gameweek, and they are all well-represented in League lineups: Manchester United, Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur and Bolton.

United has a pair of gimmes in relegation zone residents Derby and Bolton. Chelsea plays both of their matches on the road, with the feature fixture being a visit to White Hart Lane for a London derby with Spurs on the 19th (Steve Nash will no doubt be watching with great interest).

The Gameweek on FSC:

Sat, March 15: (11) Liverpool vs. Reading (1) Arsenal vs. Middlesbrough (11p) Portsmouth vs. Aston Villa
Sun, March 16: (12) Tottenham Hotspur vs. Manchester City
Wed, March 19: (4) Manchester United vs. Bolton Wanderers

I inadvertently posted provisional scores for Gameweek 29; mea culpa, mea cupla, mea maximuma culpa.

Here's how they actually went:

Come On Pelican - 63
CB Chargers - 61
Kaba Montreal - 59
Granicar - 57

I thought the totals seemed low, but I also thought everything had been updated. We haven't had this good a week, collectively, throughout the competition....nice job, gents!

The Overall Totals:

CB Chargers - 768
Granicar - 737
Come On Pelican - 705
Kaba Montreal - 641

Once again, my bad, and Good Luck to all this weekend.....

Points for Week 30:

Granicar - 64
Goals by Ronaldo (3), Berbatov; Assists by Chimbonda (2); Clean Sheet by James
Come On Pelican - 51
Goals by Ronaldo (3), Assist by Gerrard
Kaba Montreal - 48
Assists by Elano (2), Davies, Fabregas, Gerrard; Clean Sheet by James
CB Chargers - 43
Assists by Fabregas, Gerrard, Kalou, Murphy

Granicar used three goals by Christiano Ronaldo over ManUnited's two matches to storm back into title contention as Chargers stumbled. They combined them with strong perfomances from their Spurs, Berbatov and Chimbonda, who had a 4-4 shootout with Chelsea yesterday.

COE also got a piece of the Ronaldo action, allowing them to nose out the clubs who relied on Assists to get by.

Overall Points:

CB Chargers - 811
Granicar - 801
Come On Pelican - 756
Kaba Montreal - 689

The Chargers not only watched Granicar get healthy, but now have to deal with injuries to two key regulars, United defender Rio Ferdinand - who sat out both of their shutouts last week - and Everton midfielder Tim Cahill. Granicar has put their mini-slump firmly behind them, and now threaten to reclaim the top of the table. An in-form Ronaldo will get them there in no time.

----

Gameweek 31 is headlined by Sunday matches that feature the top four clubs in the EPL. Liverpool visits Old Trafford to face Manchester United; Chelsea has another hometown tie with Arsenal. The Reds are coming off a good win over the revived Reading, and as mentioned before, ManUnited is steaming right along. Struggling Chelsea can't be happy with the prospect of facing the Gunners, not with 5th place Everton looking over the shoulder and hosting the reeling West Ham.

This weekend on FSC:

Sat, March 22: (11) Newcastle United vs. Fulham (1) Everton vs. West Ham (8) Reading vs. Birmingham City
Sund, March 23: (12) Chelsea vs. Arsenal

Oh where did I fail?

For fantasy purposes, I don't like the 4-4-2. I'd rather employ a 3-5-2 or 3-4-3, and get another midfielder or forward out there who has a better chance to score.

Granted, there are some weeks where an extra defender makes sense, strategy-wise, but I've found that the more aggressive the approach, the better.

There's more I can tell you, but I'll wait 'til after the season.

I'm just tanking for a high draft pick next year

Good idea: if Jozy Altidore makes the leap from MLS to EPL, he'll be a top waiver claim, LOL.

I can point to one of my main problems: every time I transfer out Roque Santa Cruz, he goes off. He did nothing for 6 weeks, and as soon as I let him go, he scores 3 goals in two matches, with an assist.

What is it they say about over-managing?

Points for Week 31:

Come On Pelican - 56
Goals by Bikey (2), Ronaldo; Assist by Bentley (2)
CB Chargers - 39
Assists by Bentley (2), Fabregas
Granicar - 38
Goal by Ronaldo, Assist by Berbatov
Dr. Whom - 30
Assists by Fabregas, Shorey

The defenders of the EPL must have read my recent comments, because Gameweek 31 was their turn to shine. Reading's Andre Bikey led all scorers with 17 points, a shade ahead of the previously discussed Roque Santa Cruz. Joining him at the top of the scoring leaders were Newcastle's Geremi, ManU's Wes Brown, and Bacary Sagna of Arsenal. All of them contributed goals or multiple assists and had 12 points on the week.

Santa Cruz and Bikey were joined by Chelsea's Dider Drogba as the top goal scorers of the week.

Overall Points:

CB Chargers - 850
Granicar - 839
Come On Pelican - 812
Kaba Montreal - 719

It's quickly turning into a three-team race, with only 38 points separating 1st and 3rd. The writing is on the wall for Kaba, who need some big scores in order to have a chance. With the teams trading high score honors each week, the title may come to whichever team can be the most consistent.

----

The feature match of the week involves #4 Liverpool hosting #5 Everton on Sunday. The fixture list consists mainly of upper-half teams squaring off against clubs struggling to stay above the drop zone; as many as five teams are within 5 points of the bottom three. Bolton will try to climb out by staging an upset vs. Arsenal.

FSC's offerings:

Sat, 29 March: (11) Derby County vs. Fulham (1) Manchester United vs. Aston Villa
Sun, 30 March: (11) Liverpool vs. Everton (4:30) Tottenham Hotspur vs. Newcastle United

Points for Gameweek 32:

Come On Pelican - 70
goals by Ronaldo, van Persie; assists by Ronaldo (3), Benjani, Hleb
Granicar - 55
goal by Ronaldo; assists by Ronaldo (3), Benjani; clean sheet by James
Kaba Montreal - 54
goal by Elano; assists by Fabregas (2), Benjani, Davies; clean sheet by James
CB Chargers - 45
assists by Fabregas (2)

The marathon is becoming a sprint as Christiano Ronaldo's typically outstanding play is creating a 3-team race atop the table. Granicar also added a Dream Team performance by Portsmouth goalkeeper David James to narrow CB's margin to a single point.

Based on their current form, Granicar and COP are looking like the favorites....especially if ManU's #7 continues to dominate.

Overall Points:

CB Chargers - 895
Granicar - 894
Come On Pelican - 882
Kaba Montreal - 773

For as well as Granicar has done, COP's surge to within a few points of the lead cannot be overlooked. The Chargers diminishing hopes took a big blow when it was learned that midfielder Tim Cahill will miss the remainder of the season.

----

This week's top match figures to be Liverpool's visit to Arsenal on Saturday. With 5th place Everton likely to crush visiting Derby later in the day, the Reds will be pressed to come away with a least point to keep their Champions League spot at arm's length.

FSC is offering:

Sat, April 5 - (10) Newcastle vs. Reading (12) Aston Villa vs. Bolton
Sun, April 6 - (4:30) Everton vs. Derby

Week 33 Points:

CB Chargers - 67
goals by Barry (2); assists by Barry (2), Bentley, Fabregas, Young; clean sheet by Howard
Granicar - 64
goals by Barry (2), Berbatov, Ronaldo; assists by Barry (2), Dempsey; clean sheet by James
Kaba Montreal - 40
assist by Fabregas; clean sheet by James
Come On Pelican - 37
goal by Ronaldo; assist by Bentley

Gareth Barry was the key to success last week, as his 20 point effort was far and away tops around the League. But it was the choice of Tim Howard as Captain that gave Chargers the extra points needed to hold Granicar at bay. Christiano Ronaldo and Dimitar Berbatov continued the strong play that have earned them spots among the league's elite.

Overall Points:

CB Chargers - 962
Granicar - 958
Come On Pelican - 919
Kaba Montreal - 813

With five weeks remaining, Chargers inched forward to maintain hold on the top of the table. Time is running out for COP to make their move, but they're still in striking distance.

----

ManU hosts Arsenal in the feature match of the week. The Red Devils are holding three points on Chelsea for the top of the table, as Arsenal has slipped to 3rd, six points out. 4th place Liverpool has a task on hand with visiting Blackburn (8th), while 5th place Everton heads to Birmingham already missing Cahill, and now may be without Spanish international Mikel Arteta.

FSC is offering:

Sat, April 12 - (10) Reading vs. Fulham (12) Portsmouth vs. Newcastle (11p) Birmingham vs. Everton
Sun, April 13 - (11) Manchester United vs. Arsenal

Thanks to some numbskullery on my part, I'm late in updating the scores from last Gameweek. I also managed to miss the start of Gameweek 35, which began with Everton/Chelsea yesterday.

Here's a quick recap of Week 34 (week 35 in parentheses):

Kaba Montreal - 85 (2)
CB Chargers - 75 (4)
Come On Pelican - 66 (2)
Granicar - 57 (2)

Major kudos to Kaba for a big week; he had about four different players chip in with goals, and nearly half his starting line-up made it to the Dream Team.

Overall Points (including yesterday):

CB Chargers - 1041
Granicar - 1013
Come On Pelican - 987
Kaba Montreal - 900

The Chargers have used the last two weeks to put some separation between them and Granicar. COP is in striking range for 2nd place.

----

Even though yesterday's match was the "feature" game, there is still matches worth paying attention to, particulary the five teams competing to avoid two relegations slots. The current points (#18-20 are relegated):

#15 Wigan Athletic - 35
#16 Reading - 32
#17 Birmingham - 31
----
#18 Bolton - 29
#19 Fulham - 27
#20 Derby - 11 (they were set to drop by Halloween)

Wigna has the best chance of winning this weekend, as they host Tottenham, who have lost or drawn 15 of their 17 road matches to date. Reading and Fulham face top clubs Arsenal and Liverpool, respectively. Birmingham has a task at Aston Villa. Bolton should be able to handle Middlesbrough, but the Wanderers, despite winning last week, have been terrible on the road.

FSC is offering:

Sat, April 19: (10) Wigan Athletic vs. Tottenham Hotspur (12) Blackburn Rovers vs. Manchester United (6:30) Middlesbrough vs. Bolton Wanderers
Sun, April 20: (11) Manchester City vs. Portsmouth

Points for Week 35:

CB Chargers - 53
goals by Young 2, Santa Cruz; assists by Barry, Fabregas, Young
Kaba Montreal - 44
goals by Adebayor, Benjani; assist by Elano, Fabregas, Mellberg
Granicar - 39
goals by Adebayor, Benjani, Berbatov; assist by Barry
Come On Pelican - 28
goal by Benjani

We're coming in for a landing, and this weekend, Ashley Young was behind the controls. The young striker for Aston Villa was the Man of the Week, with 16 points. Emmanuel Adebayor scored for the 2nd straight week, getting back into his owner's good graces, as did Citeh's Benjani. Another Villan, John Carew, and Newcastle's Michael Owen were also among the multiple goal scorers from the weekend.

The soap opera in net for Arsenal continued as manager Arsene Wenger tabbed Jens Lehmann as his keeper for the Reading match, despite the outstanding season-long play of Manuel Almunia; of course, the German international proceeded to shut out the Royals. The situation was escalated last week when Almunia spoke out against Lehmann, who has spent the entire season publicly trashing Almunia for no other reason than he took his job. It almost seems like some bizarre test by Wenger....that Almunia somehow failed.

Lehmann is probably just warming up though....the summertime international friendly season is almost upon us, and he and fellow Deutsche national team keeper Oliver Kahn have been grousing about each other to anybody who would listen (not a requirement) for years.

Your overall points:

CB Chargers - 1090
Granicar - 1050
Come On Pelican - 1013
Kaba Montreal - 942

Young's performance will be legend for Chargers, who now hold 40 points on Granicar with three weeks remaining. COP missed on a golden opportunity to advance on 2nd place, but can still claim it with strong performances. Kaba's form has been better of late, and even though I mentioned it previously, I didn't detail just how good a week he had last weekend:

Kaba Montreal - 85 - goals by Adebayor, Elano, Gerrard, Lescott; assists by Davies 2, Elano, Gerrard; clean sheet by James

Again, nice work!

----

Chelsea host ManU on Saturday, and will look to draw level with the Red Devils atop the table. On Sunday, there's a battle for 5th place, as Everton defends their position against visiting Aston Villa. United and Villa won the earlier season matchups, respectively.

The top of the table:

#1 ManUnited - 81
#2 Chelsea - 78
#3 Arsenal - 74
#4 Liverpool - 69
----
#5 Everton - 61
#6 Aston Villa - 58
#7 Portsmouth - 57

On the relegation front, Bolton did, in fact, handle Boro, 1-0; combined with losses by Reading and Birnigham, they moved into the #16 position. Wigan finished even with Spurs, 1-1, and moved into a three-way tie with losers Boro and Sunderland for the #13 position.

The new positioning, and their opponent this week:

#16 Bolton - 32 away at Tottenham
#17 Reading - 32 away at Wigan
----
#18 Birmingham - 31 home for Liverpool
#19 Fulham - 27 away at Manchester City
#20 Derby - 11 home for Arsenal

FSC is offering:

Sat, April 26: (10) Sunderland vs. Middlesbrough (12) Tottenham vs. Bolton (2) Wigan vs. Reading
Sun, April 27: (11) Everton vs. Aston Villa

Gameweek 36 Points:

Kaba Montreal - 52
goals by Adebayor 3, Benjani 1; assist by Fabregas; clean sheet by Hahnemann
CB Chargers - 50
goals by Adebayor 3, Santa Cruz; assists by Barry 2, Fabregas
Granicar - 43
goals by Adebayor 3, Benjani; assists by Barry 2
Come On Pelican - 26
goals by Benjani, van Persie; assist by van Persie

How 'bout that Kaba?!?!

Dr. Whom once again led the pack, with the Arsenal ace from Togo doing major damage in only 45 minutes of play. Yes, Emmanuel only played the 1st half against Derby yesterday, but still scored a goal every quarter-hour in a 6-2 laugher. When Portsmouth sat league-leading 'Keeper David James, Kaba turned to Seattle native Marcus Hahnemann of Reading, who stopped 5 shots on his way to a clean sheet.

Overall Points:

CB Chargers - 1140
Granicar - 1093
Come On Pelican - 1039
Kaba Montreal - 994

There's some distance between the clubs as they head into the final two weeks of the season. There's still time for big point swings to affect the table, so nobody can take anything for granted.

----

The top four are now set: Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool will return to the Champions League for '08/09. United and Chelsea are tied for 1st in the table at 81 points; Chelsea visits Newcastle this weekend and United hosts West Ham. Everton has clinched a UEFA Cup spot, and Aston Villa (59 pts.), Portsmouth (57), Blackburn (55) and Manchester City (55) are competing for three spots.

On the relegation front, Fulham were victorious, while Reading, Birmingham and Bolton all drew. The bottom five remained in the same order, but another Cottagers win could drag Bolton or Reading into the drop zone.

FSC is offering:

Saturday, May 3: (10) Reading vs. Tottenham (12) Bolton vs. Sunderland (2:30) Middlesbrough vs. Portsmouth
Sunday, April 4: (11) Liverpool vs. Manchester City

IN-WEEK SCORING UPDATE:

Christiano Ronaldo apparently woke up this morning thing "deficit, schmeficit". The United midfielder unleashed two goals and an assist, with the goals being #39 and #40 in all competitions for '07/08. Wigan midfielder Antonio Valencia also clocked in with two goals, leading Granicar to 59 points for Saturday. Dimitar Berbatov didn't play in the Spurs win over Reading, so Nigel Reo-Coker will be subbed in, adding another point. They still have six players to go tomorrow, so 100 points isn't out of question.

Roque Santa Cruz and captain David Bentley carried the CB Chargers banner, with 13 and 14 points, respectively. They lost 21 points in the table to Granicar, but maintain a 26 point advantage. If Steven Gerrard sits out his 3rd game in a row, defender Paul Scharner and his 6 points will be subbed in. They have 4 others going tomorrow.

Ronaldo and Bentley also spearheaded Come On Pelican, whjo finished the day with 29 points. Defender Andre Bikey will be subbed in for the suspended Alexander Hleb, and five more will suit up tomorrow.

It was a quiet day for Kaba Montreal who finished the day with 6 points. They have seven players going tomorrow, who just happen to be their seven best players.

Your updated table:

CB Chargers - 1178
Granicar - 1152
Come On Pelican - 1068
Kaba Montreal - 1000

Final Gameweek 37 Points:

Granicar - 68
CB Chargers - 52
Come On Pelican - 40
Kaba Montreal - 23

There wasn't too much scoring after Saturday, so the Chargers used lineup adjustments to gain some extra points on Granicar. With one week remaining, the work is cut out for the clubs. It would seem as though the standings are pretty well fixed, but there's been enough wild point swings to make the race still open.

Overall Points:

CB Chargers - 1192
Granicar - 1161
Come On Pelican - 1079
Kaba Montreal - 1017

----

With the season essentially over for most of the teams the focus will be on Man U and Chelsea, as they seek to break the 1st place tie, as well as the relegation battle, which still involves a few teams. The entire gameweek will be on Sunday, and all of the matches start at the same time.

I'll be taking most of the discussion about that over to the newly-created Fantasy Futbol Forum, and encourage all who read this to join us there!

In the meantime, your FSC schedule for Sunday:

10am - Chelsea vs. Bolton (Chelsea needs to win to have a chance at the crown; Bolton needs at least a draw to ensure safety)
12pm - Tottenham vs. Liverpool (Liverpool's place at #4 is secure; Spurs need a win to be able to finish in the top half of the table, IOW, they're both playing for pride)
2pm - Everton vs. Newcastle (Everton can secure #5 with at least a draw; 12th place Newcastle just wants their season to end - an upset would be nice)

The Final Totals:

CB CHARGERS FC - 1242
GRANICAR - 1199
COME ON PELICAN - 1127
KABA MONTREAL FC - 1046

The Chargers took advantage of strong performaces from the likes of Emmanuel Adebayor, Roque Santa Cruz, Cesc Fabregas, Steven Gerrard, Joleon Lescott, and Tim Howard while averaging 56 points per week.

Granicar proved a worthy foe, owning the lead for several weeks during the season. They had it late in the year, and the 43 point differential doesn't tell the true tale.

COP and Kaba both had their moments, and at times, were just a player or two short of making bigger inroads.

Gameweek 38 Points:

CB Chargers - 50
goals by Barry, Lescott, Young; assist by Santa Cruz
Come On Pelican - 48
goals by Johnson, Lescott, Ronaldo
Kaba Montreal - 41
goals by Elano, Lescott, Ronaldo
Granicar - 38
goals by Barry, Lescott, Ronaldo

Lescott was the key to success during the final week, as Everton's Player of the Year added one last goal and Dream Team appearance to the ledger. COP was the only club able to take advantage of the 8-1 annihlation of Manchester City by Middlesbrough. Stewart Downing and Alfonso Alves combined for five goals, and made sure everyone will remember them for the start of next season.

----

Manchester United won their 10th Premier League Championship, finishing with 87 points. Chelsea was second with 85. They'll square off next Wednesday in the Champions League Final. We'll likely be discussing that over in the Fantasy Futbol Forum.

Reading, Birmingham City and Derby County were relegated to the League Championship, with West Bromwich Albion and Stoke City already set for Promotion. There is a four-team playoff underway to determine the third team to go up. Bristol City just beat Crystal Palace to reach the final; their opponent will be either Hull or Watford, who play tomorrow.

----

The 08/09 season will begin in August. I'll post info about joining the league then....if anybody else wants more info about the game, or to get a head's up when I set up the league, shoot me a PM.

In the meantime, I'll add a reply with the top scorers at each position, for a point of reference.

On a personal note, I want to thank everyone who competed...I hope to see you all next year!

GOALKEEPERS (final value in parentheses):

1-- David James, Portsmouth (5.6) - 167
2-- Pepe Reina, Liverpool (6.5) - 159
3-- Brad Friedel, Blackburn (5.6) - 149
4-- Tim Howard, Everton (5.2) - 139
5-- David Green, West Ham (5.0) - 144
6-- Marcus Hahnemann, Reading (4.3) - 133
7-- Craig Kirkland, Wigan (4.1) - 132
8-- Edwin van der Sar, Man United (5.9) - 126
9-- Petr Cech, Chelsea (6.5) - 122
10- Manuel Almunia, Aresnal (5.0) - 117

DEFENDERS:

1-- Joleon Lescott, Everton (7.1) - 196
2-- Rio Ferdinand, Man United (7.3) - 171
3-- Martin Laursen, Aston Villa (6.3) - 163
4-- Gael Clichy, Arsenal (6.4) - 146
5-- Nemanja Vidic, Man United (6.9) - 145
6-- Wes Brown, Man United (6.2) - 142
7-- Jamie Carragher, Liverpool (6.8) - 136
8-- Glen Johnson, Portsmouth (6.0) - 136
9-- Paul Scharner, Wigan (4.7) - 135
10- Phil Neville, Everton (5.5) - 135

MIDFIELDERS:

1-- Christiano Ronaldo, Man United (13.7) - 283
2-- Cesc Fabregas, Arsenal (10.0) - 205
3-- Steven Gerrard, Liverpool (10.6) - 200
4-- Gareth Barry, Aston Villa (8.4) - 178
5-- David Bentley, Blackburn (8.3) - 169
6-- Stewart Downing, Middlesbrough (7.1) - 166
7-- Martin Petrov, Man City (7.5) - 153
8-- Elano, Man City (8.3) - 149
9-- Frank Lampard, Chelsea (11.1) - 149
10- Joe Cole, Chelsea (8.8) - 144

FORWARDS:

1-- Emmanuel Adebayor (9.1) - 200
2-- Fernando Torres, Liverpool (10.5) - 193
3-- Roque Santa Cruz, Blackburn (7.8) - 182
4-- Ashley Young, Aston Villa (7.5) - 177
5-- Dimitar Berbatov, Tottenham (9.5) - 177
6-- Robbie Keane, Tottenham (8.9) - 162
7-- Carlos Tevez, Man United (8.8) - 161
8-- Gabriel Agbonlahor, Aston Villa (7.3) - 158
9-- Benjani, Man City (5.9) - 150
10- Wayne Rooney, Man United (11.7) - 148

HEAD'S UP!

The 2008/09 English Premier League schedule has been announced.

The season begins on Saturday, August 16, and you can find all of the club's schedules here

I'll be posting info about the Rotoworld Cup as we get closer, and have a couple of options for what type of league we'll use: the salary cap pool from last season or a Roto-style league with a draft.

As always, if you want in, lemme know!

It's Time To Get Our Game On!

The Offical EPL Fantasy Game is up and running and registration for the 2008/09 Rotoworld Cup is underway!

Start here: http://fantasy.premierleague.com/

Once you've created your team, use this code to join our league: 123138-30896

Each owner gets £100 to assemble a 15-man team. There is a limit of three players per EPL club that you may use.

The season is broken down into 38 Gameweeks, which are usually Saturday-Monday, with some mid-week Gameweeks. There will be teams playing twice in a week on occasion. If one of the players in your lineup does not appear, he will be autmotically be replaced by one of your subs.

You may make one free transfer each Gameweek, additional transfers cost 4 points. You get one Wild Card, which allows unlimited free transfers within a Gameweek.

Points are given for: Goals, Assists, Goals Conceded, Red/Yellow Cards, Penalty Kicks Saved/Missed, Minutes Played and Man of the Match (on a 3-2-1 basis). Your team Captain will earn double points.

You can get more info on new players to the league in the Summer Transfer Window thread in the Fantasy Futbol forum.

We had good competition last season, here's hoping for more entries and an even tighter race!

Good luck to all!

One other thing.....

Let's make this really interesting.....I'm thinking it's time we have a real trophy for our winner

How about something like this?



With some bells and whistles thrown in, of course.....

Introducing... Better than Timmah FC

1: James ©
2: Ferdinand
3: Laursen
4: Johnson
5: Scharner
6: Fabregas
7: Young
8: Gerrard
9: Dempsey
10: Santa Cruz
11: Benjani

Subs (i.e cheap players)

12: Schwarzer Goalkeeper
13: Melchiot Defender
14: Kilbane Midfielder
15: Cole Forward

With Benjani on the shelf, a new team is born with the Berbatov, Modric combo

1: James©

2: Ferdinand
3: Laursen
4: Scharner
5: Melchiot

6: Fabregas
7: Modric
8: Gerrard
9: Lawrence

10: Santa Cruz
11: Berbatov

12: Schwarzer Goalkeeper
13: Shawcross Defender
14: Kilbane Midfielder
15: Miller Forward

I've got Modric in the Yahoo game, where he's much cheaper. Strike that....I HAD Modric, but sold him to get the similarly inexpensive Deco

Week 1 is starting to look like:

-----------------------Howard-----------------
----------Lescott------Johnson-----Ferdinand
Fabregas ©-----Downing----Young-----Valencia
----------Santa Cruz-----JO-------Alves

Do you have any money left over? I think I have a million in the bank.

My new squad will be a mystery.

Who is the 4th team in the Rotoworld cup? What say you?

Smell My Cheese FC are up and running for this season, hoping to improve on last season's disappointing end

One Week Away!

Here's the fixture list for Gameweek 1 - Aug 16 & 17:

----Saturday----
West Bromich Albion @ Arsenal
Stoke City @ Bolton Wanderers
Blackburn @ Everton
Fulham @ Hull City
Tottenham Hotspur @ Middlesbrough
West Ham @ Wigan Athletic
Liverpool @ Sunderland

----Sunday----
Portsmouth @ Chelsea
Manchester City @ Portsmouth
Newcastle United @ Manchester United

Fox Soccer Channel will be airing on Saturday:

10am (Eastern): Blackburn @ Everton
12:30pm: Liverpool @ Sunderland
2:30pm: Wigan @ West Ham

For Sunday:

11am: Newcastle @ Manchester United
1pm: Manchester City @ Aston Villa

There's still plenty of room in the competition for new entries.......

Good luck to all!

Reminder to all Cup owners.....

Lineups for Gameweek 1 must be finalized by 6:30am Eastern time (11:30am London-time) tomorrow.

If any starters do not appear, they will be automatically substituted based on your substitute priority at the end of the Gameweek (sometime Sunday afternoon).

YAKUBU!!!!!!!!!!!

SANTA CRUZ!!!!!!!!!

A double for the Chargers....Huzzah!

Gameweek 1 Points:

Smell My Cheese - 58 ....Leading Scorer: Agbonlahor 17
CB Chargers - 38 ....LS: Santa Cruz, Young 7
The Good Doctors - 38 ....LS: Barry 8
Windy City Rumblers - 32 ....LS: Barry 8
FC Winningham - 22 ....LS: Elmander 6
Granicar - 22 ....LS: Martins 6

SMC took a decisive early lead by cashing in on goals by Fernando Torres and a hat trick by Gabriel Agbonlahor. CB Chargers and The Doctors (whose kit looks eerily similar to that worn previously by CB - Hmmmmm) were led by Roque Santa Cruz and Ashley Young.

Your Week 1 Dream Team:

GK: Petr Cech (8 points)
Defense: Johan Djourou (9), Danny Wheater (8), Gary Cahill (7)
Midfield: Deco (14), Mikael Arteta (12), Joe Cole (12), Geovanni (10), Frank Lampard (10)
Attack: Agbonlahor (17), Dean Ashton (10)

Gameweek 2 Fixtures:

Saturday, August 23:

Hull City @ Blackburn
Middlesbrough @ Liverpool
Bolton @ Newcastle
Aston Villa @ Stoke City - Fox @ 2:30pm
Sunderland @ Tottenham - Fox @ 10am
Everton @ West Brom
Arsenal @ Fulham - Fox @ 12:30pm

Sunday, August 24:

Chelsea @ Wigan
West Ham @ Manchester City - Fox @ 11am

Monday, August 25:

Manchester United @ Portsmouth

I'm not in last place!

yet