Premier League Draft Match 7: Incognito Man v Fuzzy_Dunlop

Blatter

This match will decide a place in the QFs and will last for 48 hours (counting from 3pm), in which time the participants will need to outline their team, basic strategy, and strategy against their opponent.

There will be a poll but only votes with answers developed in a post will be taken into consideration. This development doesn't have to be paragraphs long, even a single sentence is fine. But don't vote until the competitors have had a chance to outline their teams.

IncognitoMan

Ok here is my team. Ill start out at the back.

GK:
Ben Foster. West Broms 6ft 4in keeper is my choice between the sticks. Solid and capable of some sublime saves.

Right Back:
Coleman. Everton and Ireland right back has shown himself a very useful player since his transfer from sligo rovers. Very good going forward and I know people will pick on him for his defending but he is a player I feel is improving that area of his game the whole time.

Centre Back:
Mertesacker. A regular at the heart of both Arsenal and Germany defences Per will add a wealth of experience at the back. At 28 he has over 80 caps already for Germany.

Evans. Arguably Man Utd's best defender for the last 12 months. Jonny has had to step in and fill the void left by vidic at united and he has done a very good job of it.

Left Back:
Figueroa. A fine left back who can fairly hit a ball. Comfortable on the ball he is one of the leagues most under rated players I feel

Centre Midfield:
Cabaye. A player who works for his team at both ends of the field scores and creates. Brilliant passer of the ball

Faurlin. Another player with a wonderful range of passing. Despite QPR's shocking run he is one player that Ive always liked when I have seen them play.

Attacking Midfield/Second striker:
Rooney. My main man. The player who will make my side tick. Dont think anyone needs an introduction to him

Right Wing:
Lennon. Spurs right winger will cause most left backs problems with his pace and crossing. Should work well with these players

Left Wing:
Podolski. Class and a very clever player. Had a good goals return last year and has over 100 caps for Germany. At 27 you feel he is going to add to that tally. Made a decent start to life in England

Centre Forward:
Andrew Cole. I dont want to upset him so I call him Andrew. One half of probably one of the best strike partnerships the Epl has ever seen I hope he can link up as well with pod and rooney. Second highest all time scorer as well


So thats my players. My gameplan will be simple. Try and control possession and create chances for the likes of cole, podolski and rooney. In my two centre mids and rooney I have some of the best passers in the league and in cole I have a striker or is capable of putting the ball in the net.

Cant think of much else. I may add to this later

Fuzzy_Dunlop

Right first of all, good luck to IncognitoMan.


Onto my team, it will line up generally as follows:



Starting from the back:

GK - Cech - Arguably the most solid and dependable goalkeeper left in the league. Been Chelsea's number 1 now for many years and has been a constant through all of their recent successes. Had a dip after his head injury but over th last season he has been back to his best imo.

LB - Leighton Baines - Form best left back in the league right now and has been performing to the highest level for many seasons now. Surprised he hasn't been picked up by the very top teams (yet). Very capable defensively as well as being a real attacking force who can get assists as well as goals, and provide stellar set pieces.

LCB - Sol Campbell Big Sol is one of the greatest CBs to ever play in the PL at his peak. A key member of Arsenal's invincibles as well as the the double in his first season and the record for fewest goals conceded in the champions league in the run up to the 2006 final. A real rock to anchor my defence around.

RCB - Phil Jones

Hailed as one of the most talented English centre backs of his generation, Phil Jones was snapped up by Alex Ferguson whilst also drawing the attention of the likes of Arsene Wenger. Unfortunately he has been out for a good while now with injury but hopefully he'll be back to his best in no time. Well known for his ability going forward as well as in defence, having Sol beside him will allow him to put these talents to good use.

RB - Sascha Riether

At right back I have a German international currently on loan at Fulham from Cologne having previously helped Wolfsburg to the Bundesliga title.. While he may not be very well known as of yet in the PL, his performances show that he is solid and defensively capable.

Now onto the midfield:

CM - Tom Cleverley

At the age of 23 Cleverley has already made himself a regular in the Manchester United side which currently sits top of the table, having made 8 starts already this season. As well as that he is a full English international. Very tidy and capable midfielder who can provide creativity and link up play in the middle of the park.

CM - Tom Huddlestone

To act as the more defensive minded central midfielder in my set up, I have chosen another young english player. Unfortunately last season he had injury concerns which kept him out of the Spurs team but now he is back and looking to compete for his place in the side. He is known for his size and strength as well as great passing ability and powerful shot.

LW - Gervais Lombe Yao Kouassi (Gervinho)

Gervinho is the player in this team who can provide great pace and unpredictability in his play. With the capable Baines behind him he will be allowed to express himself and get at defenders to create chances for the side. Despite being often criticised, he is a player who unsettles defenses and can get goals, with 5 already this season.

CAM - David Silva

At the head of my midfield is one of the best attacking midfield players in the game today. A vital member of City's title winning side last season and getting back into the swing of things again this season. A key player in the multiple trophy winning Spain side, he provides great creativity and vision and can create and score goals.

RW - Yossi Benayoun

Currently at West Ham, but with a career that has seen him star for Liverpool, Chelsea as well as Arsenal, Benayoun gives the team an experienced head who is still prepared to work hard for the team and he still displays excellent technical ability and control in his play.


CF - Mario Balotelli

Balotelli is a player who's talent is evident for all to see, along with his agility and power. Another member of City's title winning side and starting striker for Italy as they reached the Euro finals this year. He may draw a lot of attention to himself with his antics but there is no questioning his ability, especially for someone who is still young. Also has the benefit of having never missed a penalty.


Right that's my team. I reckon I have good balance all over the park with no real glaring deficiencies in particular areas. A few of my players have had injury problems of late but in general I don't believe these players to be altogether unreliable. I have a good mix of youth and experience and reckon I would compete with most sides.

As for IncognitoMan's team, I believe that defensively the team is a bit suspect. Coleman is a great attacking threat but can be found wanting at times defensively. I personally rate Mertesacker as a defender however his pace is still somewhat suspect, especially against the likes of Balotelli and Gervinho. Evans, while keeping a place in the United side due to injuries to other players, has still made plenty of errors in a team that has been conceding freely so far this season, not least to be seen in his display against Reading. Figueroa is a reasonably solid if unspectacular left back and Foster is a good keeper but prone to errors and not of the same calibre as Cech.

Attacking wise, while he has many talented attacking players, I feel he is lacking a little in players in the front three who can control possession and create the opportunities to score. I also suspect that the protection offered to his defense, especially from Podolski and Lennon, will be lacking and further expose deficiencies at the back.

bucketybuck

Looking at the teams, I fInd I can't warm to Fuzzy Dunlops.

Gervinho, Ballotelli and Benayoun, god knows what sort of performance they would put in. They could be sublime or useless, each as likely as the other. Huddlestone and Silva are good, but he describes Cleverly as a regular for United, and thats simply not true, Giggs is still more likely to play than Cleverly this season. Jones? Just back from injury, and very overrated anyway.

There is quality in the team, but I just dont know if it would work.

Incognito man has the same problem. How will Rooney, Podolski, Cole and Lennon mesh together? They could work, but they could also be running in four different directions. His biggest problem is his defence though, it doesnt inspire confidence. Its a midtable defense that is going to have to deal with top table attackers, and I don't think it will be able to.

Going to give the vote to Fuzzy Dunlop. Not much in it though.

Fuzzy_Dunlop

bucketybuck wrote: »

Gervinho, Ballotelli and Benayoun, god knows what sort of performance they would put in. They could be sublime or useless, each as likely as the other. Huddlestone and Silva are good, but he describes Cleverly as a regular for United, and thats simply not true, Giggs is still more likely to play than Cleverly this season. Jones? Just back from injury, and very overrated anyway.

Giggs has started 4 games in the league this season, Cleverely 8. Also Cleverley had an injury which kept him out for a bit.

Cheers for the vote in any case!

bucketybuck

Fuzzy_Dunlop wrote: »

Giggs has started 4 games in the league this season, Cleverely 8. Also Cleverley had an injury which kept him out for a bit.

Cheers for the vote in any case!

Sorry. I'll admit that he has started more games than Giggs but thats not really the point. You just can't label Cleverly as a regular in the United side, he has been conspicuous by his absence in recent games against superpowers like Reading, QPR and Norwich. He has started one league match in the last five, and was subbed off after an hour in that game even though United were winning.

IncognitoMan

I think my defence is getting a bit under rated here. Its by no means the best in the draft but its not a midtable defence either. My two centre backs are first team players at Arsenal and Man Utd. Two top 4 sides. My right back is the first choice at a side pushing for top 4, likely top 6 finishers and my goal keeper is looking at a top 8 finish.

Another point. All my players are currently first team players at their clubs. The same cannot be said of fuzzy's side

Benayoun isnt and isnt the player he was 3 or 4 years ago

Jones as much as I like him hes not a first choice centre back now and thats what this is to be judged on. Current ability

Gervinho hasnt been that impressive since he moved to Arsenal

Huddlestone and cleverley are no better a midfield pairing than faurlin and cabaye.

And then theres mario. Who knows which one will show up.

Overall my side is a lot more dependable and I defiantly have the greater goal scoring potential.

Fuzzy_Dunlop

bucketybuck wrote: »

Sorry. I'll admit that he has started more games than Giggs but thats not really the point. You just can't label Cleverly as a regular in the United side, he has been conspicuous by his absence in recent games against superpowers like Reading, QPR and Norwich. He has started one league match in the last five, and was subbed off after an hour in that game even though United were winning.

Fair enough, although I'd say if you asked all United fans, you'd get a fair whack who would have him in their first choice midfield currently.

IncognitoMan wrote: »

I think my defence is getting a bit under rated here. Its by no means the best in the draft but its not a midtable defence either. My two centre backs are first team players at Arsenal and Man Utd. Two top 4 sides. My right back is the first choice at a side pushing for top 4, likely top 6 finishers and my goal keeper is looking at a top 8 finish.

Another point. All my players are currently first team players at their clubs. The same cannot be said of fuzzy's side

Benayoun isnt and isnt the player he was 3 or 4 years ago

Jones as much as I like him hes not a first choice centre back now and thats what this is to be judged on. Current ability

Gervinho hasnt been that impressive since he moved to Arsenal

Huddlestone and cleverley are no better a midfield pairing than faurlin and cabaye.

And then theres mario. Who knows which one will show up.

Overall my side is a lot more dependable and I defiantly have the greater goal scoring potential.

Good point on you having more first team starters in fairness. However Evans wouldn't be first choice without the injuries to Vidic etc. imo.

Benayoun was great last year at Arsenal, admittedly I haven't seen much of him this year but he is a total pro.

Agree on the midfield pairings, think they're well matched.

With Mario I think we saw what he is capable as when he is the main man playing up top for Italy in the summer. At City there is incredible competition for places in that position but at 95% of other clubs he'd be starting week in week out and able to perform much more consistently.

I think Silva has more potential to create scoring chances for my team than Rooney or your midfielders would. He is my ace in the hole so to speak.

IncognitoMan

Ok but do you think Mario is a better player now than a peak Cole?

Also since Rooney has played in the deeper role this year he has picked up 7 assists and 4 Goals in 11 games. Silva has 2 assists and 1 goal in 12 games.

Forgot to wish you goodluck before as well. And I see people have voted but not wrote up. Just to remind you, your vote only counts if you comment as well with a reason

Fuzzy_Dunlop

IncognitoMan wrote: »

Ok but do you think Mario is a better player now than a peak Cole?

Also since Rooney has played in the deeper role this year he has picked up 7 assists and 4 Goals in 11 games. Silva has 2 assists and 1 goal in 12 games.

Forgot to wish you goodluck before as well. And I see people have voted but not wrote up. Just to remind you, your vote only counts if you comment as well with a reason

Nope Cole is obviously better at his peak than Mario now. Same can obviously be said for Sol versus Per or Evans in defence.

Silva actually has 5 assists in the PL this year so far, despite his form being off compared to the start of last season. Rooney is playing with RvP who is on fire again in a team scoring plenty while City have been a little bit off offensively in comparison I would say. Still, obviously is also a top class talent.


Would also appreciate if people could give a quick sentence or two to explain their vote.

IncognitoMan

http://soccernet.espn.go.com/player/_/id/43815/david-silva?cc=5739

Liam O

Fuzzy_Dunlop

Giving it to IncognitoMan, He's equal or better than Fuzzy in every position other than LCB and LB and even then it's Evans and Figueroa who I rate quite highly who is in those positions. A consistent front 4 with a lot of pace and power in there and two CMs with more experience and ability to control the game than Fuzzy. Evans and Mert would compliment each other quite well, not sure how Campbell and Fuzzy's team would cope with Jones' adventures up the pitch.

Fuzzy_Dunlop

IncognitoMan wrote: »

http://soccernet.espn.go.com/player/_/id/43815/david-silva?cc=5739

I was going by the premier league site/ fantasy football.

http://www.premierleague.com/en-gb/players/profile.statistics.html/david-silva

Thecon21

Fuzzy_Dunlop

Going with Incognito here.

Agree with Liam there, his players are at least equal in each position, bar left back.

I think his midfield is very strong with great pace in attack.

Just gets it for me.

Fuzzy_Dunlop

Liam O wrote: »

Giving it to IncognitoMan, He's equal or better than Fuzzy in every position other than LCB and LB and even then it's Evans and Figueroa who I rate quite highly who is in those positions. A consistent front 4 with a lot of pace and power in there and two CMs with more experience and ability to control the game than Fuzzy. Evans and Mert would compliment each other quite well, not sure how Campbell and Fuzzy's team would cope with Jones' adventures up the pitch.

Campbell played with Kolo who also liked to foray forward and then went pretty well.

Also think I'm better in the goalkeeping stakes at least.

Tristram

Fuzzy_Dunlop

Incognito Man has better quality players in key positions. Wins it for me. Definitely rather Cole up front.

IncognitoMan

fantasy football assists aren't the same. They count it even if a defender touches the ball between the assister and goal scorer. If that makes sense. Ill stop now and leave it up to the voters

Liam O

Fuzzy_Dunlop

Fuzzy_Dunlop wrote: »

Campbell played with Kolo who also liked to foray forward and then went pretty well.

Also think I'm better in the goalkeeping stakes at least.

ah yeah, didn't see that, point still stands for me, it's close and Mario when on song is capable of being better than Cole ever was but those come few and far between like with Gervinho and with Benayoun not being up to much these days it's very possible Silva has nobody dependable to pass to up front.

Fuzzy_Dunlop

Liam O wrote: »

ah yeah, didn't see that, point still stands for me, it's close and Mario when on song is capable of being better than Cole ever was but those come few and far between like with Gervinho and with Benayoun not being up to much these days it's very possible Silva has nobody dependable to pass to up front.

I'd put Podolski and Lennon in the same undependable stakes to be honest. Podolski from the first few games of the season yes would be a great asset but since then his tracking back and general play has been seriously wanting. Him and Lennon would leave the full backs seriously exposed.

AdamD

Went for Fuzzy's team. Incognito's defence just doesn't do it for me. Both Evans and Mertesacker are prone to mistakes and don't exactly shine confidence through the rest of the team, as much as I like Faurlin and Cabaye neither will be offering all that much support and with 2 fairly average full backs I reckon Silva and Benayoun should create a lot of chances for Gervinho and Ballotelli.

On the other hand Fuzzy has a very solid defence and goalkeeper, with some unpredictable players up top and no real weaknesses.

If you look at both teams Incog's left side and Fuzzy's right look as though they'd be average and cancel eachother out, but Gervinho and Baines should get the better of Lennon and Coleman quite easily and there's a better balance through the middle too. My only doubt would be that Incognito has better goalscorers.

Dante

Went for Fuzzy with this one. While I really like incognito's attacking options, I think his back four is extremely vulnerable, particularly the center-back partnership of Evans and Mertesacker. I think Fuzzy's team as a whole is more balanced overall and that Silva could really exploit Mertesacker's lack of pace and Evan's tendency to lose concentration with his eye for a killer through ball.

Bounty Hunter

Fuzzy_Dunlop

If this match was played a few times I think you could get different winners but im going to go with Incognito Man as I think his team, particularily as an attacking force would be more consistant.

eagle eye

I have top go with Fuzzy_Dunlop here. Incognito man's defense just looks too bad to me and I'm not a fan of Faurlin either who is expected to cover in front of them. As good as his attack is he will still have difficulty getting the ball past Campbell and even when that happens you have to beat Cech who for me is the most consistent keeper in the Premier League over the last 8 years. Fuzzy_Dunlop's team is just so much stronger through the centre and I think he wins this one by 2 goals at least.

Chucky the tree

Fuzzy_Dunlop

Incognito for me. He's got a better attacking line up and the midfielders are fairly even tbh. Fuzzy defence is better but I think Jones is to much of a weak link.

Donnielighto

Fuzzy_Dunlop

incognito man easily for me.

Fuzzy only has one consistent attacker, Incognito has 2 who pretty much always turn up and 2 others who are more consistent than fuzzy's front three.

Huddlestone in the middle does nothing for me, too slow for faurlin cabeye and rooney who would be dropping back like he tends to. Silva and cleverly could be very tidy linking up though.

Figueroa and coleman mightnt be the best fullbacks in the league but they are no slouches and to be honest they dont have to be amazing to keep their men quiet.

Fuzzy wins the keeper stakes but cech will have more to do with a defence that has more threats to deal with.

Jones should not have been drafted by anyone, his defensive ability isnt good enough yet, mert is much safer option. while evans isnt as good as sol, i dont think he'll have to be and evans has been uniteds best defender over the last 12 months.

Incognito wins more matchups than fuzzy, the ones he loses he loses by less and should easily win through.

death1234567

Fuzzy_Dunlop

IncognitoMan although his back four is very very poor. Rooney would win it.

v3ttel

Fuzzy_Dunlop

Incognito takes it. Jones is an obvious weak link and has struggled any time he appeared at CB for United. Cole would have a field day against his nativity, I think.

Gervinho and Balotelli....impossible to predict how they would play. They have the potential to be completely anonymous and are too much of a risk.

Fuzzy_Dunlop

Well done to IncognitoMan on the win. Was close for a while but he came through to win well in the end.


I'm surprised at how much flack Jones took, whatever happened to United fans thinking he was the second coming of christ?:pac:

IncognitoMan

Thanks Fuzzy. It was a close fight for a good while