Premier League Draft Final: Blatter v Incognito Man

Blatter

This will decide the winner of the competition and will last for 48 hours (counting from 7pm today) 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.

Blatter

In goal I have a quality keeper who is a very good shot stopper and has excellent distribution. He will help start many attacks more swiftly and accurately than most other keepers.

My two central defenders are not household names but Hangeland and Distin are very reliable and have been for years. I think my two fullbacks, Assou-Ekotto and Richards, are two of the better ones in the league. They are relatively reliable defensively and are very good going forward. They will provide a great source of width.

Makélélé is without doubt one of the best DMs of all time and will be crucial to my team. He will largely nullify any AM he will come up against in the draft and will also provide great cover to my fullbacks who will get forward more as a result. He also has a magnificent first touch and control, which is vital when it comes to receiving the ball in tight spaces and starting attacks. Beside him will be Rosický, who is a tidy player and will get the ball forward to the others as well as putting a shift in defensively.

Ahead of the CMs are Oscar, Cazorla and Nasri who will all interchange which will cause a lot of confusion to any defence. They will link up with Assou-Ekotto and Richards and provide great service to Adebayor.

Adebayor himself will be much more than just a goalscorer in this team. He will make plenty of diagonal runs which will drag CBs out of position which will in turn create space for Oscar, Cazorla and Nasri to exploit.

Best of luck to Incognito Man.

IncognitoMan

wow didnt think I'd make it to the final. Thanks for all the votes so far and thanks to Blatter for running this draft I have thoroughly enjoyed it and best of luck in the final



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. 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.

Richard Hillman

Incognito man. There are more consistant goals and performances in his attacking players. Adebayor and Nasri are very hit and miss, mostly miss IMO.

Blatter

Just bumping this to the top of the page. If more people could vote either way (and give their reasoning on thread) it'd be great.

Red Crow

I know it's a draft but I think both defences are okay but Evans and Mertesacker would probably form a better partnership against Adebayor and co than Distin and Hangeland who are both good defenders but would not be able to handle Andy Cole. Having Makelele protecting the defence is absolutely crucial as the options of Lennon, Podolski, Rooney and Cole would be a nightmare for most defences. I like Oscar and Cazorla but I think Nasri is a vastly overrated footballer.

Ultimately I think Blatter leaves Makelele doing too much in the middle and I think the goals that come from Incognito's attack win it for me.

Amirani

Incognito Man

Very close to call between probably the best 2 squads in the competition. I opted for Blatter as I think his front 4 are more dynamic.

Incognito's main threat is Rooney. I think his ability to drop into space and create chances would be limited by Makelele.

Big Pussy Bonpensiero

Incognito Man

Going for Blatter here myself. I think that his front 4 are far too strong for Incognito Man's back 4, especially IM's full backs, who just won't be able to cope with Oscar and Nasri. This game would undoubtedly be full of goals, but Blatter wins it out for me, by 1, perhaps 2, goals. Two phenomenally strong teams tho everything considered. Either one is a worthy winner.

Big Knox

Incognito Man

Close one but I like the overall dynamic of Blatters team slightly better and I think his midfield edges it which will allow the front four to create and score!

Jam-Fly

really, really tight one but I'd opt just for incognito man.

Both sides have goals in them but Cole and Rooney just offer more reliability and consistency imo. I think the 3 attacking midfielders and front man (for Blatter) will score more often than not, but it's just a case of Cole and Rooney (along with great supply from Podolski, Lennon, Cabaye and Faurlin) will score a bit more. I rather Blatter's defence ever so slightly, but that's not enough to override what I feel is a more potent, clinical and talented forward line.

Pj!

IncognitoMan for me.

Blatter's central defenders are not up to par, even with Makelele supporting. Plus the two very attacking full backs are at times going to leave a below par central defence to deal with Andy Cole, Rooney, Lennon and Podolski.

As for goal scoring: Andy Cole and Rooney vs Adebayor and Cazorla is clear enough in my eyes.

Oscar hasn't lived up to expectation for me. He's young though. Not mad on Nasri either. But they will give IncognitoMans full backs a hard time.


But overall it's IncognitoMan for me. Should grab a few goals in this game.

Chucky the tree

Incognito man for me as well. I think Blatters weakish defense finally catches up with him.

Mr.Micro

Incognito Man

I think Blatter has the better team, but not would not have Adebayor at all.

eugeneious

Incognito Man

Blatter's trio behind Adebayor just about tips the balance in his favour for me. Very close call though!

Vurnon San Benito

Incognito man has a great forward line. Cabaye feeding either side, or Rooney, ability to cause havoc. Cole won't miss too many either, can the same be said for Adebayor?

Morte

I voted for Incognito Man. I'm not sure how Blatter's team will work defensively. I get that the back 4 and Makelele will hang back and do very well but I don't have a lot of confidence in the 5 in front of them to provide energy. He'd have to wait for the other team to get into his third before he'd be able to win the ball back in many cases.

eagle eye

Incognito Man for me.

markie29

incognito man for me too,just seems a better balanced team all round.

pickarooney

Incognito Man

Blatter's team blends the reliable with the flakey in a formation that could either tank the opposition or fall to bits against the solid but unispiring line-up proposed by Incognitio Man.

An awful lot hinges on Makéléke as the wide players are not likely to contribute that much offensively and his winning and working the ball to the multiple creative outlets up front are key this encounter.

Rooney aside, IM's attack seems a bit too blunt to make much inroads against the experienced centre half pairing and Lennon should get little change from Richards.

Blatter for me.

DoctorGonzo08

Incognito Man

Suprisingly evenly matched. But I think Blatter's team, although it may invite the opposition to play quite high, is better suited to quick counter attacking football. I wouldn't be overly confident in Incognito Man's back four against a break with Blatters three atacking Mids. That being said, I can't see Blatter holding too much possession with essentially a non existance CM, where Cabaye & Faurlin will be allowed to set up play. Counter attack, with a reliable back 5 slightly edges it for me. 2-1 Blatter.

bucketybuck

Incognito Man

Incognito mans full backs will haunt him in this match. Coleman and Figueroa are limited players, Coleman especially, and I imagine Nasri and Oscar will be told to drift out wide and target each of them. And they are good enough players to do damage out there.

At the other end, I remain unconvinced how Podolski, Cole and Lennon will gel. I honestly believe they could be less than the sum of their parts.

I would rather have Blatters team, no question.

v3ttel

Wow that's pretty tight imo. Went for Incognito Man in the end.

Rosicky, Nasri, Cazorla and Oscar are all similar enough type players, possibly a case of too many cooks against a team capable of holding possession for long periods, and nicely balanced overall. Actually, someone like Cabaye who is a very accomplished player, playing week in, week out in a CM two, would have been a great option to bring a bit more balance, instead of Rosicky. Makalele would have too much to do IMO.

TaosHum

Incognito Man

Narrowly went with Blatter, as I think the attacking combination of Carzola-Nasri-Oscar would be un-stoppable on its day. Plus I like the physicality of the CB's.

Dave_The_Sheep

Incognito Man

Went for Blatter too, though it'd be close. Too much creativity and movement in attack for Incognito's defense, while I feel the width of Incognito's attack could be nullified by some decent wing backs for Blatter. Even if Blatter conceeded a few, his team would outscore the opposition.

Bounty Hunter

Incognito Man

went for blatter although i must say ive questioned my pick a few times, think Makelele won me over

Fuzzy_Dunlop

Incognito Man

Another evenly matched game but I think Blatter edges it. I just love players like Cazorla and Rosicky and Oscar (and Nasri in terms of footballing ability). They may be a bit samey but i think it would work fine and be great to watch. Makalele is obviously great in terms of defense and Rosicky is underrated in his tackling (question over him is of course injuries).

Rikand

Incognito Man

its the makelele factor for me aswell. Also love that attacking line-up and think they will create more chances than Incognito Man's team will be able to against Blatters

Dante

Nasri, Oscar and Adebayor are too unreliable for me, I could see them going missing if they were to go a goal down which is very possible with Incognito's attacking options. I also think that the attacking midfield trio of Oscar, Nasri and Carzola might not work as well in reality as it should on paper; the three are too similar and could struggle to gel properly. In saying that, I really dislike Incognito's sluggish center-back pairing and could be easily exploited by the pace of Nasri, Oscar and Carzola should they find some momentum. Tis a very close one but I think Incognito would just about shave it.

bucketybuck

Incognito Man

DaaaaaaaaaaN wrote: »

Nasri, Oscar and Adebayor are too unreliable for me

Podolski and Lennon are reliable?

Thecon21

Incognito Man

I'd have to go with Blatter on this one, very tight. Just preferring the look of his midfield which I think is where he will win the battle! Good luck!

Dante

bucketybuck wrote: »

Podolski and Lennon are reliable?

Maybe not, but the fact that Incognito also has the second all-time leading PL goalscorer Andy Cole and the sixth all-time top scorer Wayne Rooney to bang them in should these two underperform is far more convincing than what Blatter has as back-up should Nasri or Adebayor underperform which they very often do. I think Blatter would find it far more difficult to get goals in that situation than Incognito.

Oscorp

I voted for Incognito Man. Blatter's whole system hinges on the one player in my opinion (Makelele), which is risky. Cole and Rooney could be deadly together, while Adebayor is very hit and miss.

IncognitoMan

congratulations Blatter. Runner up is not so bad :cool:

Blatter

IncognitoMan wrote: »

congratulations Blatter. Runner up is not so bad :cool:

Cheers and thanks to everybody that participated. It was close in the end.

Sorry for the late reply, was busy the last few days.

curry-muff

Incognito Man

****, forgot about this thread, only got around to voting for Blatter there now, guessing it's over yeah?