So what have we learned over the past two weeks? The brief hiatus from Premier League was relatively entertaining, and we can always learn a lot more from the Champions League, and to a lesser extent, the FA Cup, than we can from the painful and increasingly tedious International break. Seven observations from the past fortnight: 1. Adam Johnson is not a very nice man. 2. The 'Europa League Hangover' is a real thing (case study: Spurs) 3. Arsenal are not the 'new Barcelona', they are not 'Barcelona Lite', perhaps at a stretch they could be Barcelona C. Although even Barcelona C would have probably beaten a weakened Hull City at home. 4. Disagree with 3? See the Messi - Suarez penalty, then watch the Pires - Henry penalty. Nuff said. 5. Stay away from Utd players, probably for the rest of the season. Beating Midtoyland is not a thing of note. 6. Daniel Sturridge. He's racking up the minutes. Expect him to score goals-a-plenty in the Cup Final on Sunday and then again against City the following week but WARNING - do not jump on this bandwagon as its wheels are certain to fall off in a big fat hamstringy mess. I'm predicting a 9-month layoff due to two broken arms sustained celebrating the winner in the Whatever Cup Final this weekend. 7. Unlike other top sides in Europe who play Sunday / Wednesday without complaint, Man City have decided it is necessary to rest their top players ahead of facing the mighty Dynamo Kiev. So as well as giving up on the FA Cup, are we to assume that they've all but given up on their pursuit of Leicester as well? Might be risky having City coverage in your fantasy team as they progress to the later stages of the UCL (Kun included). Barcelona played nearly a full strength team in their match on Saturday against La Liga struggles Las Palmas before heading to the Emirates on Tuesday. Perhaps that says more about their opposition, having confidence that Arsenal would fold easily in the first leg whereas legendary second (best) striker Rebrov's Kiev were expected to have put up more of a fight. The Gunners, of course, will up their game in the second leg now that the pressure is off. They'll come close, but go out, as they always do. Despite the victory over Leicester, the league capitulation will commence shortly, possibly as soon as Man Utd this Sunday.
For those who haven't been paying attention to the domestic cups and their impact on the PL schedule, it's time to panic. GW30 is a massacre. Do your best to dodge the bullet.
This week we will focus primarily on the 8 fixtures taking place this GW27, but we advise you to keep an eye on GW30 where there currently just 6 scheduled fixtures. Notable absentees this week are of course Man City, giving us all a chance to make ground up on rivals as the default captain choice Kun will be lining up against Liverpool, another absentee this week, in the League Cup Final.
As well as those two, neither Everton nor Newcastle will feature this week, so time to join the bandwagon Lukaku owners - ditch him for Vardy - this week's Captain Marvel. If you've already filled your Leicester contingent, look to bring in Spurs players (Kane, Ali, Alderweireld) and you can also max out on Southampton players. Now that Forster is back they're a clean sheet machine, double up with Forster and van Dijk for defensive coverage, and as they've got decent fixtures between now and GW30 you could even take a punt on Jim White's 'Buy of the January Window' Charlie Austin (Don't).
Captain Marvel
Jamester Vardy (7.6) -- Leicester
Leicester's fixtures now 'til the end of the season are dreamy, and they also happen to feature in GW30 so it would be wise to go balls deep on Foxes while they march to BPL glory. Without the distraction of any cup competitions, their players will be fresh and ready to put the teams in the bottom half of the table to the sword. Expect most teams to have Vardy, Mahrez and one of Huth/Morgan/Schmeichel. I don't see defeat at Arsenal having an impact on their upcoming performances, and you could make a very strong case for just leaving the armband on Vardy or Mahrez for the next 4 gameweeks.
It's not unlikely that around 70% of active players this week will captain Vardy or Mahrez, as a home fixture against Norwich is about as good as it gets. They've had a couple of weeks to think about that and psychologically they might use that defeat as a source of inspiration and drive on as they have towards the Premier League summit. It could be a low scoring win, not the thrashing we might have expected a few weeks ago. If they fail to win, I fear that would be the beginning of the end of their title challenge. Despite that, I still think most players will captain Vardy.
This presents a massive opportunity to gain points on rivals by sticking the armband on Payet. He had meagre returns those first few weeks following his retun from injury, however, those that have stuck with him have been rewarded for their faith. A home fixture vs Sunderland this week could be explosive if he continues his fine form, on show again in the FA Cup fixture last weekend.
Puntsville USA
Adam Johnson -- TBC
Looking for a differential? He could be your man. Despite knowing he was a mega slimeball, Sunderland allowed him to play all the way up until his trial. I'm no lawyer but I'd guess proceedings go on for a couple of months after which point he'd be shipped off to serve his time or pick up litter on the roadside in a high-vis vest (not to be confused with Barca away kits). Now if Sunderland are still flirting with relegation, hell, even if they ain't, would we really be surprised if Big Sam called the man in question back from his duties for one final cameo to redeem himself, save Sunderland from relegation, and win back the support of the public before he heads off to be eternally butt raped in jail? I hope you've all saved your triple captain chip, this man could just save your season.
Pic of the Week
Does she know what it means? Doesn't she? Either way: Funnies
