This Much We Know – Gameweek 1

We look back over the nine fixtures played out so far over Gameweek 1 and assess the lessons learned. Swansea’s playmaker, United’s worrying form, Liverpool’s young wide man, the limited number of budget defenders and the City frontline dilemma are amongst this lunchtime’s topics.

United are still in a rut
The Red Devils headed into the season with a 100% record over the summer but their limitations were quickly exposed by Garry Monk’s Swansea. Much was made of Louis van Gaal’s 3-4-1-2 formation but a lack of cohesiveness saw the Dutchman change to a 4-4-1-1 after the break, already denting the appeal of Ashley Young, who was moved to left-back in the latter stages of the 2-1 home loss. The fixtures may still be on their side but United clearly have a lot of sorting out to do – Van Gaal looks poised to hit the summer sales over the next fortnight and by the time the transfer window slams shut, we could have a number of new options to consider. After Saturday’s showing, though, the jury’s still out on whether United can find their feet to take advantage of those fixtures. Juan Mata’s owners are fidgeting already, with almost 20,000 FPL sales in 48-hours.

Gylfi looks the real deal
Paramount to the Swans’ win was a change of formation by Garry Monk. Having fielded Gylfi Sigurdsson on the right of a 4-4-2 in the club’s final friendly, the Swansea manager afforded the playmaker his preferred role in “the hole” behind Wilfried Bony. A goal and assist has already earned him a price rise and with three home games in the next four, Sigurdsson looks set to quickly escalate in price as Burnley, West Brom and Southampton all roll up to the Liberty. The pre-season rotation with Stoke’s Bojan Krkic already looks unwise, with Sigurdsson’s showing at the weekend underling his ability to deliver regardless of the fixture difficulty. If you’ve got him, don’t bench him particularly if he’s set to play his favoured “number 10” role away from home.

The budget buys are limited at the back
Five back line options in the 4.0 price bracket started the weekend action – Alan Hutton, Andre Wisdom, Liam Moore, Paul Dummett and Alex Bruce. The latter’s half-time withdrawal in a 1-0 win at QPR meant the Villa right-back was the only one to register a shut-out, though, and, encouragingly, the Scot seems to have been handed a new lease of life under Paul Lambert this term. If Villa can hold onto skipper Ron Vlaar (they failed to register a single shut out without the Dutchman last season), Hutton could quickly escalate in ownership, though showdowns against Liverpool, Arsenal, Chelsea, City and Everton in the next seven suggest points may be hard to come by.

Southampton are no pushovers
The Saints may have suffered an opening weekend defeat but their display at Anfield bodes well for those eyeing up investment ahead of a promising run of fixtures. In spite of a number of summer departures, Ronald Koeman looks to have invested wisely and the Dutchman’s 4-3-3 formation could bring a handful of options onto our radars ahead of a schedule which pits his side against just one of last term’s top eight in the next 11 Gameweeks. Nathaniel Clyne’s strike suggests the right-back could prosper at both ends of the pitch under Koeman, whilst Dusan Tadic’s assist and James Ward-Prowse starting berth on the right of the front three offers options across the price points in midfield.

Sterling is vital in the post-Suarez era
The Uruguayan’s departure was mourned by Liverpool fans and Fantasy managers alike after his sensational final season on Merseyside. Sterling’s growing influence in the final third against Southampton suggests he could be the talisman Brendan Rodgers is looking for – with his coolness in the box earning a goal and assist against Southampton, it’s fair to say that 8.5 price tag won’t be quite so budget-friendly for much longer as we place our collective faith in the youngster.

Sanchez will take time to deliver
The Chilean was kept in the shade by Aaron Ramsey’s late winner against Palace on Saturday evening. With the Welshman’s strike and maximum bonus quickly getting his season off the mark, Sanchez owners may need to be patient – Arsene Wenger admitted after the match his summer signing “needs to improve his understanding” with his new team-mates. Sanchez’ forays down the right looks likely to benefit Mathieu Debuchy, with the Frenchman flooding forward at every opportunity. Both players earned an assist on their debuts but in may not be until Theo Walcott is available that we get to see if Sanchez will be fielded up front – a scenario that could easily lead to a double-up in the Arsenal midfield.

Palace remain resilient – for now
Many feared the Eagles were on a hiding to nothing at the Emirates but caretaker manager Keith Millen frustrated the hosts right until the final minute. Millen took the helm last season after Ian Holloway’s departure and picked up a clean sheet in back-to-back matches prior to the appointment of Tony Pulis and clearly knows how to set up his defence. Reports linking Palace with former Spurs boss Tim Sherwood may be somewhat disconcerting for Fantasy managers who have invested in their backline, though – Spurs managed just five shut-outs in 22 fixtures under his guidance last time around.

Aguero’s return casts doubts over Dzeko and Jovetic
Sergio Aguero’s impact off the bench against Newcastle already has us fretting over the City forwards situation. With a week still to go until they entertain Liverpool, it seems almost inevitable that the Argentine will take his place up top, leaving Stevan Jovetic and Edin Dzeko to battle it out for the remaining berth. With Alvaro Negredo still out for a couple of months, though, Manuel Pellegrini will surely be keen to give all his available forwards pitch time as he looks to ensure Aguero doesn’t fall foul of injury again – if the Chilean restricts the trio’ minutes, David Silva’s goal suggest he could be the safest route into the champions’ attack if you’re willing to gamble on the Spaniard’s fitness record.