28 Mar 2013

Gameweek 31 Primer - Checheso's Picks

Buenas tardes everyone,

It’s slightly past 11 as I drum this out, ensconced in the relative comfort of my bouffant duvet covers, well protected from the especially biting cold outside. The weekend is upon us (Happy Easter!) and with it the attendant thrills and spills of the Barclays Premier League. True to form, managers all across the gamut of the League of Failures have been planning and plotting, battening down the hatches and steadying their nets in readiness for the anticipated points haul. As chronicled earlier in the week, a fair few new gaffers have joined the fray. We come together, for as brief a moment as is conceivably possible, to wish them good cheer as they aim to register their maiden return. On to the big one then.

CHECHESO’S PICKS

I’m pleased to reveal Checheso gaffer Allan Anyona held his end of the bargain as he delivered, in untypically commensurate fashion and with Teutonic thoroughness, the seminal edition of his scout picks feature. A cracking effort I must say given the fact it’s never been done before. And ergo, without further ado, under the aegis of Allan Anyona, I present - Checheso’s picks:

Jaaskalainen ** Baines - Riise - Mc Auley** ** Hazard - Gerrard - Bale - Osman** ** Berbatov - Rooney© - Giroud**

Bench: Garrido, Ba, Zabaleta

A cursory glance reveals a strength in belief towards Everton assets - Leighton Baines and Leon Osman stand prominent in Checheso’s XI. Goals in two of his last three, coupled with suspensions for both Marouane Fellaini and Steven Pienaar make Osman a strong contender for the points come Saturday’s tie away to Stoke City.

Upfront, he’s gone for Wayne Rooney over the relatively off-colour Robin van Persie – a popular fantasy development it seems over the last week.  Buoyed by his profitable travails against Montenegro, Rooney will be looking to extend his fine fettle against a dodgy Sunderland side – a fixture he always seems up for. Dimitar Berbatov holds the fort down in the mid-price forward category. A showdown against strugglers QPR this weekend as well as an impending double gameweek go some way in vindicating the Bulgarian’s appeal. John Arne Riise rounds off the Fulham double, a bit of an oddity as I’d expected that he’d opt for Sascha Reither instead.

Chelsea playmaker Eden Hazard comes in as the stand-out differential in midfield. A home tie against Southampton will provide fertile hunting ground for the in-form Belgian as he seeks to force himself into the managerial reckoning.

On the bench Javier Garrido and Pablo Zabaleta offer a security of starts at the bare minimum. Demba Ba while always carrying the potential for goals, faces a dip in appeal as a result of his attendant risk of rotation.

That covers it then. It promises to be a barnstorming weekend of football.

Enjoy,

- denniskig at 21:09