Fantasy Premier League: Finding the value in the Man City squad

Joe Dyer
18 September 2015

Sagna has been an ever present through City's first five games

Join

Twitter

Facebook

City are on fire and everyone wants a Citizen or three in their Fantasy Premier League squads but while Hart, Kompany, Toure and Aguero are the hot choices, are your pounds better spent on a lesser light from the Etihad? Joe Dyer takes a look...

"Former Arsenal rightback Sagna is the third highest scoring defender in the game, behind Kolarov and Kompany, yet has been chosen by just 8.6% of managers. Mangala, with 27 points to his name, is a pick for just 3% of you."

With five games played and five games won, no goals conceded and a four point lead over the chasing pack it is exceedingly hard to crab Manchester City's title chances.

The league's joint top scorers, a defence with a perfect record and a kindly run of fixtures coming up, including four of the next six at home, and you have to say what's not to like about Manuel Pellegrini's outfit?

Everyone wants a piece of the 1.4840/85 title favourites but, as ever, the problem for Fantasy managers is choosing which one. Go with the obvious and you are following the crowd - Joe Hart is the second most popular keeper in Fantasy Premier League, Vincent Kompany the most popular defender, Yaya Toure is behind only Riyad Mahrez in manangers' affections and Christian Benteke just pips Sergio Aguero in the list of forwards. In a sense that's no bad thing as the top players are the big pointscorers, but when everyone is getting those points too it can be tough to make up ground on your fellow managers.

If you don't go with the obvious City players then who do you pick? Are there any overlooked gems at the Etihad?

Two defenders leap off the page - Bacary Sagna and Eliaquim Mangala. While Kompany is in more than a third of teams and Aleksandar Kolarov in just over a quarter this pair are far less popular.

Former Arsenal rightback Sagna is the third highest scoring defender in the game, behind Kolarov and Kompany, yet has been chosen by just 8.6% of managers. Mangala, with 27 points to his name, is a pick for just 3% of you.

Yet the two have played every single minute of City's five Premier League games so far and it's hard to see Pellegrini benching either any time soon. Mangala was a laughing stock in his first season but has silenced the doubters now. Pablo Zabaleta, currently injured but soon to return, is a danger to Sagna but the Frenchman should hold the edge for a few gameweeks at least.

Both are good value, too. Sagna is just 5.2m and Mangala 5.5.

And you can say the same about Fernandinho on all counts. The only midfielder to have played every minute of City's league campaign, at 6m the Brazilian is nevertheless the cheapest of all likely first teamers. That reflects his status as a defensive player but Fernandinho has already scored twice to suggest he will play a more attacking role in Pellegrini's plans.

* * *

While all is rosy in City's garden, neighbours United are in a bit of a state with problems at the front and back.

Luke Shaw's injury is a big blow to those of us with the leftback in our squads. The aforementioned Sagna looks an ideal replacement. If looking elsewhere it should be noted that Liverpool have a pair of winnable home games coming up - Norwich and Aston Villa go to Anfield in the next two gameweeks. The Reds started the season with three clean sheets and could go back to that form. We already highlighted Joe Gomez as a cheap alternative to other more popular defenders, but there's a concern that Alberto Moreno may push the Englishman out of the starting lineup soon. Martin Skrtel, Dejan Lovren and Nathaniel Clyne look to have the other spots sewn-up.

Wayne Rooney is again an injury doubt and with no goals so far this season a massive sell-off is no doubt well under way. Finding a forward has been tricky this season - Aguero has just one goal to his name after all - but alongside City, Chelsea, Swansea, Southampton, Spurs and Newcastle all play four of the next six in front of their own fans.