Fantasy Premier League 2013: Big-Money Picks Not Worth Their Price Tag

Every Premier League season brings with it a heap of expectation concerning the division’s biggest stars, as well as the more understated heroes who defy their own prospects.

Whether it’s as a result of a massive transfer fee or simply the superb talents they’ve shown on the pitch, these expectations tend to translate to the fantasy arena, too.

However, big price-tags don’t always indicate a big talent, and there’s some major expenditures worth avoiding in the interest of fantasy manager fame.

Using the Official Premier League Fantasy game as the basis, the following big names are all overpriced for what they promise to offer this coming campaign.

Fernando Torres

Club: Chelsea

Position: Forward

Price: 9.0

Regularly utilised as the butt of many a piece of Premier League satire, Fernando Torres remains a far cry from the value he represented during his fantasy days at Liverpool.

Since moving to Chelsea in 2011, the Spaniard has seen his proficiency in front of goal plummet and his credibility as a choice to lead a forward line drop in kind.

That being said, it's good to see that a low goal count by his own standards hasn't seen the forward's mood deflate too much, as The Football Front pointed out on Twitter:

This summer, competition for a starting spot under Jose Mourinho has only increased and Romelu Lukaku’s presence is likely to just make things harder for Torres, whose involvement is already under fire from Demba Ba.

While Jose Mourinho has woven some pieces of magic in his career, it’s unlikely that the manager is able to rescue Torres’ flagging form, which somehow sees him valued at £9 million.

Jesus Navas

Club: Manchester City

Position: Midfield

Price: 9.0

Coming to Manchester City after another fine season with Sevilla, Jesus Navas has been brought to England along with Manuel Pellegrini, looking to claw his new side back into Premier League honours.

Admittedly, the speedy Spaniard is a remarkable talent and one who contributed a lot to Alvaro Negredo’s goal tally in Andalusia last term.

However, Navas’ wide array of skills don’t necessarily mean a great deal of fantasy points, most of his input coming in the form of simply getting his team into a better position and feeding others.

WhoScored were quick to point out his shortcomings, too, over Twitter:

The winger scored no goals last season and bagged just seven assists, not entirely indicative of a talent warranting a spend of £9 million, the price of numerous talented strikers.

Vincent Kompany

Club: Manchester City

Position: Defence

Price: 6.5

Now a teammate of Navas, Vincent Kompany is another Citizen whose past achievements appear to have blown his fantasy worth completely out of proportion.

As a handy tip to those who might be unaware, centre-backs aren’t your first choices when it comes to defensive picks as full-backs are much more likely to bag an assist and are equally as likely to earn a clean sheet.

Granted, Kompany does have a nose for goal when it comes to set-pieces, but considering the current state of Pellegrini’s defence, his defenders may not be the most reliable players to bank on not conceding this term.

One of the more expensive players in his position, there are a raft of better, more financially friendly options than the Belgian international.

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