FANTASY CHALLENGE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE FINAL - THEMISTOCLEOUS SHIELDS Alistair Andreas
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FANTASY CHALLENGE
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE
FINAL
11th Final
Andreas
THEMISTOCLEOUS
V
Alistair
SHIELDS
GAMEWEEK 38 (24th May)
OFFICIAL FC MATCH PREVIEW
Table of Contents INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................................................................... 3 PLAYER PROFILES ......................................................................................................................................................... 4 Andreas THEMISTOCLEOUS..................................................................................................................................... 4 Alistair SHIELDS........................................................................................................................................................ 5 FC EXPERT MATCH ANALYSIS ...................................................................................................................................... 6 STAT ATTACK ........................................................................................................................................................... 6 THE ANALYSIS .......................................................................................................................................................... 6 THE FIXTURES FOR GAMEWEEK 38 ......................................................................................................................... 7 THE VERDICT ............................................................................................................................................................ 7 HISTORY ....................................................................................................................................................................... 8 PREVIOUS FINALS .................................................................................................................................................... 8 Taming the Shew ......................................................................................................................................................... 8 IN THE EVENT OF A DRAW........................................................................................................................................... 8
INTRODUCTION The Champions League moved into its second decade this season. This 11th final promises to be every bit as intriguing as the previous 10. We are guaranteed a new name on the trophy with debutant finalists, both of today’s finalists have already claimed promotion this season showing they are on top of their game, Andreas Themistocleous has claimed promotion from League One whilst Alistair Shields has gained promotion from League Two. This seasons Champions League had 80 managers taking part meaning both of today’s finalists have played 16 matches to get to the final. The competition starting in Gameweek 2 shows that the competition requires concentration and good management throughout the whole season. For a fifth successive season the group stage has claimed both of last year’s finalists Matt Hansell last season’s winner and Michael Lynn the runner-up. Lynn did finish 3rd in his group and went in the ‘The New Life Cup’ he managed to go all the way to the semi-final. To start thinking about next year’s competition might be a bit early for the finalists but both will want to avoid going out in the group stage next season. So to this year’s final which sees Andreas Themistocleous take on Alistair Shields, Andreas won the overall league last season and has a string of promotions to his name, being one of the few managers to have a won a major trophy Andreas has become a well-known manager in the FC World, Alistair might not have caught the headline sin his 6 seasons in the game. To say this final is a David V Goliath would do Alistair Shields an injustice, in fact it seems to be a final of a manager in Andreas Themistocleous who is looking to cement his name in the top echelons of the FC World. Alistair Shields will point to this season’s promotion from LeagueTwo it will be the second he has claimed in his FC career with many wondering if this appearance in a major final which has already seen him come to prominence victory will only aide this and many will feel that this 2015 seasons will be Alistairs launch pad to greater success. Both of this year’s finalists have faced former winners with Andreas Themsitocleous meeting the only manager to have own this coopetition twice Omid Afzalalghom in the group stage and actually came out on top in both encounters. Alistair Shields met 2012 winner Mark Angliss in the 3rd Round and came through a cliff hanger by a single point on aggregate 122-121. Shields had lost the first leg by 11 points turning on it round to win through with 1 2point win in the second leg. Gameweek 38 matches taking place on Sunday 24th and all kicking off at 3pm both managers will know by bank holiday Monday whether they been successful or not and are sure to be glued to the last day coverage of the Premier league, at the time of writing the title has been won by Chelsea and the Champions League places decided although the actual positions are still up for grabs. Queens Park Rangers and Burnley have been relegated all issues that the two managers have to consider when making those vital decisions to try and claim this most coveted of trophies. Over the next few pages we will profile the two managers taking part in the final ask the resident FC expert to give us his view on the final taking a look at the two managers line-ups from a previous gameweek assessing the potential weaknesses and Strengths of these line-ups. I hope you enjoy this Champions League Final preview Edition. Another special final as this prestigious competition enters its second decade. I of course wish both Andreas and Alistair all the best in this final. Paul Richardson Fantasy Challenge Founder Paul.richardson@Fantasy-Challenge.co.uk
PLAYER PROFILES
Andreas THEMISTOCLEOUS
Joined Fantasy Challenge 2010
Career Honours 2011 Pyramid Two Champions
2012 Pyramid Premier Promoted 3rd
2014 League Two Promoted Runner-Up
2014 Overall League Champion
STAT ATTACK
(After Gameweek 36)
THIS SEASON CHAMPIONS LEAGUE HISTORY
AVERAGE GAMEWEEK SCORE 56.38 2013 2nd Round
HIGHEST GAMEWEEK SCORE 108 2014 Quarter-Final
LOWEST GAMEWEEK SCORE 15 PYRAMID CUP HISTORY
GAMEWEEKS SCORE OVER 49 22 2011 Semi-Final
GAMEWEEKS SCORE UNDER 50 14 2012 3rd Round
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE AVERAGE 61.18
ROAD TO THE FINAL
1st Round Group Stage
Group L
Steve Lam 63 - 36
Kaska Porczyk 44 - 43
Jon Wedge 63 - 48
Omid Afzalalghom 52 - 24
Steve Lam 54 - 53
Kaska Porczyk 59 - 62
Jon Wedge 52 - 54
Omid Afzalalghom 58 - 54
FINAL TABLE
POS TEAM PLD WON DRW LST FOR AGST +/- PTS
1 Andraes Themistocleous 8 6 0 2 445 374 71 18
2 Kaska Porczyk 8 4 0 4 439 416 23 12
3 Omid Afzalalghom 8 4 0 4 445 429 16 12
4 Jon Wedge 8 4 0 4 407 436 -29 12
5 Steve Lam 8 2 0 6 334 415 -81 6
KNOCKOUT STAGE
1st Leg 2nd Leg Aggregate
nd
2 Round Lee Ferridge 76 - 63 47 - 59 123 - 122
3rd Round Dave Sinclair 46 - 31 76 - 83 122 - 114
Quarter-Final Steve Shew 81 - 57 49 - 57 130 - 114
Semi-Final Sam Shew 70 - 72 89 - 80 159 - 152
PROFILE
Andreas has been catching the headlines in the FC World from his first season in the game he claimed a top 5 finish
in the overall league alongside promotion from Pyramid Two the following season he gained a successive
promotion from Pyramid Premier. In his 3rd season a 6th place finish in the Conference was good enough to get
ham a lucky promotion. Last season he added promotion from League Two finishing runner-up, more impressive
though was finishing top of the overall league to claim his first major trophy. This season Andreas has already
claimed another promotion currently top of League One. His rise from Pyramid Two to the Championship within 5
seasons is very impressive, with the only slight on these successive promotions was that he jumped Pyramid One
due to drop outs and that lucky promotion from the Conference. That overall league title and successive
promotions through the Super20 league has Andreas marked as one of the hot new stars in the FC World. Now in
his first major final all will wait with interest to see if Andreas can claim his second major title, there is also the
chance of adding a second Super20 league title. Two big gameweeks which can serve to enhance an already
growing reputation in the FC World.Alistair SHIELDS
Joined Fantasy Challenge 2009
Career Honours 2012 Conference Promoted 5th
STAT ATTACK
(After Gameweek 36)
THIS SEASON CHAMPIONS LEAGUE HISTORY
AVERAGE GAMEWEEK SCORE 53.83 2012 Group Stage
HIGHEST GAMEWEEK SCORE 89 2013 Group Stage
LOWEST GAMEWEEK SCORE 31 2014 Group Stage
GAMEWEEKS SCORE OVER 49 20 PYRAMID CUP HISTORY
GAMEWEEKS SCORE UNDER 50 16 2010 Group Stage
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE AVERAGE 57.81 2011 Group Stage
ROAD TO THE FINAL
1st Round Group Stage
Group M
Steve Martin 59 - 34
Paul Richardson 66 - 41
Dean Wright 69 - 80
Sam Shew 37 - 47
Steve Martin 45 - 42
Paul Richardson 66 - 53
Dean Wright 37 - 46
Sam Shew 52 - 86
FINAL TABLE
POS TEAM PLD WON DRW LST FOR AGST +/- PTS
1 Sam Shew 8 6 1 1 501 391 110 19
2 Alistair Shields 8 4 0 4 431 429 2 12
3 Paul Richardson 8 4 0 4 403 465 -62 12
4 Dean Wright 8 3 1 4 415 407 8 10
5 Steve Martin 8 1 2 5 341 399 -58 5
KNOCKOUT STAGE
1st Leg 2nd Leg Aggregate
nd
2 Round Roari Fox 61 - 39 53 - 47 114 - 86
3rd Round Mark Angliss 43 - 54 79 - 67 122 - 121
Quarter-Final Robin Wilson 46 - 45 58 - 38 104 - 83
Semi-Final Adrian Taylor 65 - 77 89 - 55 154 - 132
PROFILE
Alistair Shields has been in the game for a season more than his opponent in today’s final, as yet he has not caught
the same headlines. Receiving a lucky promotion in his first season from Pyramid Premier his second season in the
Conference he claimed the final promotion spot of 5th place. The first season in League Two was not great finishing
18th firmly entrenched in the relegation places but a lucky survival saw him survive. Last season a more respectable
12th place. In the cups it has been a similar story not catching the headlines never getting out of his group in the
Pyramid Cup or Champions League and the 2nd Round in the FC Cup is the best he has achieved. So not the most
auspicious first 5 seasons. This 6th season has seen a change Alistair has already claimed promotion from League
Two, is sitting in 33rd place in the over league, has never finished in the top 50 before, now there is this final. Having
never been out of the group Alistair has progressed well in the knock-out stages coming through a tight encounter
in the 3rd round winning by a point coming from 9 points down in the first leg. Then in the semi-final he hit an
impressive 89 to overturn a 12 point deficit from the first leg. He may have shocked the FC World by getting to the
final but people are beginning to sit up and are wondering is 2015 a coming of age season for Alistair Shields.FC EXPERT MATCH ANALYSIS
We asked the Fantasy Challenge Expert to give us his thoughts on this year’s Champions League
Final. We have managed to give the FC Expert the two team line-ups from Gameweek 37.
Andreas THEMISTOCLEOUS Alistair SHIELDS
STAT ATTACK
53 SCORE 60
10 CAPTAIN 4
27 DEFENCE 34
27 MIDFIELD 19
7 ATTACK 7
Andreas Themistocleous made 3 transfers losing 8 points.
THE ANALYSIS
So Alistair Shields would have come out on top by 7 points but 6 of those points were gained form an automatic
substitution. So there was just 1 points separating the two starting ine-ups or was there? If you take into account
Andreas made 3 transfers he lost 8 points so in actual fact his starting line-up actually scored 7 more than Alistair’s
starting line-up. Those transfer points and automatic substitution swinging the match.
Thankfully for me I can’t see either of these two managers losing points in the transfer market at such an important
stage. The above stats though and description of what happened in this match shows just how many determining
factors can affect a Match.
As I have mentioned the complexities of what happened in Gameweek 37 make it difficult to know where to start
to look at this match.I always find a good judge of managers though is the selection of captain, so that is where I shall start. Interestingly
Themistocleous came out on top with his selection of Captain Sanchez scoring 10 points whilst Shields captain only
it 4 points. However neither manager had the correct captain. Themistocleous went for Sanchez playing two
matches but his top scorer would have been the Sunderland defender Van Aanholt, gaining two clean sheets.
Shields went with Hazard an interesting selection as he only had one match in the gameweek again it was a
Sunderland player that would have scored best this time goalkeeper Pantilimon. Both managers lost a lot of points
on these selection Themistocleous 20 points, Shields 24, a worry for both managers, also how poor were those
selection for Themistocleous his captain was his 3rd highest scorer for Shields it makes worse reading in fact he got
the worst player only two other players scoring so poorly. Interesting reading but I would say Shields selection of
Hazard a player in a team that had 4 players who would play twice.
Both defences scored highly Themsitocleous had 3 at the back and got 27 points 3 cleans sheets two for Sunderland.
Shields played 4 at the back and hit a massive 34 points gaining 4 clean sheets. Impressive figures from both
defences.
In midfield Themsitocleous played 5 hoping that his Arsenal midfielders would perform Sanchez and Cazorla no
goals although Davide Silva scored 9 points. With Sanchez as captain 10 points is a decent return. Shields playing
a conventional 4-4-2 was saved in midfield by Silva also, Hazard his captain only scoring 4. Themistocleous midfield
coming out on top 27 – 19.
Both managers played two up top and both had Aguero with both scoring 7 points, Themistocleous deploying Ayoze
and Shields using Harry Kane.
Interesting to see two differing formations Temistocleous going with an attacking 3-5-2 and Shields deploying 4-4-
2 not often used in Fantasy Challenge anymore, the two team sonly have 3 of the same players Terry, Silva and
Aguero.
Andreas made 3 transfers preparing for the final whilst Shields also made a transfer so both managers only have 1
free transfer for the final.
Both managers will need to take a look at the fixtures below of the final day of the season to try and figure out who
will be really trying and whose season is over. The selection of captain could be vital to gaining success in this final.
THE FIXTURES FOR GAMEWEEK 38
Sunday 24th May
Arsenal V West Bromwich Albion
Aston Villa V Burnley
Chelsea V Sunderland
Crystal Palace V Swansea
Everton V Tottenham Hotspur
Hull City V Manchester United
Leicester City V Queens Park Rangers
Manchester City V Southampton
Newcastle United V West Ham United
Stoke City V Liverpool
THE VERDICT
I have stated many times in these previews that the selection of captain is vital as they are normally close affairs,
seeing the selections in gameweek 37 provided some confusion with neither manager getting their selection
correct. I am seriously concerned by Alistair Shields decision to go with a player only playing one match. Going
into the last Gameweek the title is decided The Champions League places also. Hull City need to win to get out of
relegation and Newcastle need to claim victory. With so many issues decided it can be hard for managers to know
who is going to play and how much enthusiasm they have a challenge for both of today’s final. Both managers
have one transfer each I think Themistocleous has to change Ayoze up front to get some fire power in. Unlike
Gameweek 37 I can see them struggling for clean sheets Sunderland are now safe Chelsea want to celebrate thetitle win, I don’t think Shields will change his defence Themistoclaous could bring Cresswell in. The midfield
Themistocleous has more attacking options. It is another tight decision and although I have criticised Shields for
picking Hazard I wonder if he could end up being the key to this match I think Shields will gamble on the Chelsea
wizard again leaving Themistoclaous to go against him. It will be Sanchez for Thmistocleous that transfer up front
then I think greater options in midfield and defence will see him through, that said Shields has a transfer which I
think could once again transform this game. An interesting Gameweek 37 and some interesting choices for both
managers, I just feel Themistocleous is going to come out on top. FINAL VERDICT:- Themistocleous in a close
fought encounter.
HISTORY
PREVIOUS FINALS
2005 Omid Afzalalghom 33 – 28 Paul Dwinfour
2006 Adam Pemberton 68 – 57 Jeff Aldersea
2007 Andy McLaren 65 – 56 Andrew Hilliard
2008 Nigel Finch 59 – 55 Dave Sinclair
2009 Oliver Shanks 62 – 32 Tim Walters
2010 Omid Afzalalghom 71 – 65 Joe Higgins
2011 Michael Carleton 38 – 36 Steve Shew
2012 Mark Angliss 56 – 44 Adam Pemberton
2013 Kojo Amofa 53 – 50 Kaska Porczyk
2014 Matt Hansell 59 – 48 Michael Lynn
WINNERS FINALISTS
Omid Afzalalghom 2 Adam Pemberton 2 Kaska Porczyk 1
Adam Pemberton 1 Omid Afzalalghom 2 Kojo Amofa 1
Andy McLaren 1 Alistair Shields 1 Mark Angliss 1
Kojo Amofa 1 Andreas Themistocleous 1 Matt Hansell 1
Mark Angliss 1 Andrew Hilliard 1 Michael Carleton 1
Matt Hansell 1 Andy McLaren 1 Michael Lynn 1
Michael Carleton 1 Dave Sinclair 1 Nigel Finch 1
Nigel Finch 1 Jeff Aldersea 1 Paul Dwinfour 1
Oliver Shanks 1 Joe Higgins 1 Tim Walters 1
Taming the Shew
This season’s finalist Andreas Themistocleous can claim to have tamed the Shew. Andreas came up against Premier
League Steve Shew, Shewy as he is known is the second most successful manager in the history of the game with
4 major trophies, in the quarter-finals. Themistocleous hit a big 81 winning the 1st leg by 24points. Although he
lost the 2nd leg he held on for an impressive 16 point aggregate victory. The Semi-Final draw saw Themistocleous
meet ‘Shewy’s’ son Sam Shew, Sam is currently chasing a first Premier league title 6 points ahead of his father Steve
with two matches to go. An entertaining 1st leg saw over 140 points scored with Sam coming out with narrow
lead of just 2 points. Themistocleous though came out on top in an even higher scoring 2 nd leg with 169 points
being scored between the two managers, Themistocleous winning 89-80 to take the match by 7 points on
aggregate. Themistocleous opponent in this year competition final Alistair Shields met Sam Shew in the group
stage and lost both matches which confirms that in the Champions League of 2015 Andreas Themistocleous tamed
the Shews.
IN THE EVENT OF A DRAW
In the event of a draw the match will go into a penalty Shoot-Out. A penalty shoot-out will take place, each team’s
top five point scorers will go head to head to produce a result. If the best five scorer’s in the two teams cannot
produce a result sudden death will take place with the next highest point scorers being next.You can also read
