Liverpool players meanwhile, are probably worth avoiding until September. Two away games at Villa and Sunderland sandwich a clash with Chelsea at Anfield – enough to suggest that the Fantasy money involved in buying Gerrard and Torres, is better spent elsewhere this month. Two clean sheets from that trio of fixtures is probably on the cards however, making Agger, Reina and Carragher decent targets if you’re willing to take the missing fixture on the chin.

Both Chelsea and Man United have their full compliment of fixtures this month but Chelsea’s trip to Liverpool and their lengthy injury list, gives United players the edge. United play Reading, Man City, Portsmouth and Spurs. There are tests there, but you’d still expect four wins, plenty of points for Ronaldo and Rooney and at least a couple of clean sheets along the way. Chelsea meanwhile, should find clean sheets and goals at home to Birmingham and possibly Portsmouth at the end of August but with Terry a likely absentee for those games, the Chelsea defence could turn to an indecisive mess at worst, rather average at best. Drogba is also a doubt for part of the month, so Chelsea's early form could well stutter. Trips to Reading and Liverpool will certainly be tricky and Chelsea will have kinder months fixture wise.

Outside of that quartet, the likes of Middlesbrough, Everton, Bolton and Wigan appear to have the easiest month in front of them. All of them avoid last season’s top four, with Boro having the friendliest games on paper. Home fixtures against Blackburn and Newcastle are paired with visits to Wigan and Fulham. Boro’s form in pre-season hasn't sparkled, but Yakubu and Downing are certainly worth a look, particularly as Downing has been pushed forward in a front three on a few occasions in the summer. Injuries at the back could mean clean sheets are difficult to come by though, with an inexperienced Wheater/Davies pairing set to play the bulk of this month’s games.

Everton and Bolton defenders look the better bet if you’re looking for early season mid-range buys. Similarly, Johnson at Everton and Anelka at Bolton, could both get off to decent starts given their opening month’s fixtures. Everton face home games against Wigan and Blackburn and visit Spurs and Reading. Bolton meanwhile host Newcastle and Reading and visit Fulham and Portsmouth. For Wigan, Koumas looks very tempting. He will face a decent set of opponents in August but will still fancy playing a major role in games against Everton, Boro, Sunderland and West Ham.

Tottenham’s attacking players should also have a decent month. They might end the month with a visit to Old Trafford but before that, games against Sunderland, Birmingham and Wigan should yield plenty of goals for Berbatov, Bent and maybe Keane, although there are still doubts over Jol’s plans up front. As always though, the Spurs defence is best avoided, particularly with King sidelined and Kaboul bedding in.

Aside from those player for clubs missing a game in August, it’s Reading players that you should perhaps give a wide berth to. Their start to the season is by far the most daunting beginning with a trip to Old Trafford followed by a home game with Chelsea. Games against Everton and Bolton are far from gimme's, so it wouldn’t be too much of a shock to see Reading giving those pre-season doubters something to be smug about, with a stalled start and a bottom six placing come September. I can't see them staying there though, although I could be wrong. That's something you'll realise pretty soon I imagine.