Sulky Nic is star man

Players of the Shropshire Star's Fantasy Football game, sponsored by Wickes, will have been using the break to assess their team and plan any changes.

With a £2,000 top prize up for grabs, along with nine £100 manager of the month prizes – all provided by Wickes – there is still time for new players to join.

The in-form players in the Shropshire Star game this season are far from household names.

Pundits may have predicted the likes of Wayne Rooney, Didier Drogba and Cristiano Ronaldo to be the stars from the off.

But the two highest scoring players are strikers Nicolas Anelka, of Bolton, and Liverpool's record buy Fernando Torres, who both have 11 points.

Former Albion striker Kanu has amassed 10 points while Liverpool's free transfer Andriy Voronin has eight points.

The top English striker is Cameron Jerome on six points.

He may not be a big name but Fulham's US midfielder Clint Dempsey is the star performer in the middle of the park with 10 points.

Cesc Fabregas of Arsenal has amassed eight points, while Aston Villa's Ashley Young is among the players on six points.

Eight centre backs are also on six points, including Villa stoppers Martin Laursen and Olof Mellberg.

At full back, Liverpool's Alvaro Arbeloa has eight points followed by Geremi of Newcastle on seven.

Four goalkeepers are all on six points – Villa's Scott Carson, West Ham's Robert Green, Pepe Reina of Liverpool and Edwin van der Sar of Manchester United.

If you fancy yourself as a rival to Sir Alex Ferguson, Jose Mourinho or Rafael Benitez, this is your chance to prove it.

HOW TO PLAY:

• Go to www.shropshirestar.com/fantasyfootball
• Enter the registration password: Wembley
• Choose your team, from a budget of £55 million. It must contain no more than two players from any one Barclays Premier League club and conform to a 4-4-2 or 5-3-2 formation.
• You’ll receive a weekly e-mail telling you how your side performed and looking ahead to the coming games.
• It’s easy to switch players in and out, with a maximum of 25 transfers allowed in total once the scoring has begun.
• The only way you will be able to make changes is by using the transfer password, which will be printed in the Shropshire Star every Wednesday