This article is part of our DraftKings Fantasy Soccer series.
MATCHES (ET)
- 10:00 am: Brighton & Hove Albion vs. Ipswich Town
- 10:00 am: Crystal Palace vs. Leicester City
- 10:00 am: Fulham vs. West Ham United
- 10:00 am: Liverpool vs. Nottingham Forest
- 10:00 am: Manchester City vs. Brentford
For detailed stats and odds, check out the
FORWARDS
Yankuba Minteh (BHA vs. IPS, $4,900): Minteh is too cheap for his role and matchup, and he figures to be a staple in cash games. He's scored 7.8 floor points per game to open the season (including a 45-minute substitution in the opener due to a concussion worry) and he took two set pieces in his last two starts. Brighton's matchup against Ipswich Town is third best of the slate, and their implied goal total is reasonably close to Liverpool and Manchester City. His price reflects the early substitution risk, but he's gone at least 72 minutes in both starts in which he wasn't subbed off for injury reasons.
Savinho (MCI vs. BRE, $7,000): Savinho trained Wednesday after missing City's most recent match against West Ham. He split corners with De Bruyne in his Gameweek 2 start where he logged 11.1 floor points in 71 minutes. I think he's cheap in comparison to other City attackers. If Phil Foden (who is midfield-eligible only) doesn't start, I expect that Savinho will continue in this split role. Joao Pedro ($7,800) has averaged 8.0 floor points in his first three starts and his +105 anytime goalscoring odds are fourth best among the forward position. While Pedro doesn't take set pieces and is more goal-reliant than Savinho, he usually plays close to 90 minutes and is Brighton's penalty taker.
I think Erling Haaland ($11,400) is a bit too expensive for cash games this weekend, but he boasts -280 anytime goalscoring odds and is certainly a great tournament option. Liverpool have a great home matchup against Nottingham Forest with an implied goal total just behind City's. Mohamed Salah ($10,600), Luis Diaz ($10,100) and Diogo Jota ($8,400) are great tournament plays with brace upside.
Jean-Philippe Mateta is just $6,100 despite his +125 anytime goalscoring odds. While Crystal Palace don't share the same lofty implied goal totals as Brighton, Liverpool and City, their matchup against Leicester City is plenty favorable. Finally, while the Fulham and West Ham matchup projects as the worst game environment, Jarrod Bowen ($6,800) is cheap and takes set pieces, while Rodrigo Muniz ($6,600) is capable of delivering a low-rostered brace.
MIDFIELDERS
Kevin De Bruyne (MCI vs. BRE, $9,600): It's difficult to say anything interesting about De Bruyne at this point. At worst, he'll share set pieces with Foden or Savinho, and he's played at least 85 minutes in his three starts this season. His floor has been 16.5 fantasy points per start, best in the Premier League.
Andreas Pereira (FUL vs. WHU, $8,100): Pereira has logged 16.4 fantasy points per start, just behind De Bruyne for second best in the Premier League. He has a monopoly on Fulham's set pieces, averaging 8.3 set piece crosses/shots in his first three starts. West Ham have conceded 15 shots assisted and 17.33 shots per game in the early season, so opportunities for floor points should be there for Pereira and Fulham. Pereira was frequently subbed early last season, but he's played 85 or more minutes in his first three starts.
I'm highlighting Pereira, but Eberechi Eze ($8,500) very well might be the better option. DraftKings has switched to single-position eligibility, so Eze can only be played as a midfielder. He's taken a diminished role on set pieces, but he still boasts an impressive 12.9 floor points per game and his goalscoring odds of -110 are significantly better than Pereira's.
There's a chance that Phil Foden ($9,000) returns to the Manchester City squad this weekend, but he missed international duty with England as well as City's previous two matches due to an illness. It would be ambitious to project Foden for 90 minutes given his recent missed matches, but if he did play significant minutes, he'd have a shot at sharing set pieces with De Bruyne. He has a worse floor than Eze and Pereira, but his matchup is significantly better.
Mohammed Kudus (WHU at FUL, $6,500): I don't want to go out of my way to play away underdogs, but Kudus is an exception. He's logged at least two shots and three crosses in his past two starts, including a three-shot performance against Manchester City. Kudus is the type of player who can score over 20 fantasy points on just one goal, and Fulham are certainly not prohibitive opposition. I'm not sure I'll make him a priority in cash games, but I want to roster Kudus in my GPP lineups.
We're spoiled for choice with alternative midfield options and I'll just name a few. Kaoru Mitoma ($6,200) is a similar play to Kudus, albeit with a slightly worse floor but better matchup. His teammate Jack Hinshelwood ($3,900) logged three free-kick crosses against Arsenal while playing as a left-back. Lucas Paqueta ($4,800) is affordable and took a penalty for West Ham in the season opener. Jack Grealish ($6,400) has been a frustrating fantasy option recently, but he's too cheap given that Manchester City are such big favorites.
DEFENDERS
Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andrew Robertson (LIV vs. NFO, $6,900/6,600): While the Liverpool full-backs are in a favorable matchup splitting set pieces against Nottingham Forest, their floors seem to be a bit lower under new manager Arne Slot. Both Robertson and Alexander-Arnold logged less than five fantasy points in their most recent match against Manchester United, a match where Liverpool won convincingly 3-0. I definitely want to play one of Robertson and Alexander-Arnold, and my current preference is Robertson. Alexander-Arnold has been subbed off around the 75-minute mark in all of his starts this season, while Robertson has averaged just under 84 minutes per start.
Rico Lewis (MCI vs. BRE, $4,300): Another case for playing just one Liverpool full-back is based on value at the mid-range for defender. I've highlighted my DFS nemesis, Rico Lewis, since he's been playing as a central midfielder recently and getting touches in the final third of the pitch. In his last two matches, Lewis logged 9.3 floor points against West Ham and 7.7 floor points against Ipswich.
Josko Gvardiol ($5,000) has scored over 6.5 fantasy points in all three of his starts despite City not keeping a clean sheet. Antonee Robinson (4,800) has already logged two assists this season. I think Daniel Munoz ($4,000) has goal or assist upside at a low price in a good matchup. Finally, I think it's fine to consider Leif Davis ($4,500) as an underdog against Brighton. He's taken most of Ipswich's set pieces this season and scored 11.7 floor points against Fulham to pair with an assist in his most recent match.
There are some viable punt options and I think the defender positions offers the best punt value of all the positions. It's bizarre to see West Ham's Emerson priced at just $2,900. He's not an elite floor play, but he's too cheap as a left-back. Manchester City's Ruben Dias is just $3,200, while Brighton's Lewis Dunk ($3,300) and Jan Paul van Hecke ($3,200) are good options in that range.
GOALKEEPER
Mark Flekken (BRE at MCI, $3,600): DraftKings salary doesn't grow on trees and in my initial lineup constructions, I'm struggling to find money to pay up for goalkeeper in cash games. Flekken is a risk to finish with a negative score, but he could also get four points even if he concedes several goals. While underdog goalkeepers certainly bust with horrible scores, I think that risk is over exaggerated (see my goalkeeper article for more).
I think people will look to Bernd Leno ($4,900) and Alphonse Areola ($4,600) in all formats since that match is a toss up with a relatively lower projected total. In GPPs, I'm interested in Mads Hermansen ($4,100) as long as I'm not rostering any Crystal Palace outfielders. It would even be nice to get to him in cash games and I think $500 is too small of a price difference for his significantly better chances to win than Flekken against Manchester City.
