This article is part of our DraftKings Fantasy Soccer series.
MATCHES (ET)
- 3:00 pm: Aston Villa vs. Southampton
- 3:00 pm: Nottingham Forest vs. Fulham
For detailed stats and odds, check out the
The Premier League returns Friday with two somewhat underwhelming matchups. Fortunately, despite all four teams in action being in the bottom half of the table, that doesn't matter for DFS purposes. Aston Villa are the biggest favorite, but it's not a huge margin, mainly because they sit with just four points through six matches.
FORWARDS
Morgan Gibbs-White, NOT vs. FUL ($8,900): Gibbs-White has taken almost every corner for Nottingham Forest in their last three matches and that's enough to plug him into cash lineups. The matchup against Fulham should provide a decent amount of sets and he may be the safest play on the slate. Helping matters, he's gone a full 90 in two of his three starts for Forest.
Aleksandar Mitrovic ($11,300) will get some looks in cash games, but it'll be hard to fit him into your squad with other cash-viable plays. He has a decent floor for a forward, but he's expensive for someone with just +120 odds to hit the back of the net. The downside to fading Mitrovic is that there aren't a ton of other forward options. Che Adams ($8,200) is only useful in tournaments and the same goes for whoever else starts up front for Forest. Brennan Johnson ($6,300) is a cheaper option and may get a rare set piece but using two Forest forwards in cash games doesn't feel safe.
Danny Ings ($5,000) is the classic cheap forward with decent odds to score and despite having almost no floor, he's surprisingly a cash option. The other move is to go all the way down for Joe Aribo ($4,100), who has been playing on the wing for Southampton and is averaging 1.36 shots per 90 minutes.
Philippe Coutinho ($7,100) is someone who could be overly popular based on name, but he's struggled this season and without a role on set pieces, it'll be hard to spend on him.
MIDFIELDERS
Douglas Luiz, AVL vs. SOU ($3,900): It seems like Luiz earned a starting gig again after going 90 minutes versus Manchester City last match and with a possible split on sets, he's an easy cash play for the price. His speciality this season has been scoring straight from corners and that'll undoubtedly earn him reps over John McGinn ($5,900) and Lucas Digne ($6,800). Even if Luiz only gets two set pieces, that still might be enough at $3,900.
Of course, I can't ignore James Ward-Prowse ($10,200), who is almost too obvious because he has the best floor on this slate and outside of Gibbs-White, there's almost no one else to spend up on. Plus, with Luiz at his price, it's fairly easy to fit both Ward-Prowse and Gibbs-White in the squad. While I don't think the matchup is the best for GPPs, that's not enough of a reason to fade him in cash games.
Andreas Pereira ($6,900) is inching closer to being too expensive and that's kind of how I feel for this one. Fulham have a few new pieces in their attack, which led to just 61 minutes for Pereira last match and he figures to lose set pieces to Willian ($6,900) if the two are on the pitch at the same time. McGinn is known for having a floor outside of set pieces and his price is finally dropping to respectable levels.
Jacob Ramsey ($3,500) is always worth a tournament look if he starts, though it's a wonder if he'll be more popular than usual given the small slate and his small price on the biggest favorite. No one else in this range has the same upside, as guys like Daniel James ($4,900) and Jesse Lingard ($4,800) are still more than $1,000 more expensive.
DEFENDERS
Neco Williams, NOT vs. FUL ($7,600): This could be a three-defender slate, though I don't think it's a must. At $7,600, I'm not sure Williams is a lock without set pieces, but it's hard to ignore how forward he gets in the attack. He's an underdog without guaranteed sets and priced like Trent Alexander-Arnold in a good spot. Still, he's most likely of the defenders to have a 10-point floor, while teammate Renan Lodi ($6,200) could finish with better value.
I'm actually higher on both Forest wing-backs than Lucas Digne ($6,800), who has just one set piece in the last five matches. Without set pieces, Digne is too expensive, as he's not a wing-back and doesn't get up the field as much as Williams or Lodi. He's still viable in a three-defender build, but fitting them in with Gibbs-White and Ward-Prowse doesn't create the best lineup for your other spots.
Ashley Young ($5,300) is interesting if he starts, but Kevin Mbabu ($4,400) and Layvin Kurzawa ($3,600) may be the better plays if either one starts over the injured Antonee Robinson. Kurzawa has yet to play for Fulham, while Mbabu came on for Robinson last match. Mbabu is probably a better attacking player, which is why he's a tad more expensive.
GOALKEEPER
Bernd Leno, FUL at NOT ($4,900): There isn't a goalkeeper who stands out as none of the four teams have clean-sheets odds better than 30 percent. Emiliano Martinez ($5,300) is waiting for his first clean sheet, while Fulham have performed well in other away matches this season, including losses at Arsenal and Tottenham. While it's not a must, your goalkeeper should correlate as best as possible with the rest of your squad. If you're rostering two Forest forwards, you probably shouldn't use Leno. If you have Mitrovic, don't go for Dean Henderson ($4,600).
