This article is part of our DraftKings Fantasy Soccer series.
MATCHES (EDT)
10:00 a.m: Liverpool v. Hull City
10:00 a.m: Bournemouth v. Everton
10:00 a.m: Swansea City v. Manchester City
10:00 a.m: Stoke City v. West Brom
10:00 a.m: Sunderland v. Crystal Palace
10:00 a.m: Middlesbrough v. Tottenham
10:00 a.m: Arsenal v. Chelsea
ODDS REPORT
EXPECTED CORNER TAKERS
Liverpool: James Milner, Jordan Henderson
Hull: Robert Snodgrass
Bournemouth: Junior Stanislas, Max Gradel
Everton: Kevin Mirallas
Swansea: Gylfi Sigurdsson, Wayne Routledge
Manchester City: Kevin De Bruyne, David Silva
Stoke: Joe Allen, Bojan, Xherdan Shaqiri
West Brom: Matt Phillips
Sunderland: Adnan Januzaj
Crystal Palace: Yohan Cabaye, Jason Puncheon
Middlesbrough: Gaston Ramirez, Stewart Downing
Tottenham: Christian Eriksen, Erik Lamela, Heung-Min Son
Arsenal: Mesut Ozil, Santi Cazorla
Chelsea: Willian, Eden Hazard
PLAYER RECOMMENDATIONS
GOALKEEPER
Hugo Lloris, TOT at MID ($5,400): Outside of an outburst against a downtrodden Stoke side, Tottenham have been very dependent on its defense to remain unbeaten, allowing just two goals in five matches, with one each from Everton andLiverpool. Meanwhile, Middlesbrough rank 14th in the league with five goals in five matches. After missing time due to injury, Lloris has made six saves while allowing just one goal in the last three games.
Eldin Jakupovic, HUL at LIV ($3,600): Not for the faint of heart, but with the minimum price for goalkeepers dropping, it's hard not to be enticed by the Hull goalkeeper. Maybe Jugen Klopp will keep the team trending towards better efficiency, but last season Liverpool were in the bottom half in terms of efficiency, with their attempts requiring nearly 10 shots per goal (over three shots on target per goal). Jakupovic has been one of the better keepers this season, averaging 3.14 saves per goal scored. It's important to realize that three or four shots on goal for every goal scored yields a positive fantasy result for the goalkeeper via saves. It is risky though.
DEFENDER
James Milner, LIV vs. HUL ($6,600): Milner, who recently had his position changed from midfielder to defender, is $600 more than any other player at his position. However, when you consider what you're getting, it's really not such an outrageous price. Liverpool host Hull and are the heaviest favorites of all the Saturday games. Milner will take corners and penalties, and in five games, Hull have already conceded two penalties. Given the physical nature of Hull and the number of great dribblers for Liverpool, a foul in the box is certainly a possibility. It is worth mentioning that Liverpool scored just two penalties all of last season, while league-winners Leicester converted lead the Premiership with 10 (Watford was the next closest with six).
Brendan Galloway, WBA at STK ($3,900): Galloway hasn't necessarily carried the attack-minded fullback ways that are prevalent at Everton to his new home yet, but given the small sample, it is reasonable to think he can recapture those attacking exploits against the worst team in the league. In his West Brom Premier League debut back in August, Galloway scored 11 fantasy points, so we've seen what he can accomplish.
Paddy McNair, SUN vs. CRY ($3,200): There's no evidence that McNair will get the start after playing only a few minutes in the Premier League this season. However, the Manchester United youth product is apparently transitioning to an attacking midfield role, and he scored twice playing there against QPR in the EFL Cup on Wednesday.
MIDFIELDER
Roberto Firmino, LIV vs. HUL ($7,600): Given Liverpool is projected to score multiple goals against Hull, their options are all extremely affordable. Presumably this is due to the fairly even dispersal of goals across the team so far, with four players having two goals (Adam Lallana, Coutinho, Sadio Mane and Firmino) and three more scoring once (Dejan Lovren, James Milner and Jordan Henderson). Whether Firmino starts in a false-9 with Daniel Sturridge on the bench, or he's pushed a little wider to make room for Sturridge, Firmino has proven very capable after a team-leading 10 goals and seven assists last season. Firmino hasn't picked up an assist this season, but his 3.5 key passes per game (fourth in the league) indicate that they are coming. For reference, Dimitri Payet is leading the league with 4.3 key passes per game and already has three assists.
Jason Puncheon, CRY at SUN ($6,400): Injury concerns for Scott Dann and James Tomkins have me a little worried about what's already been a questionable defense, but the holes at the back should just force Palace to attack that much more. A potential return for Yohan Cabaye could cut into the number of corners Puncheon takes, though on Aug. 27 against Bournemouth he still had eight crosses and an assists despite Cabaye playing the full 90 minutes. So, maybe the 12 crosses against Stoke won't be repeated, but Puncheon has been Palace's most efficient distributor, with 14 key passes already this season (Andros Townsend is second on the team with nine, but he has outshot Puncheon 18 to seven). Townsend has outcrossed Puncheon (8.5 per 90 vs. 7.2 per 90), but trails Puncheon by a full accurate cross per 90. Both are fantasy friendly, and while Townsend gets more raw stats, the discount for Puncheon's efficiency may be more desirable.
Son Heung-Min, TOT at MID ($5,900): Don't expect 15 crosses again, as Son picked up corner-taking duty last time out with both Christian Eriksen and Erik Lamela on the bench. Seeing Lamela play all 90 minutes of Tottenham's EFL Cup match Wednesday, Son seems to have a strong argument to start his third straight Premier League game. In those two matches (against admittedly weak sides Sunderland and Stoke) Son scored 23 and 35 fantasy points behind two goals, one assist, 10 shots (four on goal) and 17 crosses. Again, with Eriksen likely back, the floor won't be as high, but Son has arguably been the best part of the Tottenham attack of late.
FORWARD
Sergio Aguero, MCI at SWA ($10,500): Writing up Aguero isn't exactly creative, but who am I to deny how good he's been? Plus, Swansea have gone winless in their last four Premier League matches, losing three of them (in fairness, they came at Leicester, home against Chelsea and at Southampton). And while he just finished a three-game domestic suspension, Aguero bagged a hat trick against Borussia Monchengladbach in the Champions last week. Fading Manchester City isn't wise, but there's certainly some validity to looking at City's other attacking options that are both cheaper and offer higher floors than the Argentine.
Vincent Janssen, TOT at MID ($8,100): Janssen finally got on the score sheet this season by converting a penalty in Tottenham's 5-0 victory in the EFL Cup at midweek, and he also picked up an assist. Harry Kane is going to miss some time with an ankle injury, leaving the Dutch striker with every opportunity to prove himself in the interim. The Premier League is a separate class from the Dutch Eredivisie, but his league-leading 27 goals in 32 matches last season is impressive nonetheless (Polish striker Arkadiusz Milik scored just 21 in the same season before playing well at the Euros, and he has already scored six goals for Napoli this term).
Leroy Sane, MCI at SWA ($6,200): With Nolito suspended and David Silva questionable to play, all signs point towards Sane making his first Premier League start. There's little question that Manchester City have been the best team in the Premier League this season, as they've won all five games they've played, while scoring 15 goals. Sane, 20, had eight goals and six assists in limited playing time with Schalke last season, and while he has only played 60 minutes this term, he's already picked up an assist. And while he starts out on the wing, he doesn't cross all that much, so his floor isn't the highest.
