This article is part of our DraftKings Fantasy Soccer series.
MATCHES (ET)
- 2:30 pm: Norwich City vs. Chelsea
- 2:30 pm: Southampton vs. Newcastle United
- 2:30 pm: Wolverhampton vs. Watford
- 2:45 pm: Leeds United vs. Aston Villa
For detailed stats and odds, check out the
FORWARDS
Raphinha, LEE v. AVL ($8,700): Leeds showed signs of improvement in new manager Jesse Marsch's first match last weekend. They created plenty of chances and were unlucky not to score at Leicester City. From a DFS perspective, the most important note from that game was Jack Harrison taking the majority of corner kicks. That makes me less excited to roster Raphinha as set pieces make up a significant portion of his floor. On the other hand, it was encouraging to see him still put up 11.5 floor points and play the full 90 minutes. Thursday's matchup against Aston Villa has the highest-implied goal total on the slate and finished 3-3 when the two teams met a month ago. On the Villa side, Philippe Coutinho ($9,400) is coming off a goal and an assist in last weekend's 4-0 rout of Southampton. He crushed Leeds for 30 fantasy points behind a goal and two assists in the 3-3 encounter in February. I don't expect either him or Raphinha to be overly popular considering Chelsea are in such a good spot which makes them good tournament options.
Chelsea have the highest-implied goal total, currently hovering around 2.15 goals for their away match against struggling Norwich City. They thrashed Burnley 4-0 last Saturday in a similar spot and they'll be popular again Thursday, regardless of who starts. Kai Havertz ($7,500) scored twice in that match while Christian Pulisic ($8,400) added another. It's possible Romelu Lukaku ($7,900) and/or Timo Werner ($7,200) come into the side as Thomas Tuchel is expected to rotate in order to cope with a congested fixture list. Lukaku is the only player on the slate who's favored to score at -115, but he also has the lowest floor. It's hard not to have interest in whoever starts considering the favorable spot against Norwich. My preference is for the cheaper Havertz and Werner. Looking elsewhere for tournaments, if Lukaku doesn't start, Raul Jimenez ($6,800) would have the best goalscoring odds on the slate at +110 with Wolves in a favorable spot at home to Watford.
Daniel James, LEE v. AVL ($5,700): James has played all 90 minutes in five of his last six starts and he had 9.4 floor points last week. The salary is cheap and forward is the weakest position as there really isn't anyone with a considerable set-piece floor. The Leeds-Aston Villa match is arguably the most appealing target of the four games and likely to be back and forth, so James should have a few chances to score or assist. Other options in this range include Chris Wood ($5,000) and Hwang Hee-Chan ($5,100), both of whom have decent goalscoring odds for their price.
MIDFIELDERS
James Ward-Prowse, SOU v. NEW ($9,800): Ward-Prowse has the highest floor on the slate and Southampton are home favorites against Newcastle. He's shown plenty of upside which makes him a good target for both cash games and tournaments. Whoever starts for Chelsea, whether it's Hakim Ziyech ($9,600) or Mason Mount ($9,000), would be another good option. With Reece James expected out, either Ziyech or Mount will likely take most of the set pieces. I'd prefer Ziyech, who has goals in his last three starts, while Mount disappointed against Burnley and got subbed after 78 minutes.
Jack Harrison, LEE v. AVL ($7,000): Harrison took six corners last weekend and he looked dangerous and lively throughout his 76 minutes as he finished with 15 floor points. He isn't likely to play 90 minutes which makes him riskier for cash games, but he has considerable upside for GPPs, especially if you're targeting the Leeds-Aston Villa matchup. Looking cheaper, Joao Moutinho ($5,400) makes sense for cash games with Wolves as the second-biggest favorite on the slate at home to Watford. The same goes for Douglas Luiz ($4,900), who's still splitting corners for Aston Villa and scored his first goal of the season last weekend.
DEFENDERS
Marcos Alonso, CHE at NOR ($7,100): With Reece James ($8,400) expected to miss, Alonso could find himself with a role on set pieces depending on the starting XI. I'd expect him to split with Mount, but I'd be worried he wouldn't take any if Ziyech starts. Corner kicks aside, Alonso has considerable open-play value and upside with Chelsea big favorites against Norwich.
Ryan Fraser, NEW at SOU ($6,700): Similar to last weekend's slate, Fraser will be the first player in my lineups. He's still listed as a defender despite playing forward and he's scored 28 fantasy points in consecutive games with a goal, two assists and 19 crosses in that span. As usual, the defender position is stacked. Rayan Ait-Nouri ($6,400) should split sets with Wolves in a good spot. Matt Targett ($6,100) and Lucas Digne ($5,900) continue to take corners for their respective teams and while the same goes for Kiko Femenia ($5,600), I'd rather not roster a Watford player. Stuart Dallas ($5,100) took two corners and sent in eight crosses last weekend as he put up 11.4 floor points. With this many viable options, it makes sense to roster three of them, especially in cash games.
GOALKEEPERS
Edouard Mendy, CHE at NOR ($5,900): I'll spend up for Mendy if I can afford it considering that Chelsea are 75-percent favorites to win and roughly 53 percent to keep a clean sheet against Norwich. He's recorded back-to-back shutouts and this looks like a good spot for a third in a row.
Martin Dubravka, NEW at SOU ($4,300): Newcastle have won five of their last six games. Southampton take a lot of shots at home and they just lost 4-0 over the weekend, so Dubravka has save upside and win upside for a bargain price tag. Tim Krul ($3,700) probably has the most save upside with Norwich in a tough spot against Chelsea. Ben Foster ($4,000) has about the same clean-sheet odds (22 percent) as the keepers priced significantly higher in the Leeds-Aston Villa game.
