This article is part of our FanDuel Fantasy Soccer series.
MATCHES (ET)
- 10:00 am: Arsenal vs. Leicester City
- 10:00 am: Brighton & Hove Albion vs. Newcastle United
- 10:00 am: Manchester City vs. AFC Bournemouth
- 10:00 am: Southampton vs. Leeds United
- 10:00 am: Wolverhampton vs. Fulham
- 12:30 pm: Brentford vs. Manchester United
For detailed stats and odds, check out the
FORWARDS / MIDFIELDERS
Erling Haaland, MCI v. BOU ($23): Despite the huge price on Haaland, it's difficult to look at his matchup with Bournemouth and not roster him. He has the top goalscoring odds (-275!) and Manchester City have the highest implied goal total, making him the most coveted option. In his first game in the Premier League, he scored two goals from two shots on target and finished with 40 fantasy points. Bournemouth were strong in their 2-0 win over Aston Villa last weekend, but City pose a completely different challenge. If Haaland doesn't fit within your budget, it'll likely be tough to fit both Kevin De Bruyne ($22) and Phil Foden ($21) in the lineup, though Jack Grealish ($19), Ilkay Gundogan ($15) and Rodri ($12) all offer cheaper options. Bournemouth had two goals against Aston Villa last weekend while touching the ball only nine times in their penalty box. Those numbers make it tough to be convinced they'll see similar production, which makes me unlikely to consider Kieffer Moore ($15) or Dominic Solanke ($14).
James Maddison, LEI at ARS ($17): If Chelsea and Tottenham weren't playing Sunday, Leicester City traveling to Arsenal might've been the most intriguing matchup of the weekend. It's got a number of high-profile attackers like Gabriel Jesus ($19), Jamie Vardy ($17), Bukayo Saka ($17) and Youri Tielemans ($15). While Jesus and Vardy will lead the line for both attacks, Saka and Maddison are two of the safer plays and you'll need to decide between the two most likely, assuming you're using a top Man City player. This match has an implied goal total of just under three goals so it's fair to bank on an attacking output from both sides. Saka took four of Arsenal's five corners last week, while Maddison took all five of Leicester's. In a slate with Manchester City as heavy favorites, it feels like you're getting a discount on these players as they're typically priced a bit higher. Granit Xhaka ($11) scored 12.1 fantasy points in the opener while operating as a central midfielder and offers the best bit of value of the two midfields.
Jack Harrison, LEE at SOU ($16): Southampton went up 1-0 on Tottenham in the 12th minute last Saturday and it was downhill from there. They conceded four goals, eight shots on goal, 15 chances created and 10 corners. In a sample size of one game, those are all the highest of the 12 teams on the slate, which bodes well for Leeds United. Harrison created seven chances in the opener and is expected to take advantage of Southampton's porous defense. He scored 33.2 points against Wolverhampton's traditionally stingy defense, while Rodrigo ($16) scored a goal and Patrick Bamford ($17) set up Brenden Aaronson ($15) for what was later deemed an own goal by Wolves. All four are viable players on a trip to the South Coast. James Ward-Prowse ($18) was his typically productive self in the opener, scoring a goal and producing 35.9 points despite a difficult game against Spurs.
Andreas Pereira, FUL at WOL ($11): Fulham's 2-2 draw with Liverpool on opening weekend was one of the more surprising results and aside from Aleksandar Mitrovic's ($18) domination of Liverpool's backline (50.8 points), Pereira was a bright spot in the Fulham midfield. He took all of Fulham's set pieces in the matchup, though it didn't equate to a huge fantasy day. Harry Wilson is still sidelined, effectively keeping Pereira on set-piece duty. At this price, he's worth a flier for those duties alone, while a couple chances created or a shot on goal could easily help him meet value. Daniel Podence ($17) was Wolverhampton's best player last weekend, finishing with 30.3 fantasy points from to a goal and three chances created. Hwang Hee-Chan ($17) provided two chances created, bringing him to 19.3 points. Pedro Neto ($16) didn't have as big of a performance as Podence and Hee-Chan in FanDuel's game but looked dangerous throughout and offers a slight discount with a split of set pieces.
DEFENDERS
Joel Veltman, BHA v. NEW ($11): Newcastle forced Nottingham Forest into 36 clearances on Saturday in their 2-0 win. Meanwhile, Veltman paced Brighton in clearances with six during their 2-1 triumph against Manchester United. He's operating as a center-back and is a cheap enough option to consider in a match with the lowest implied goal total. Adam Webster ($10) and Lewis Dunk ($9) are also interesting plays for the same reason as Veltman. Kieran Trippier ($14) took eight of Newcastle's 12 free kicks last week, which led to two chances created and a total of 18.8 points with the clean sheet. He's in a good position to continue his set-piece responsibility again, but you'll have to pay a premium price. Matt Targett ($12) is a bit cheaper and took the rest of Newcastle's set pieces while creating three scoring chances.
Lloyd Kelly, BOU at MCI ($13): Kelly and Chris Mepham ($13) accounted for a combined 24 clearances against Aston Villa and should see a similar level of production against a City attack that are much more dangerous. City consistently forced the most clearances last season and will likely continue that trend Saturday against Bournemouth. Other interesting options in this price tier are Oleksandr Zinchenko ($14), who was excellent in his Arsenal debut and Joao Cancelo ($15), who didn't have the biggest of performances last weekend but will spend most of his time in attack against Bournemouth. It'll be tough to justify spending up with so many high-end attacking options, which is why I'd play for the defensive stats in Kelly and Mepham.
GOALKEEPERS
Robert Sanchez, BHA v. NEW ($10): Ederson ($15) has the best clean sheet odds by a huge margin, while Aaron Ramsdale's ($13) matchup with Leicester City ranks second from the oddsmakers. David de Gea ($12) is behind both players in an away matchup with Brentford, though I find it difficult to justify either Ramsdale or de Gea's inclusion at their prices. I prefer to look at the matchups with the lowest implied goal totals, which leads me to Sanchez ($10) and Nick Pope ($10). Both players were consistently two of the most productive goalkeepers last season and have continued that trend to begin the season with performances of 19.5 and 17 points, respectively. Illan Meslier ($9) is a bit more budget friendly and made five saves against Wolves to match Sanchez's 19.5 points. All three seem like great options in their matchups.
