This article is part of our FanDuel Fantasy Soccer series.
MATCHES (ET)
- 10:00 am: Crystal Palace vs. Aston Villa
- 10:00 am: Everton vs. Nottingham Forest
- 10:00 am: Fulham vs. Brentford
- 10:00 am: Leicester City vs. Southampton
- 12:30 pm: AFC Bournemouth vs. Arsenal
For detailed stats and odds, check out the
FORWARDS / MIDFIELDERS
James Maddison, LEI v. SOU ($19): This weekend's slate isn't nearly as loaded as last Saturday due to Arsenal being the only top side involved after Manchester City, Arsenal and Manchester United (are they still a top side?) had coveted options last weekend. Gabriel Jesus ($22) is coming off a two-goal, two-assist masterclass that netted him 68 fantasy points against Leicester. He's the most expensive player on the slate, slightly ahead of his running mate, Gabriel Martinelli ($20), who has scored in both games this season and created a total of five scoring chances. Jamie Vardy ($19) is just behind Martinelli and Jesus, followed by Maddison. Both Maddison and Vardy will be coveted attacking options against a Southampton side who have conceded six goals and 27 scoring chances through two matches. Maddison has been at the heart of anything positive for Leicester as he's scored a goal, provided one assist and created six scoring chances through two matches. I prefer him as a top-tier attacker given Southampton's recent showings, though Gabriel Jesus may be the highest-rostered player on Saturday's slate, which means I wouldn't totally shy away from him in a match where Arsenal have the highest implied goal total.
Ivan Toney, BRE at FUL ($18): Similar to Maddison, Toney is playing the role of both creator and finisher through two matches. He scored in the opener against Leicester and then followed up with two assists during last Saturday's 4-0 triumph over Manchester United. Dating back to last season, Toney has scored seven goals, provided five assists and created 25 scoring chances over his last 14 matches. While others like Bryan Mbeumo ($16), Josh Dasilva ($15) and Mathias Jensen ($14) are chipping in with goals, Toney remains the key piece of the Brentford attack. Jensen was arguably the man of the match against United, and he offers a decent floor due to his consistent involvement on set pieces. Elsewhere in this price range, Aleksandar Mitrovic ($18) is involved in the same match at the same price and will look to bounce back from a missed penalty in his previous match, while James Ward-Prowse ($18) is a consistent source of attack for Southampton, and Wilfried Zaha ($17) is coming off a 35.6-point effort against Liverpool.
Emiliano Buendia, AVL at CRY ($16): There's interesting value throughout the tiers this week and maybe that's because of the small sample size. I'm intrigued by Buendia, as he's playing himself into the starting XI with impactful substitute appearances (a goal and three scoring chances created last weekend), while Philippe Coutinho ($17) has failed to do much in attack. It's possible Buendia makes his first start of the season against Crystal Palace, which could arguably see him take over set-piece duty from John McGinn ($13). He played a half hour last week and took two free kicks on top of his other notable stats. Another player who could enter the starting fold is Emmanuel Dennis ($16). He's had a full week of training after joining Nottingham Forest from Watford last Saturday, and he's worth keeping an eye on to see if he starts. He scored 10 goals and provided six assists last season and could fare even better in a side that's committed much more towards staying in the top flight this season.
Demarai Gray, EVE v. NFO ($13): Towards the bottom tier of forwards and attackers, there's a few different options to pursue. Andreas Pereira ($11) has taken seven of Fulham's eight free-kick opportunities and despite that not amounting to a lot through two games, it's worth keeping an eye on in a matchup with Brentford, who are conceding 12 chances created and 4.5 shots on goal per match. Harvey Barnes ($13) was deemed fit by manager Brendan Rogers this week and is priced like he hasn't played this season (which is true). In the last five matches to end the previous season, he scored 12-plus points in four of five matches and topped out with 23.9 and 56.9 in two of those matches. When he's in the starting XI, he's a great source of chances created and shots on goal. Outside of Pereira and Barnes, Gray has taken eight of Everton's 15 free kicks through two matches. He's played a full 90 in both matches and has the benefit of his team being favored at home against a newly promoted side. Everton have the third-highest implied goal total and Gray should be heavily involved given the revolving door that's been Everton's attack this summer, including an injured Dominic Calvert-Lewin.
DEFENDERS
Joachim Andersen, CRY v. AVL ($14): It's been an impressive start for Andersen and he'll get another opportunity to continue this trend against Aston Villa on Saturday. He's produced 23.4 and 25.1 fantasy points against quality teams in Liverpool and Arsenal, and faces an Aston Villa team who have forced 36 and 17 clearances against Bournemouth and Everton. This bodes well for Andersen as he ranks first in the Premier League with 19 clearances. His price reflects the recent production, though Villa's style of attack is something I'd key on here. Oleksandr Zinchenko ($15) came back to earth against Leicester, so it's tough to justify his top-tier price range, while the Bournemouth defenders, Lloyd Kelly ($14) and Chris Mepham ($13) are expected to see a high volume of clearances against Arsenal. Neco Williams ($13) is a bit cheaper and will provide a much higher amount of attacking stats than any of the aforementioned defenders.
Jonny Evans, LEI v. SOU ($8): Both the DFS optimizer and the cheat sheet like the value Evans provides in a matchup with Southampton, so I can't ignore the algorithms. It's looking likely he'll pair with Daniel Amartey ($7) at center-back after Wesley Fofana ($11) asked to be removed from the squad this weekend. Evans doesn't cost much and should still provide enough defensive work to meet or exceed his value. James Justin ($8) is the same price but offers a bit more in attack from his outside-back position, while Matty Cash ($9) offers plenty going forward in a favorable matchup with Crystal Palace. Ezri Konsa ($8) should start for Aston Villa at center-back following Diego Carlos's Achilles injury and Konsa offers enough savings to make it worthwhile.
GOALKEEPERS
Dean Henderson, NFO at EVE ($8): Aaron Ramsdale ($14) is the most expensive goalkeeper, which coincides with Arsenal having the best clean-sheet odds in a trip against freshly promoted Bournemouth. He kept a clean sheet in the first match but last weekend's 4-2 win over Leicester didn't provide a ton of value. Jordan Pickford ($12) follows Ramsdale in clean-sheet odds, but I'm a bit weary of anything related to Everton this season. Brentford are nowhere near the top of the clean-sheet odds, but I like David Raya ($9) in a matchup against Fulham, especially coming off a 29-point performance against Manchester United. Dean Henderson ($8) was downright heroic against West Ham and has 16 and 29 points to his name in his first two starts. He'll face an Everton attack that have just one goal in two matches, which came from a Lucas Digne own goal. I like Henderson to continue his prosperous run in a trip to Everton.
