MLS Fantasy Rankings: Week 26

MLS Fantasy Rankings: Week 26

This article is part of our MLS Fantasy Rankings series.

The rankings below are based on Major League Soccer's official fantasy game and cover all games in Week 26. While they can be used for DFS purposes, they are done with a focus on the league's season-long game.

If you have any questions or feedback, please feel free to leave a comment below, or hit up JD on Twitter @dfsMLS.

Forwards

RankPlayerMatchupPriceNotes
1Carlos VelaLAFC v. MIN15.0Hopefully we have an injury update by the weekend, but I'm not optimistic. Since he plays in the last match of the week and it behooves Bob Bradley to play it safe with his superstar, I'm leaning towards leaving him out of my plans right now (written Tuesday night).
2Maximiliano UrrutiMTL v. VAN, v. DC6.2No certainty to start both given a new coach and some competition up top.
3Fredy MonteroVAN at MTL, v. NYC7.0More likely to start at home, so if he goes on Wednesday, than I suppose he's reluctantly an option.
4Raul RuidiazSEA v. LA11.2 
5Brian FernandezPOR v. RSL10.2I'm keeping faith in Fernandez as an elite FMLS forward, but if you want to head to safer pastures this week, I won't blame you.
6Zlatan IbrahimovicLA at SEA11.8Can he play on Seattle's turf? Is he even motivated outside of the derby?
7Josef MartinezATL at PHI14.2 
8Gustavo BouNE v. TOR10.9 
9Diego RossiLAFC v. MIN9.8Rossi's talent makes risking a spot on Vela in the final match of the week a bit more palatable.
10Heber Araujo dos SantosNYC at VAN10.5 
11Zdenek OndrasekDAL v. FCC5.5Looked like a souped-up Gyasi Zardes last match. He could poach a few goals against a bad Cincy team here, too, particularly since the actual Gyasi Zardes just punished them.
12Jesus FerreiraNYC at VAN6.5Great play, but cannot justify placing him above consistent stars in the spots above him and Ondrasek.
13Adama DiomandeLAFC v. MIN8.5Brian Rodriguez would also be an option if he starts. He took many of the corner kicks late in last week's game after coming on.
14Valentin CastellanosNYC at VAN8.0 
15Orji OkwonkwoMTL v. VAN, v. DC7.1Rotation likely.
16Theo BairVAN at MTL, v. NYC4.3Rotation likely.
17Dominique BadjiDAL v. FCC6.1 
18Jozy AltidoreTOR at NE10.2 
19Chris WondolowskiSJ v. ORL7.4 
20Gyasi ZardesCLB v. CHI10.2Didn't mean to do it as I was ranking, but these final three forward spots sure ended up being a bad extended metaphor for the USMNT forward pool over the last handful of years. Ouch.

Midfielders

RankPlayerMatchupPriceNotes
1Saphir TaiderMTL v. VAN, v. DC11.6Picked up a seemingly small injury last week before the match, but still played 90 minutes.
2Lassi LappalainenMTL v. VAN, v. DC8.4One bonus point in four starts? That's weak, but we're all still considering him thanks for four goals and one assist in that same span since joining the team.
3Hwang In-beomVAN at MTL, v. NYC7.2With plenty of other good matchups this week, I don't think you need to use all of your Vancouver spots. Still, it's tough to pass up the potential of 2x the playing time!
4Yordy ReynaVAN at MTL, v. NYC8.1Hwang is more likely to start both than Reyna, but the latter has a considerably higher upside in the goals/assists department.
5Bojan KrkicMTL v. VAN, v. DC7.3Less involved thus far than I would have hoped, but scored last week. I do think he's a candidate for rotation, but so are most DGW players this week.
6Nicolas LodeiroSEA v. LA12.7As good as Jona dos Santos is, when one person is essentially a team's entire midfield, Lodeiro is going to have a field day.
7Magnus ErikssonSJ v. ORL10.8 
8Maximiliano MoralezNYC at VAN11.6By my count, Maxi has a goal or assist in NINE straight road matches. Vancouver will be playing their second match in four days. NYCFC are in great form - don't be scared of away factor here.
9Carles GilNE v. TOR13.2 
10Diego ValeriPOR v. RSL12.6 
11Eduard AtuestaLAFC v. MIN12.2If Vela doesn't play, Atuesta may actually be a fantasy upgrade. More set pieces, may push forward more, and if Minnesota have a little more of the ball then more bonus point chances.
12Felipe GutierrezSKC v. HOU10.0 
13Michael BarriosDAL v. FCC9.7Love the matchup, but it's tough to rank him above the aforementioned players that come with a better floor and similar upside. Paxton Pomykal would be in this range if he gets back into the starting lineup, too.
14Johnny RussellSKC v. HOU8.9Houston have allowed 19 goals in their past six road matches.
15Daniel RoyerNYRB v. COL9.2 
16Cristian EspinozaSJ v. ORL10.3 
17Ken KrolickiMTL v. VAN, v. DC4.0With Shome, Choiniere, Piette and others all pushing for minutes, it's really tough to lock any of the Montreal midfielders outsider of Taider in for big minutes this week. I'd look at who starts Wednesday and then play them from the bench, if at all.
18KakuNYRB v. COL8.5Yet to have double-digit points in a game this season.
19Latif BlessingLAFC v. MIN9.9 
20VakoSJ v. ORL9.7 

Defenders

RankPlayerMatchupPriceNotes
1Daniel LovitzMTL v. VAN, v. DC4.3Adnan is better in most every way, but Montreal has a better chance at a clean sheet this week.
2Ali AdnanVAN at MTL, v. NYC7.1He's the most appealing Vancouver player this week, but that's not saying a lot.
3Jukka RaitalaMTL v. VAN, v. DC4.6I know he's out of position, but some more bonus points while playing centerback would be nice. Assuming he's fit enough to start midweek, he's the best bet for 180 along the Montreal back line.
4Bacary SagnaMTL v. VAN, v. DC5.4Thrown into an unfamiliar centerback role and did pretty well last match. Camacho's status appears up in the air, but either way, Sagna is a relatively good bet to find his way into both matches.
5Derek CorneliusVAN at MTL, v. NYC6.9 
6Reto ZieglerDAL v. FCC8.6With this good of a matchup and penalty kick duties, Ziegler makes a case to be above most or all of the DGW guys.
7Ryan HollingsheadDAL v. FCC9.7 
8Doneil HenryVAN at MTL, v. NYC5.7Erik Godoy could get minutes, too.
9Rudy CamachoMTL v. VAN, v. DC5.5Status is uncertain, last I checked, but Montreal really could use a somewhat healthy centerback.
10Reggie CannonDAL v. FCC6.4 
11Jake NerwinskiVAN at MTL, v. NYC4.6 
12Tommy ThompsonSJ v. ORL7.5 
13Matt HedgesDAL v. FCC8.1 
14Zachary Brault-GuillardMTL v. VAN, v. DC5.4I doubt he plays both, but maybe worth a shot on your bench?
15Walker ZimmermanLAFC v. MIN6.2Looked like the dude from the Buffalo Wild Wings commercial was controlling him at times during the Galaxy match, but he should minimize the errors this week and still poses a threat on set pieces.
16Eddie SeguraLAFC v. MIN7.0 
17Michael Amir MurilloNYRB v. COL6.2 
18Aaron LongNYRB v. COL7.1 
19Florian JungwirthSJ v. ORL6.8 
20Jorge MoreiraPOR v. RSL8.4Harvey/Beitashour are deserving here, and Graham Zusi has some appeal if we think he'll ever remember how to help in the attack, but Moreira has the tantalizing potential at both ends that deserves highlighting with this last spot.

Goalkeepers

RankPlayerMatchupPriceNotes
1Evan BushMTL v. VAN, v. DC5.0If you need all your Montreal spots for field players, you can approximate Bush with a keeperoo of some kind.
2Maxime CrepeauVAN at MTL, v. NYC7.3He's probably better than whichever single game week keeper you pick, but not confidently so. 
3Jesse GonzalezDAL v. FCC6.6 
4Tyler MillerLAFC v. MIN7.9The Loons threw a lot of energy into US Open Cup. Even though they need to get back on the horse right away in LA, I tihnk it'll be a tall task, which makes Miller a quality play in the last match of the week.
5Luis RoblesNYRB v. COL6.5 
6Daniel VegaSJ v. ORL5.1 
7Tim MeliaSKC v. HOU6.9Not far behind Jesse Gonzalez and the rest (Houston are bad), but SKC are only one of five MLS teams without a positive goal differential at home so I'm tempering expectations.
8Steve ClarkPOR v. RSL6.9Portland are notably without some important defenders, but they can still make things work at home against RSL.
9Eloy RoomCLB v. CHI4.4If you're going single game week keeper, you may as well try Room out early from the bench. He's barely more expensive than a 4.0 placeholder.
10Sean JohnsonNYC at VAN6.5 

Captain Rankings

RankPlayerMatchupPriceNotes
1Saphir TaiderMTL v. VAN, v. DC11.6The popular, relatively safe, and steady captain choice this week. If you're REALLY chasing, I think you have to look elsewhere - the fantasy season is charging towards an end and Taider isn't a total lock.
2Carlos VelaLAFC v. MIN15.0Not the end of the world if Vela sits and you need to switch and captain Rossi. Even better if you have Atuesta in your lineup to choose from too.
3Lassi LappalainenMTL v. VAN, v. DC8.4With two braces in just four starts, whether lucky or not, Lassi may be the pivot if you're chasing. He also may rest one of the matches -- who knows!
4Nicolas LodeiroSEA v. LA12.7We're not following the rankings here because Reyna/Inbeom/Bojan are all too risky in terms of playing time.
5Magnus ErikssonSJ v. ORL10.8Eriksson and the Quakes can score in bunches, or at least shoot a ton, making him an excellent captain with very high upside.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
JD Bazzo
JD is a former RotoWire contributor. He was a finalist for the 2017 FSWA Soccer Writer of the Year award. JD had been writing for RotoWire since 2015. He is a proud Pittsburgh native, purveyor of fantasy sports, and likely the first Penn State Basketball fan you've ever met.
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