DraftKings Fantasy Soccer: Saturday EPL Picks

DraftKings Fantasy Soccer: Saturday EPL Picks

This article is part of our DraftKings Fantasy Soccer series.

For detailed stats and odds, check out the Fantasy Premier League: Saturday Cheat Sheet.

MATCHES (EST)

10:00 a.m: West Brom v. Sunderland
10:00 a.m: Crystal Palace v. Everton
10:00 a.m: Middlesbrough v. West Ham
10:00 a.m: Stoke City v. Manchester United
10:00 a.m: Bournemouth v. Watford
12:30 p.m: Manchester City v. Tottenham

PLAYER RECOMMENDATIONS

GOALKEEPERS

Lee Grant, STK v. MUN ($3,800): Grant is expected to face plenty of action Saturday against Man United, who have taken the third-most shots and gotten the third-most on target in the Premier League this season. Those shots have allowed opposing keepers to make 22 saves over the last four games, which is seven more than the next highest team playing Saturday (Bournemouth).

Darren Randolph, WHU at MID ($4,500): The West Ham defense has been far from dominant this season, though they've allowed just one goal in each of their last two away matches, which came against Swansea City and Leicester, and they shut out Crystal Palace last weekend in a 3-0 victory. Middlesbrough don't take a plethora of shots, but they've been blanked a league-high nine times this season, including five times in their last seven league matches. Finally, West Ham have allowed the fourth-most shots on target this season, so while Middlesbrough have gotten a league-low 51 on target themselves, they may be able to sneak a few more balls toward the net to enhance Randolph's save upside.

DEFENDERS

Christian Kabasele, WAT at BOU ($3,500): Kabasele was a popular option last weekend against Middlesbrough, as his $2,900 salary was too low to pass up for a defender who was actually starting in the midfield. He paid off with two shots, including one on target, and six crosses en route to 14 fantasy points (aided by a clean sheet). The shutout shouldn't be as easy this time around, particularly on the road, but the price is still low enough where he's worth the selection if he starts in the midfield again.

Antonio Valencia, MUN at STK ($5,000): Valencia has sent in 26 crosses over the last three matches, the most of any player on Saturday's slate. He's added a shot on target, four tackles and an assist over that span, and with United such heavy favorites, it's likely that Valencia spends much of Saturday's match attacking rather than defending.

Fabio, MID v. WHU ($4,900): Boro moved to a three-man back line last weekend at Watford, which allowed Fabio to line up at wingback opposite George Friend, who is $200 cheaper this week but will also be responsible for slowing down Michail Antonio. Fabio has taken a shot in each of the past two games while sending in 13 crosses and winning six tackles, showing his solid fantasy floor.

MIDFIELDERS

Matt Phillips, WBA v. SUN ($6,700): Phillips is arguably the top play on the entire slate, as he's in solid form and is playing a woefully poor Sunderland defense. Before last weekend's demolition by Spurs, Phillps had back-to-back games with at least 22 fantasy points, highlighted by a goal and three assists over that span. He shares free kicks with Chris Brunt ($5,100) but has much more assist and goal upside because he's farther up the pitch. The matchup is also excellent, as Sunderland have allowed the most crosses and second-most goals of any team on Saturday's slate.

Junior Stanislas, BOU v. WAT ($6,700): Stanislas has one goal on nine shots (five on target) and two assists in his last three games, and he'll now face a Watford side he picked up an assist against in their earlier meeting this season. While Stanislas has ceded most corners to Ryan Fraser ($4,600), he's still a decent open-play crosser, which works out well against Watford, who have allowed the fifth-most crosses this season among teams on Saturday's slate.

Henrikh Mkhitaryan, MUN at STK ($7,400): Mkhitaryan is likely to take corners for a United side that are the biggest favorites on the slate while facing a Stoke side that have allowed the second-most corners in the league this season. He has two goals on nine shots (four on target) and 21 crosses over his last five games, and while Stoke come in fresh off a 3-1 win at Sunderland, they've been blasted recently by Chelsea (4-2 at Stamford Bridge), Liverpool (4-1 at Anfield) and Arsenal (3-1 at the Emirates).

FORWARDS

Zlatan Ibrahimovic, MUN at STK ($8,800): Ibrahimovic has the best anytime goal scorer odds on the slate, and he comes in having found the back of the net in eight of his last 10 Premier League games (10 goals over that span). He's taken at least three shots in four straight games and has gotten at least two shots on target in each of his last five. Stoke have played better of late, but they haven't faced anyone as good as United, with Ibrahimovic leading the charge.

Romelu Lukaku, EVE at CRY ($7,600): Lukaku, who has the fourth-best goal scoring odds on the slate, comes in with goals in three of his last four games, including one in each of the last two. Meanwhile, Palace continue to be a mess defensively, allowing the third-most goals in the Premier League this season (most among teams on Saturday's slate), including seven in their last three, which came at Arsenal (a 2-0 loss), home against Swansea (2-1 loss - yes, they lost to Swansea at home) and at West Ham (3-0 loss). Lukaku took 12 shots over the last three games (third-most in the league), and he figures to be just as active against the poor Palace defense.

Michail Antonio, WHU at MID ($7,500): The absence of Dimitri Payet was supposed to doom the West Ham attack, so what happened in their first match without him last weekend? They won 3-0, with Antonio assisting on each goal. He only finished with one shot, but he added six crosses, four of which were accurate. The single shot ended a streak of six consecutive matches with multiple shots, and Antonio also sent in 18 crosses over that span. He doesn't take free kicks, but he's active enough all over the field that he still provides a solid floor. Boro have been solid defensively at home this season, allowing just 10 goals in 10 games, but they have also allowed the seventh-most shots and seventh-most crosses overall.

The author(s) of this article may play in daily fantasy contests including – but not limited to – games that they have provided recommendations or advice on in this article. In the course of playing in these games using their personal accounts, it's possible that they will use players in their lineups or other strategies that differ from the recommendations they have provided above. The recommendations in this article do not necessarily reflect the views of RotoWire. Andrew M. Laird plays in daily fantasy contests using the following accounts: FanDuel: kingmorland, DraftKings: andrewmlaird, Yahoo: Lairdinho.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Andrew M. Laird
Andrew is a former RotoWire contributor. He was the 2017 and 2018 FSWA Soccer Writer of the Year. He is a nine-time FSWA award finalist, including twice for Football Writer of the Year.
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