MLS Top Plays: Saturday, August 1st
With the first half of the MLS season concluding with the All-Star game midweek, and today being August 1st, we are gearing up for full on soccer mania around the world. EPL, MLS and soon Champions League soccer will start gracing the pages of our favorite DFS soccer sites and we’ll be consumed with soccer week in and week out. But before we get to all that, we have some MLS games to look into this weekend starting with some Saturday games and some growing GPPs on DraftKings. With EPL starting next week, what better way to practice your soccer lineup making than by entering some MLS games Saturday. So let’s get started!
Goalkeepers
Tim Melia, Sporting Kansas City $5,300 – Melia is the biggest favorite on the board and his price has risen to the point where he’s the second-most expensive goalkeeper on the slate. I like him though as his team has the greatest odds for a win today which gives him the five bonus win points and facing a team such as Houston that is coming off a big win against LA Galaxy gives him a shot at some saves from shots by Houston’s offense.
Brad Knighton, New England Revolution $3,000 – Taking the goalkeeper against Toronto FC is scary because we always think of Giovinco as a threat to score multiple goals a game every week. While this is true in most cases, the reality of the situation this week puts Knighton at an advantage over most goalkeepers who face Toronto. Giovinco is currently questionable to make an appearance this week on account of a heel injury. Moreover, at the price of just $3K it’s an easy gamble to take in a GPP to roster a starting goalkeeper for a favored home team, even if he does allow a goal or two but still get the win.
Other Goalkeepers I Like: Donovan Ricketts (Los Angeles, $3,000), Andrew Dykstra (DC United, $5,200)
Defenders
Chris Tierney, New England Revolution $5,800 – If you roster Knighton, an easy pairing would be adding Chris Tierney to your roster and that can help you get the double points for any potential clean sheet that New England can hold on to. Tierney holds value for other reasons however as he’s been consistently able to produce Key Passes to his teammates that put them in position to score goals and has been able to show the potential of double-digit crossing numbers in a single match.
Taylor Kemp, DC United $4,600 – As usual it’s tough to predict which value defender will be available to start prior to the lineups coming out (they usually are available on the MLS app about an hour prior to the matches starting). However, if when lineups come out and you see a $3K or less defender starting at the full-back position don’t hesitate to roster that player. For now however, I’ll recommend Kemp as a safe choice for a favored team at home. Kemp is very consistent in the number of crosses he delivers and the amount of time he spends in the opponents half on offense. He can be aided additionally by the fact that Salt Lake does not travel well and would be hard pressed to get a positive result which automatically upgrades DC’s defense and goalkeeper.
Other Defenders I Like: Waylon Francis (Columbus, $4,500), Tyrone Mears (Seattle $5,600), Any defender starting at wing back for a home team.
Midfielders
Kaka, Orlando City $10,700 – Listen, it’s not an easy decision to admit to being wrong. But I was wrong, I thought that Kaka’s exploits were incidental and a result of him being on penalty duty and that he’s unlikely to carry the high floor you look for in a player priced above $9K. However, over the last few weeks he’s shown that he can produce some numbers and deliver performances that benefit his fantasy owners. While he hasn’t had a real big blow-up game in a while, I think one is coming. Columbus is not a solid defensive team and while they hold 50% possession away from home, I believe that a lot of that will be counteracted with Orlando’s ability to control the midfield, and that is led by Kaka and his superior world class talent. I think this is a great opportunity for Kaka to attack and produce a solid statistical line.
Lee Nguyen, New England $8,300 – He is coming off back to back games with goals scored and three games in a row with fantasy outputs in the double digits (17, 20, and 19). Nguyen has found his groove and displaying the ability that he is known for. With NER being a favorite and playing at home, I like what Nguyen brings to the table in terms of attacking style. Also, he’s going to benefit from Michael Bradley being out due to injury which will give him room to roam and control the midfield without the defensive presence of the Team USA veteran.
Other Midfielders I Like: Diego Fagundez (New England, $5,200), Graham Zusi (SKC, $5,800), Felipe Martins (NYRB, $6,000), Mauro Rosales (Vancouver, $7,200), Ethan Finlay (Columbus, $8,900), Benny Feilhaber (SKC, $9,300)
Forwards
Cyle Larin, Orlando City, $8,200 – Welcome to MLS, rookie. Cyle Larin displayed the skill and the talent of a much more experienced veteran last week in Orlando’s 5-3 loss to NYCFC when he scored a hat-trick for his team. Larin’s price is still manageable even after his superb performance and facing a team like Columbus that has allowed two or more goals in five of their last six away games gives me confidence that rostering Larin may prove beneficial to my fantasy team.
Fabian Espindola, DC United $9,000 – I’m not recommending Giovinco, Keane, Kamara or BWP for my second forward slot. Not because they aren’t good, these guys can score a hat-trick against any team in MLS and can do it any week, but rather because they each carry a few question marks that make me hesitant to spend the salary cap that is required to take them this week. Espindola poses some threat as he appears to be one of the most inconsistent forwards in the league. However, a closer look and you’ll see that for the season his home/road splits have been very telling. At home for the season he has 2 goals, 5 assists, 3.4 shots per game and 3.4 crosses per game. On the road those numbers have dropped to 0 goals, 0 assists, 1 shot per game, and 1.6 crosses per game. He fouls more, gets dispossessed of the ball more, and makes fewer passes while on the road. And this week, he’s at home, so roster him up and count on the trends to continue.
Other Forwards I Like: Robbie Keane (LA Galaxy, $11,000), Clint Dempsey (Seattle, $10,000), Bradley Wright-Phillips (NYRB, $11,000), Dom Dwyer (SKC, $9,200), Gio Dos Santos (LA Galaxy, $7,400), Carlos Rivas (Orlando, $6,800), C.J. Sapong (Philadelphia, $6,900)