The Starting XI - EPL: Saturday, April 25th
This weekend’s EPL slate is largely headlined by the two Sunday matches – Everton vs. Manchester United and Arsenal vs. Chelsea. Because Sunday’s lineups will largely be dominated, in most part, by Manchester United players, we will concentrate on Saturday’s eight-game slate.
Saturday’s lineup features a few huge matches in the battle against relegation and Ernestiko will pick out eleven of his favorites (2 GK, 3 DEF, 3 MF, 3 FW) on DraftKings going into the weekend.
GK Lukasz Fabianski $4,600 – Swansea City
Swansea heads to St. James Park this weekend to face a Newcastle side that is frankly lucky the season is almost over. Newcastle have lost six straight PL matches having only scored two goals within that run. Swansea have a respectable defense and Fabianski is among the league leaders in clean sheets this season making him a solid Saturday play.
GK Asmir Begovic $5,000 – Stoke City
While you could go the expensive and more conservative route by picking Joe Hart, Begovic faces a Sunderland side at home that is second bottom in the league when it comes to scoring goals.
DEF Kieran Trippier $5,500 – Burnley
In a huge battle against relegation, Burnley welcome Leicester City. If either side take all three points, it could see them clear of the relegation zone should certain results occur. As we’ve mentioned here before, nobody has sent in more crosses this year than Kieran Trippier (231 to be exact) and as we’ve seen in recent weeks, Burnley can be very difficult to break through against on their home ground.
DEF Nathaniel Clyne $4,000 – Southampton
Southampton feature the best defense in the PL when it comes to letting in goals while it must be said that Spurs defense has been a bit leaky this season. Clyne and his teammate, Ryan Bertrand, are both good options from the wing back position. However, Clyne has been a bit more involved in the attacking third as of late and is the better price among he and Bertrand.
DEF Aleksandar Kolarov $4,800 – Manchester City
Kolarov was very active last week against West Ham. Not only did City keep the score sheet clean, but Kolarov was also involved in the attacking third with having delivered six crosses and three shots throughout the 2-0 win.
MF Yannick Bolasie $7,500 – Crystal Palace
Bolasie and Palace return home this week to face a Hull side which hasn’t won a league game since February 21st. Bolasie is hot coming off of a 44 FPTs (thanks to an 11-minute hat trick) and 15 FPTs outings and should be able to have another successful afternoon against Hull
MF Raheem Sterling $8,600 – Liverpool
With Daniel Sturridge still nursing an injury and Mario Balotelli frankly bringing very little to the table, Sterling will once again lead the Liverpool attack against West Brom this weekend making him a very good midfield play. West Brom were sliding down the PL table before a win against Palace last weekend got them back on track. Sterling has a goal and an assist in Liverpool’s last two games in all competitions.
MF Charlie Adam $5,500 – Stoke City
Perhaps quietly (although when is a goal from midfield ever quiet?), Adam has seen his FPTs totals in double digits each of the last four weeks (19, 18, 15, 21). While Adam doesn’t always find the back of the net, he often times takes several shots as evident by the seven he took against West Ham two weeks ago. Adam should have that same license when they face Sunderland this weekend
FW Danny Ings $6,300 – Burnley
If Ings is going to break out of his goal scoring slump, this would be the week to do it, at home in a huge relegation battle against Leicester City. Ings was active last week taking four shots and drawing four fouls. Adding a goal to those kinds of numbers could pave the way for a nice output on Saturday.
FW Sergio Aguero $10,200 – Manchester City
With Harry Kane facing a tough Southampton side, Aguero becomes the most likely of the high priced players to be a main fixture in lineups. Aguero has three goals in his last two games and will want to try and put some space on the top goalscorers list between he, Kane and Diego Costa. Facing an Aston Villa side fresh off sealing their place in the FA Cup Final, Aguero should be confident of his chances this weekend.
FW Charlie Austin $9,300 – Queens Park Rangers
QPR will depend on Austin’s powerful left boot for the rest of the campaign in the hopes of their league survival. A win at home against West Ham is a must if QPR are to have any life in them. Austin has 17 goals this season, with two in his last three games.
SUBSTITUTES BENCH
GK Joe Hart $5,400 – Manchester City
DEF Ryan Bertrand $4,400 – Southampton
DEF Alberto Moreno $3,900 – Liverpool
MF Philippe Coutinho $6,300 – Liverpool
MF Jason Puncheon $5,400 – Crystal Palace
FW Christian Benteke $7,400 – Aston Villa