SOCCER

4 FanDuel Premier League Studs to Target For Matchweek 22

Tottenham's Danny Rose has excelled this season when facing the Premier League's top teams, and Spurs take on Manchester City this weekend, making him one of the top defender plays on the board.

As is the case when playing any sport on FanDuel, it’s imperative to hit on high-priced studs, the players in which you’ve made the biggest investment. This is especially true with strikers in soccer as goals are often the difference between winning and losing in DFS.

Let’s take a look at some high-priced players -- all across the pitch -- who, despite costing a good chunk of change, are worth the investment.

This article is geared toward Saturday's main slate, which starts 10:00 a.m. EST and features six matches.

Matchweek 22
Saturday, January 21st
Manchester United at Stoke City
Sunderland at West Brom
Watford at Bournemouth
Everton at Crystal Palace
Tottenham at Manchester City
West Ham at Middlesbrough


Let's get to it.

Forward

Romelu Lukaku, Everton

FanDuel Salary: $11,800

With how crucial goals are in DFS, it's rare to find a slate where paying down at the forward spot seems like anything other than a really bad idea. This week may be one of those unique situations. Five of six games on the slate hold an over/under of 2.5 (and the lone exception has a measly 2-goal over/under), so there are no obvious matches to target for striker production.

Sure, Zlatan Ibrahimovic is rarely a bad play, but Stoke have only allowed four goals in their last six home matches. Sergio Aguero is also in a rough spot, taking on a Spurs defense that's given up a league-best -- and remarkable -- 14 goals in 21 outings. On the flip side of that fixture, Tottenham's Harry Kane is facing a Manchester City side that -- even though they've been taken to task for their defense -- have allowed only 26 goals in 21 matches.

That leads us to Lukaku, who is hitting the road to face Crystal Palace and may be in the best spot of all the high-priced forwards. The Toffees are hot right now, bagging seven goals across their last two Premier League games. Lukaku has netted twice in that span, also recording an assist.

For the year, he's scored 12 goals with 4 assists, and he's averaging 24.4 FanDuel points per match. Lukaku's over-reliance on goals makes him tough to stomach in cash games, but his upside -- he's been over the 40-point mark twice in his last seven games -- is ideal for tourneys.

Midfielder

Michail Antonio, West Ham

FanDuel Salary: $8,500

Very little has gone right for West Ham this season, but Antonio has been a resounding positive. He's scored eight goals with three assists, becoming a weapon on the flank once manager Slaven Bilic moved him off the back line and into a full-time role in midfield.

While the club's feud with star Dimitri Payet is a blow to the team as a whole, it hasn't hurt Antonio's fantasy output. Over the past two games, neither of which included Payet, Antonio has scored 19.5 and 43 FanDuel points. He's even been deployed as an attacker recently, which only boosts his value.

The over/under in this game is an ugly two goals, but Antonio's new role as the focal point of the Hammers' attack makes him an enticing option even in a less-than-ideal matchup. Also, there's a chance striker Andy Carroll doesn't play, which could put even more of the attacking burden on Antonio's shoulders.

Defender

Danny Rose, Tottenham

FanDuel Salary: $6,700

Rose, the top-priced defender, has excelled this season against top teams, and he gets a matchup against Manchester City this weekend.

In five matches against the other top-six sides -- Manchester United, Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester City and Liverpool -- Rose has averaged 24.5 FanDuel points per game, which includes a 7-point outing against Chelsea. With the exception of that clunker, he's averaged 28.69 FanDuel points in his other four matches against the top teams.

Rose is a force coming forward in most matches, but the reason he's produced so well against the best teams is he's forced to do more defensively. He's averaged 4.6 clearances per match in his five meetings with top sides while averaging 1.5 clearances per match in his 11 other games.

Overall, Rose is averaging 3 tackles and 1.5 interceptions per match, netting 2 goals with 2 assists. Tottenham is rolling, scoring 19 times in their previous six matches, and Rose has posted at least 20 FanDuel points in six of his last seven outings.

Goalie

Ben Foster, West Brom

FanDuel Salary: $6,500

Foster gets a home matchup with Sunderland, one of the Premier League's worst attacking teams. The Black Cats are tied for the second-fewest goals in the league, netting 20 in 21 matches, and they've only registered six tallies across their last six league matches. The upside of a clean sheet is definitely there for Foster.

It's not like he'll be bored back there, though. West Brom rank last in possession (40.3%) -- although they'll probably see more of the ball against a Sunderland side that's 18th in possession at 42.2% -- and they allow 13.9 shots per match.

Over his last four matches, Foster is averaging 5.75 saves per game with two outings of at least 8 saves. As a result, even Sunderland's weak attack should force him into action on a few occasions, giving him a decent floor to pair with his nice ceiling.