SOCCER

4 FanDuel Premier League Players to Avoid in Matchweek 15

Jamie Vardy has been a boom-or-bust fantasy option this season and now faces a Burnley squad that has allowed the second-fewest goals to forwards. What other players should we avoid for Matchweek 15?

The main slate for Matchweek 15 features seven Saturday matches. Saturday’s slate will likely have a large impact on the relegation battle as four of the bottom-five clubs each play each other.

As with any sport, it is imperative to have your players, especially the high-priced studs, live up to their price tag. When investing in any player, it is important to determine who will likely contribute in FanDuel's emphasized areas (goals, assists, and shots on target). It's also just as crucial not to overspend on players in bad matchups.

We should try to take advantage of the teams -- and players -- who play especially well either home or away, while also looking at oddsmakers' favorites and over/under totals. Due to the midweek matches, DFS players, as always, should check out injury reports and confirmed starting XIs when they become available as some players may be rested.

Let's take a look at four players across the entire pitch who should be avoided.

Forward

Jamie Vardy, Leicester City

FanDuel Price: $9,500

Vardy is tied as the fifth-highest priced forward on the slate and has averaged 15.95 FanDuel points this season. Vardy has not scored over 20 FanDuel points this season without scoring a goal, averaging 6.56 points in those matches compared to an average of 28.45 points in matches where he nets a goal.

Leicester hosts Burnley at King Power Stadium, and the Foxes enter Saturday’s match as a 0.5-goal favorite. Both squads struggle with maintaining possession, but the Foxes should have a slight edge in that category -- the Clarets are the Premier League’s worst squad at maintaining possession in road matches.

Despite struggling to maintain possession, the Clarets have conceded the seventh-fewest goals in road matches. Due to their possession woes, however, the Clarets have allowed the third-most shots (60) and fifth-most shots on target (22) to forwards. They have only allowed three goals, though, which is the second-fewest number of goals allowed to forwards.

Besides one match this season -- Matchweek 9 against Swansea -- Vardy has been the definition of a boom-or-bust fantasy option. The Clarets, despite the number of shot attempts allowed, have kept opposing forwards from finding the back of the net and should offer a tough matchup for Vardy.

Midfielder

Christian Eriksen, Tottenham

FanDuel Price: $9,000

Eriksen is tied, along with four other midfielders, as the third-highest priced player at his position for Matchweek 15 and is averaging 21.41 FanDuel points. Eriksen has struggled over his previous six matches, averaging 13.25 FanDuel points in that span.

Tottenham travels to Vicarage Road to face Watford with the Spurs installed as 0.5-goal favorites over the Hornets. The Spurs are the Premier League’s second-best squad at maintaining possession on the road, while the Hornets maintain 49.9% of the possession on their home pitch.

The Spurs are in bad form, earning four points in their last five matches while only scoring once in their previous three matches away from Wembley Stadium. The Hornets, however, have not allowed more than one goal at Vicarage Road to a club outside the top-five in the Premier League table this season while keeping two clean sheets. The Hornets have allowed the third-fewest goals and ninth-most chances created to center-midfielders this season.

Eriksen is always a threat to have a tournament-winning performance, but has not scored over 15 FanDuel points since Matchweek 8 against Bournemouth and should be avoided until he and the Spurs show life on the pitch.

Defender

Harry Maguire, Leicester City

FanDuel Price: $7,000

Maguire is tied with five other defenders as the third-highest priced defender for Matchweek 15 and is averaging 17.95 FanDuel points this season. His average has dropped in the last five matches -- he was scoring 20.5 FanDuel points per game through the first nine matchweeks before averaging 13.35 FanDuel points since.

As mentioned above, the Clarets have an implied team total of 1.0 goal and are the Premier League’s worst squad at maintaining possession on their home pitch. The Clarets will likely be unable to put heavy pressure on the Foxes’ back line -- limiting their upside -- as they have scored the second-fewest goals at home.

The Clarets have not been the best matchup for central-defenders this season. They have allowed the 8th-most clearances (191), 10th-fewest interceptions (48), 6th-fewest blocked shots (20), and 2nd fewest tackles (29) to center-backs.

Maguire averaged 5.8 clearances per match in his first nine matchweeks, but that number has dropped to 2.75 in his most recent five matches, reaching his previous average just once. Based upon his price and the other defenders within that range, Maguire should be avoided.

Goalkeeper

Jonas Lossl, Huddersfield

FanDuel Price: $5,000

Lossl is tied with three other keepers as the sixth-highest priced player at the position and has averaged 12.64 FanDuel points this season. However, it's worth noting that he's been unable to reach that average in three straight matches.

Huddersfield hosts Everton at Kirklees Stadium, and the Toffees have an implied team total of 1.5 goals.

The Toffees are not a great matchup for opposing keepers, as they have allowed the seventh-fewest saves while scoring the ninth-most goals this season. The Terriers, however, do not allow many shots as a club, allowing the seventh-fewest number of shots (165).

According to the odds, Everton is likely to score at least one goal -- and possibly two -- in Saturday’s match, although they have only scored more than one goal away from Goodison Park once this season. Lossl will likely see a low number of shots, and if the Toffees find the back of the net at least once, Lossl will have a hard time reaching value.

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Ben Fisher is not a FanDuel employee. The views expressed in his articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.