SOCCER

4 FanDuel Premier League Players to Avoid in Matchweek 23

Watford's Richarlison has struggled on his home pitch this season. What other players should we avoid for Matchweek 23?

The main slate for Matchweek 23 features seven Saturday matches, with two of the top-five clubs in action and both playing on their home pitch, albeit both against clubs currently in the top half of the table.

Matchweek 23
Saturday, January 13th
Burnley at Crystal Palace
Southampton at Watford
West Ham at Huddersfield
Brighton at West Brom
Swansea City at Newcastle
Leicester at Chelsea
Everton at Tottenham


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 possible midweek FA Cup matches, DFS players, as always, should check out injury reports and confirmed starting XI's when they become available since some players may be rested.

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

Forward

Richarlison, Watford

FanDuel Price: $9,500

Richarlison is tied for the third-highest priced forward on the slate and has averaged 19.26 FanDuel points this season. He's scored more than 20 FanDuel points just twice in his previous nine matches, tallying one assist and averaging 13.52 FanDuel points in that span.

Despite their relegation battle this season, the Saints have allowed the seventh-fewest away goals and are the Premier League’s eighth-best squad at maintaining possession in road matches, controlling 48.3% of the possession, while the Hornets are the league’s eighth-best squad in that category on their home pitch, maintaining 50.3% of the possession.

Richarlison, surprisingly, has performed better this season away from Vicarage Road, scoring 4 goals and recording 4 assists while taking 36 shots (10 on target) in road matches, compared to 1 goal on 32 shots (four on target) at home. Those four shots on target at Vicarage Road have come in two matches, meaning Richarlison has not produced a shot on target in 9 of his 11 home matches while he has produced a shot on target in 8 of 11 road matches.

Midfielder

Manuel Lanzini, West Ham United

FanDuel Price: $9,000

Lanzini is tied with four other midfielders as the sixth-highest priced player at his position and is averaging 17.52 FanDuel points in 16 matches this season. He's scored over 10 FanDuel points in 13 of his 14 starts.

Both squads struggle at maintaining possession, as the Hammers maintain 46.1% of the possession in road matches while the Terriers control 46.4% of the possession at Kirklees Stadium. The over/under is set at 2 goals and the Hammers may find it difficult to find the back of the net -- the Terriers have allowed the Premier League’s seventh-fewest goals on their home pitch this season.

Lanzini plays an attacking role for the Hammers, and the Terriers have played well against that position (forwards and midfielders/attacking-midfielders) this season. They have allowed the eighth-fewest shots (180) and sixth-fewest chances created (133) to those positions this season while playing the sixth-most matches against those positions.

He's recorded eight interceptions over his previous three matches, which could offer a decent floor for the midfielder, but his presence in the attack may be limited. With the other players in that price range ($9,000 - $9,500), Lanzini should be avoided in favor of those with perceived better matchups.

Defender

Harry Maguire, Leicester City

FanDuel Price: $7,000

Maguire is tied with Tottenham’s Kieran Trippier as the second-highest priced defender on the slate and has averaged 17.72 FanDuel points this season. He hasn't scored over 20 FanDuel points in a match this season without contributing on the score sheet (Trippier has done this five times), and has averaged 14.39 FanDuel points in those 16 matches.

The Blues currently have the highest implied team total on the slate -- 2.25 goals -- and they should dominate the possession battle. They are the Premier League’s fifth-best squad at maintaining possession, controlling 54.7% of the possession, while the Foxes are the league’s fifth-worst squad in that category, maintaining 46.1% of the possession.

Despite currently sitting in third in the league table, the Blues have not been the best opponent for opposing defenders this season (Maguire scored 13.75 FanDuel points in their previous match in Matchweek 4). They have allowed the eighth-fewest clearances (370) and sixth-fewest tackles (121) to defender, averaging 1.32 interceptions per match while making over two interceptions in just three matches and averaging 0.68 blocked shots per match.

Goalkeeper

Nick Pope, Burnley

FanDuel Price: $5,500

Pope is tied with two other keepers as the top-priced player at his position and is averaging 16.22 FanDuel points this season, the highest average among keepers on the slate.

The Eagles have conceded 11 clean sheets to opposing keepers this season (the second-most in the Premier League), but have only been held scoreless once in their previous seven matches -- against Manchester City, the Premier League’s top club -- and have scored a goal in all but one of their last eight matches at Selhurst Park.

Over the last five matchweeks, the Eagles have forced the fourth-fewest saves from opposing keepers while only allowing that one clean sheet, which is tied for the fifth-fewest clean sheets allowed in that span. Pope should not experience a high volume of save opportunities and if he does not maintain a clean sheet, he will likely have a hard time returning value at his price point.