SOCCER

FanDuel Premier League Trends to Know for Matchweek 1

Ryan Fraser has had a good summer and draws a nice matchup, making him a hot commodity for Matchweek 1 as long as he doesn't move to Arsenal. Which other trends should you act on for Saturday's main slate?

The Premier League returns for the 2019-20 season, and FanDuel has a plethora of contests for the campaign's first main slate, which begins Saturday at 10:00 a.m. EST and features five matches. FanDuel continues their format from the Women's World Cup, asking contestants to select four players from forward/midfielder, two defenders, and one keeper.

Since it is the first week of the season, this post will look at any momentum teams built over the summer and finishes to this past season. It is even worth considering some of the action from the preseason tours for each team.

Matchweek 1
Saturday, August 10th
Brighton at Watford
Everton at Crystal Palace
Southampton at Burnley
Sheffield United at Bournemouth
Aston Villa at Tottenham


Let's look at the teams and players that are rising and falling this week.

Hot

Team: Brighton

Brighton have undergone a face lift over the summer. They have lost 15 players, most of which have not been big contributors in recent seasons. Neal Maupay became their sixth signing of the summer in the past week, but he is not yet listed on FanDuel. New manager Graham Potter's second signing of the summer, Leandro Trossard ($14), may have the biggest impact of all of their additions as the winger scored 14 goals for Genk last year. It was his best offensive season, which bodes well in Potter's more offensive-minded gameplan. Brighton employed a 3-4-3 in their last prep match, with Trossard joined by Glenn Murray ($14) and Jurgen Locadia ($10) up front.

Brighton have scored 13 goals in five summer matches, well ahead of their pace of the past two seasons. Although Watford, Brighton's opponent Saturday will have a bit of a different look, there have been over 2.5 goals scored in 10 of Watford's last 12 Premier League games. The attacking front three of Brighton, along with Solly March ($10), will look to pressure Watford on the Hornets' home pitch.

Player: Ryan Fraser, Bournemouth ($16)

Fraser started last season on fire, averaging more than 27 FanDuel points through the first five matches. He has shown his fitness level is ready to start a new season as he has played the second-most minutes of any Bournemouth play in the preparation matches. Fraser has two goals and one assist over the summer, with Bournemouth scoring six goals in their last two summer matches.

Fraser seemed to always be a threat with the ball at his feet last season, notching the third-most assists of any midfielder overall in the Premier League and ranking fourth in corners taken. Fraser also shined against teams outside of the top six. Newcomers Sheffield United are the perfect matchup for Fraser and Bournemouth to get off to a great start.

There are still rumors swirling that Fraser could leave, and a move to Arsenal would take him off this slatw.

Cold

Team: Crystal Palace

Palace have lost one big chip this offseason and look set to lose another before the end of the transfer window. Wilfried Zaha ($20) seems to be on his way to Everton, but there has been interest in the speedy winger every transfer window for two years. Aaron Wan-Bissaka made his way to Manchester United earlier in the summer. Both players were relied on heavily by Palace to stay out of the relegation zone a season ago.

Palace have had a dismal summer. Their last match was a 4-0 defeat at the hands of German side Hertha Berlin. They have an aging back line with James Tomkins ($10) and Mamadou Sakho ($8) both nursing injuries. They also just signed 33-year-old defender Gary Cahill, who did not start a single game for Chelsea last season.

Everton have shut out Palace in three of the last six matches in the Premier League, including both matches last season. Everton are slight favorites in this matchup despite playing on the road. Palace lost three of their first four matches last season and had to finish strong to avoid relegation.

Player: James Tarkowski, Burnley ($14)

Tarkowski has been one of the most reliable defenders in the Premier League for the past two seasons, but he is opening the season with a nagging thigh injury. Tarkowski sat out the final match of the summer, with manager Sean Dyche saying they must be careful with the defender. He finished last season averaging nearly 20 FanDuel points per match. Burnley have relied on defense to stay competitive, so any extended absence for arguably their best defender is not an ideal way to start the season.

The other thing to note about Tarkowski is that now that Harry Maguire moved to Manchester United, the Burnley defender is a target of Leicester City. If there are true transfer talks, then it is unlikely that Burnley will risk playing him. Transfermarkt has Tarkowski at the highest value of his career, so the asking price could be enormous. If he does go, it would be tough to replace him with a transfer before the window closes, putting Burnley on the wrong foot to start the season.



Doug Smith is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Doug Smith also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username aquemini03. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his/her personal views, he/she may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his/her personal account. The views expressed in his/her
articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.