SOCCER

FanDuel Premier League Matches to Target in Matchweek 20

Douglas Smith  —  @DFresh39 Jan 1st, 2017
The quickest turnaround on the Premier League schedule brings a five-game slate where Saturday's form plays a big part in determining what to target in matchweek 20.

The busy Premier League holiday schedule comes to an end with matchweek 20 that stretches out over three days. FanDuel will feature a five-game slate on Monday, excluding the early game between Middlesbrough and Leicester City. The league will then take a 10-day break as some teams lose players to the African Cup of Nations. The break also comes just as the January transfer window opens.

The over/under lines on the five-game slate are all over the board with West Brom and Hull having the lowest at two goals. The slate is highlighted by Liverpool, Manchester City and Manchester United all having favorable match ups against teams much lower in the table. Although City has the highest over/under, this is not the best time to focus on the team with signs of disarray across the pitch.

Sunderland vs. Liverpool

Sunderland has lost their last three home meetings with Liverpool and will be trying to forget about a 4-1 defeat to Burnley on Saturday. Liverpool has now won four straight after earning a clean sheet against Manchester City.

Liverpool is the favorite with a 2-0 scoreline having the best odds. Andre Gray just completed the hat trick against the Black Cats, so it makes sense that a strong, pacey forward would be targeted as the first to score for Liverpool. Divock Origi, Daniel Sturridge and Roberto Firmino have the best odds. Sturridge is $8,100 and the most affordable of the group with Origi and Firmino being over $10,000. Sturridge had the day off on Saturday, so he may get more playing time on Monday with the quick turnaround.

Jordan Henderson could be out on Monday opening up a spot in the lineup. It was Origi that replaced him on Saturday. However, if Henderson is absent then more responsibility could be put on Adam Lallana, who served up the cross for the only goal on Saturday. Lallana is now second in the league in assists and costs a reasonable $8,300 on FanDuel.

Ragnar Klavan and Dejan Lovren played well in central defense against Manchester City. They had 16 clearances between them, which count as one point a piece on the FanDuel scoring structure that brings center backs into play. Their play came against a team with a much better attack than Sunderland, so the duo should be able to shut down Sunderland. Klavan is just $4,600 making him one of the bigger values on the five-game slate.

Despite the beat down by Burnley, Patrick van Aanholt continued his consistent play having more touches on the ball than any Sunderland player. He has produced nine straight double-digit FanDuel performances and averages just over 20 points per game at $5,900. Defensive action points are what to target for Sunderland as they will likely struggle to gain possession.

West Ham vs. Manchester United

West Ham's three-game winning streak came to an end on Saturday, but manager Slaven Bilic was encouraged by his team's play. The Hammers have put a bit of distance between themselves and the drop zone as the new year begins. They have built confidence over the last month, but could be without captain Mark Noble, who came off early after a nasty challenge on Saturday.

Manuel Lanzini replaced Noble and will likely start on Monday in front of the home fans. Lanzini is just $6,500, but has declined in production over his last five appearances. However, he was plagued by injury over the last two weeks and his place on the bench to start the match against Leicester signals a return to fitness.

Andy Carroll was the difference maker during West Ham's three-game winning streak and won 17 aerials against Leicester. Carroll plays with a fearless style that can put pressure on most back lines in the Premier League. He will get to play against a different center back pairing as Eric Bailly is off to the Ivory Coast for the African Cup of Nations. United has allowed a goal in three of their last four matches, all against teams in the bottom five of the table. Carroll seems a good candidate to continue the trend.

On the other side of the ball, United has scored nine goals in those four matches. Anthony Martial and Paul Pogba were superb on Saturday to give United the 2-1 win, and a goal by Zlatan Ibrahimovic was wrongly disallowed. Martial's future with the club is uncertain, so he may be back on the bench Monday. Pogba and Ibrahimovic, this slate's most expensive player, should continue to have a major impact on the United attack.

Ander Herrera and Antonio Valencia were heavily involved in the match on Saturday with at least 90 touches a piece and over 90% passing accuracy. Valenica is $5,100 for Monday while Herrera is $8,200.

Both teams have scored in four of the last five contests against one another. Both teams to score and over 2.5 goals is the current betting favorite, so at least a 2-1 scoreline is expected.

Enjoy the last fixtures of the festive period and have a happy new year.