DraftKings Daily Fantasy Soccer Helper for 7/1/20

A small three game midweek Premier League slate takes place on Wednesday at 1 pm Eastern. Let's look at the odds for the three matches, courtesy of Soccer odd.

Forwards to Target

Nicolas Pépé ($9,500): Pépé has looked to have benefited from the lockdown. He has two goals in three appearances since the restart, including one in the FA Cup match on Sunday. He hasn't quite hit the heights that he did last season in France with Lille, when he scored 22 goals, but his recent form is an encouraging sign for him. He already held fantasy value through his crossing, averaging 5.16 crosses per 90 minutes, according to Rotowire. He gets a great matchup against the worst team in the Premier League in Norwich City. Norwich are leaky in every area that Pépé can exploit, as they are the second-worst team in goals allowed and shots against per game, and they are fourth-worst in crosses allowed per game, according to WhoScored.com. Arsenal struggled in the first two games after the break but have back-to-back wins and are the biggest favorites on this small slate. Pépé makes for a great play in all lineup builds.

Dominic Calvert-Lewin ($8,100): Calvert-Lewin has had a somewhat surprising season, becoming Everton's top goal scorer. In fact, his 13 goals are good for 10th in the league, ahead of the likes of Raheem Sterling. He hasn't scored since the league resumed but did have seven shots last time out against Norwich. Shooting is one place where Calvert-Lewin has really upped his game, now taking over three shots per 90 minutes this season. His Everton side will face a Leicester City team that didn't play well in the three games in June, winning none of them and scoring just one total goal. This has made Everton slight favorites to beat the Foxes at home. DCL has gone under the radar most of the year and could continue to do so here despite being one of the best goal scorers available on this slate.

Joshua King ($5,300): King hasn't had the best season this term but has proven to be a good goal scorer in the past. He has scored at least 12 goals in two of the past three seasons. This season he has just four in 20 league appearances, but he could get on track in this game against Newcastle. Newcastle are the worst possession team in the league and allow the fourth-most shots per game. Even as Bournemouth continue to struggle, they are favored in this game. King will take some self convincing to actually pull the trigger on him, but his cheap price makes him warrant consideration. Note that King is listed as questionable and fellow forward Callum Wilson is suspended, so Dominic Solanke ($4,000) could start up front and would also be worth considering.

Midfielders to Target

Emiliano Buendía ($8,700): Buendía has maintained fantasy relevance despite playing for Norwich. He has been a great set-up man and is responsible for most of the set pieces for his team. He has recorded the sixth-most corners in the league this season and has created chances at a clip of 3.24 per 90 minutes. The matchup against Arsenal initially appears tough but isn't actually too bad. Arsenal allow the fifth-most shots per game and the eighth-most crosses per game in the Premier League. To go with shaky center-back play from the Gunners, Norwich may be able to create some opportunities through Buendía. With some other midfield options we normally would like to play doubtful to be in the lineup, Buendía is one the best plays on the slate.

Jonjo Shelvey ($5,900): With Matt Ritchie looking unlikely to start for Newcastle, Jonjo Shelvey would be given a bump in value. He shared the corner-kick duty with Ritchie in the last league match but still had a four-to-one advantage in that department. Newcastle get a good opportunity to extend their four-match unbeaten run against 18th-place Bournemouth, and Shelvey could capitalize on the matchup. Bournemouth are a weak defensive team, allowing the third-most shots per game. Shelvey is the type of midfielder who isn't afraid to shoot from distance, averaging over two shots per 90 minutes this season. He has been able to score five goals this year, which actually is the most for any player on Newcastle. Shelvey is a good play in all formats with the boost he will be given in Ritchie's expected absence, and he also could score a goal for relatively cheap.

Youri Tielemans ($4,100): Another player who would benefit from a missing teammate would be Youri Tielemans. If James Maddison were to miss the game due to his hip injury, Tielemans would become nearly a must play for just $4,100. When Maddison sat out the FA Cup game against Chelsea on Sunday, Tielemans took all six of Leicester's corner kicks. Tielemans isn't a defensive midfielder who would just happen to get set-piece duty, he's an attacking threat with three goals and five assists this season. He is massively under-priced if given the same role he had on Sunday and is a very easy play to make if that's the case.

Defenders to Target

Lucas Digne ($7,200): Digne is one of the top two defenders -- with Trent Alexander-Arnold -- from a DraftKings fantasy perspective. Digne is third in the Premier League in crosses regardless of position. With Gylfi Sigurðsson missing from the starting lineup for the past few games, Digne has taken all of Everton's corner kicks. He also is a threat from free kicks, as he scored twice from those situations last season. With all the value at the midfield position, paying up for a stud defender is relatively easy to do on this slate. Digne is the one you want to pay up for if doing so.

Héctor Bellerín ($5,200): Outside of Lucas Digne, the defender position doesn't have many good options. A player who could pay off is Héctor Bellerín of Arsenal. He has been playing in more of midfield role than as a defender as of late. Arsenal should be on the front foot for most of the game, and Bellerín should be able to get forward, allowing him to get some crosses into the box. Norwich allow 23 crosses per game, which should be good news for the wide men on Arsenal. If you're playing the cheap players at midfield who are good plays, you can avoid the less-than-desirable options at the bottom of the defender pool and play defenders with upside.

Goalkeepers to Target

Emiliano Martínez ($5,800): Martínez is the play for an expensive keeper. He has finally gotten his chance to be Arsenal's number-one with Bernd Leno injured. In his only league start the season, Martínez picked up a clean sheet and a win. He'll have a great chance to do that again on Wednesday with last-place Norwich being the lowest-scoring team in the Premier League.

Martin Dúbravka ($4,500): Dúbravka has been an impressive keeper this season, with 10 clean sheets in 31 league appearances. Newcastle's style is designed for them to be really solid defensively and allow the other team to have the ball without getting many good chances. That has come to fruition this season, as they are allowing the fourth-most shots per game but conceding only the ninth-most goals. This should suit them against Bournemouth, who are tied for the third-fewest goals in the league. Dúbravka should have a decent chance of getting another clean sheet in this game.