SOCCER

DraftKings Daily Fantasy Soccer Helper for Saturday 8/28/21

The third week of Premier League action gives us a five game main slate on DraftKings on Saturday. Here are the games, with odds courtesy of EPL odds:

Home Draw Away
Brighton (+130) +220 Everton (+230)
West Ham (-190) +310 Crystal Palace (+550)
Norwich (+340) +250 Leicester (-120)
Aston Villa (-105) +205 Brentford (+290)
Newcastle (+140) +240 Southampton (+190)

Forwards to Target

Jamie Vardy ($9,500): We can go back to the Jamie Vardy well that paid off for us in the opening week of the season. Vardy scored a goal and had six shots in that one and finished with slightly more than 20 DraftKings points. Last week was a rough outing for Leicester City away to West Ham, as they fell behind and also were down a man for the a big chunk of the game, which led to a bad outing for Vardy. There isn’t much of a risk of that happening in this game, as Leicester face Norwich City. Norwich have been outscored 8-0 in their two games this season -- although they've played City and Liverpool. Vardy’s $9,500 salary is up $1,100 from his salary in the first game, but he’s still a decent value given the context of the slate. Michail Antonio’s salary has ballooned all the way up to $11,700 after his hot start, yet Vardy has better any time goal odds (-110) at a $2,200 discount. This makes Vardy one of the standout plays at the forward position.

Danny Ings ($7,800): Ings is another goal-scorer who carries a modest salary. He has scored in each of his first two league games as an Aston Villa player. Villa are now home favorites against promoted Brentford. While Brentford have been impressive in their first two Premier League games, they are still a good matchup for Aston Villa. The Bees have had just 41% possession in the two games, according to WhoScored.com. Ings, like Vardy, has -110 goal scoring odds but comes at an even bigger discount due to lack of peripheral stats. However, Ings has upside for multiple goals, making him a stellar target.

Bryan Mbeumo ($5,800): Mbeumo is a cheaper floor play on a slate that lacks such options. He took corner kicks for Brentford in their last match and racked up five crosses. Those crosses should continue as he has a big target in forward Ivan Toney to aim his crosses toward. Mbeumo also has taken five shots in the first two matches, so he's not a zero in that department. For $5,800, he's the bargain bin option at forward who likely won't leave you with nothing.

Also consider: Anwar El Ghazi ($7,600), Adam Armstrong ($7,000), Aaron Connolly ($5,900)

Midfielders to Target

James Ward-Prowse ($8,300): After looking like a doubt for Southampton's opening match, Ward-Prowse was able to make the lineup and do exactly what we have come to expect from him over the past few seasons. He played all 90 minutes, as he has done in every league match in the last two seasons, and produced the goods for our fantasy lineups. He's taken all of Southampton's set pieces, according to Rotowire, and it has resulted in 20 total crosses. Those were in two tougher games against Everton and Manchester United, and now he gets a better matchup against Newcastle. Last season, Newcastle allowed the most crosses per match in the league and were the second-worst possession team. This should allow JWP a lot of opportunities to cross, and he's got a better chance to get a goal or an assist than he had in either of the first two games. He's a high floor play, per usual, with a pretty good ceiling given the opponents.

John McGinn ($5,900): McGinn has had a productive start to the season in fantasy. He opened the campaign with a goal in an impressive attacking display against Watford. Then in the last match against Newcastle, he showed a nice floor in a game in which he didn't score but was still able to produce 9.6 DK points. He did take half of Aston Villa's set pieces in that one, so that's an encouraging sign for his outlook going forward. We've used this amount of salary on players who are just floor plays, so getting someone who can actually get a goal for this salary makes McGinn a good pick.

Alexis Mac Allister ($4,400): Mac Allister is a young, talented player who has shown well for Brighton early this season. He scored a goal off the bench in their first game and started in their win against Watford. The possession and expected goal numbers all loved Brighton going into the season, and they've been able to turn those into wins in the first two matches of the season. Those two wins were against Burnley and Watford, but those are the types of games that would have maybe drawn last season. Now, Brighton are home favorites against Everton, and Mac Allister should start again. Playing out wide for just $4,400 and given how well Brighton have been playing, Mac Allister is worth taking a chance on.

Billy Gilmour ($3,800): Gilmour impressed at the Euros for Scotland and has now joined Norwich on loan. He's been the main guy on corner kicks for the Canaries in their opening games. Norwich lost their first two matches handily, but they were against Liverpool and Manchester City. They are underdogs against Leicester, but they should be able to get more of a foothold in the match than they did against two powerhouse opponents. Gilmour was still able to squeeze out more than five fantasy points in each of the first two games, and if he can do that for just $3,800, he's worth a play. If Norwich are more competitive in this match, he certainly can outproduce that salary.

Also consider: Youri Tielemans ($8,100), Solly March $5,700, Conor Gallagher ($4,500)

Defenders to Target

Matt Ritchie ($6,700): Ritchie came through for us last week and is in a pretty good spot again this weekend. Newcastle are home favorites against Southampton, so the matchup isn't one to fear. Ritchie's 21 crosses are tied for the most in the Premier League through the first two games of the season. He's also been involved in attacks more than the average player, with nine shot assists thus far. Newcastle aren't exactly overflowing with options going forward, so Ritchie should continue to produce these floor statistics. He continues to be one of the floor defenders who are great values compared to the midfielders in the same salary range, which makes him a priority in a lot of lineup builds.

Luke Thomas ($5,000): Thomas somewhat surprisingly got the nod over Ryan Bertrand in Leicester's opening league match of the season. It surprised fantasy players because it was anticipated that Bertrand would take set pieces after he did so in the Community Shield a week prior. Instead, Thomas came in and took corners in Bertrand's left-back position. Somehow, Leicester have been awarded only three corner kicks total in their first two games, and Thomas has taken two of them. If the Foxes had gotten more corner kicks, Thomas' salary likely would be higher. In this match against Norwich, Leicester should be able to possess the ball well, making Thomas an appealing play.

Ashley Young ($4,100): Young gained defender eligibility for this slate, which definitely puts him in play as a low-salary option. He was active from his full-back position last week, crossing four times and drawing three fouls. He should be able to get forward in this match, as well, and is a good pairing with Ings in tournaments in the hopes that they can connect on a goal.

Also consider: Lucas Digne ($6,000), Matthew Cash ($4,700), Valentino Livramento ($3,600)

Goalkeepers to Target

Łukasz Fabiański ($5,700): Coming in at a discount from the normal salary of the highest-salaried goalkeeper, Fabiański is a solid option in this matchup. Crystal Palace have failed to score in their two games this season and -- like usual -- really don't offer much of a goal threat with their forwards. We aren't used to seeing West Ham as the biggest favorites on a five-match slate, but it's warranted with how well they played to close last season and to start this one. Fabiański had 10 clean sheets in 35 matches last year, and he has the top win and clean-sheet odds on this slate.

Jordan Pickford ($4,500): While Brighton have been impressive to start this season, it was just two games against Burnley and Watford. Last season, Brighton produced a lot of shots without scoring goals, which is a dream situation for any goalkeeper in DFS. If something like that happens in this match, Pickford is a great play for $4,500.



Nicholas Vazquez is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Nicholas Vazquez also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username hbyanksman. 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.