EPL Draftkings DFS Soccer- EPL Featured Targets

Welcome to our new weekly EPL Draftkings series breaking down the English Premier League’s typical featured Saturday slates throughout the season. This article will be dedicated to providing you with the top targets at each position based off value and projected performance. In hopes to provide you with a sense of direction in creating an initial core that’ll be the foundation in building an optimal winning lineup. 

With one week in the books, we can confidently say our EPL Draftkings DFS picks last week definitely reaped dividends. It looks like it’s going to be quite a profitable season, so let’s keep it going for week 2. Soccer DFS is in it’s own breed when it comes to DFS especially on Draftkings. The first note worth mentioning and possibly the most important factor to remember about soccer DFS is that confirmed squad lineups are officially released one hour before match time. You can always use social media platforms to research for leaks and projected lineups but always make sure to check the “CONFIRMED STARTING XI”  for every squad on the slate before locking in any lineup. This is simply not only to see whether a player is confirmed playing or not, but more importantly to see a manager’s decision in formation strategy as well as a respective player’s positional role on the pitch.

All these factors can play a huge part in deciding a player’s potential effectiveness and impact for an upcoming match. Draftkings soccer DFS scoring is unique in that it greatly values peripheral stats. Sure, goals and assists on the surface are what everyone should be hoping and aiming for but in soccer they can be hard to come by and even sometimes harder to predict. This is where crosses, fouls drawn, tackles won, interceptions made,clean sheets, etc. play a huge role. Targeting players who can potentially rack up these peripherals can go a long way in building a profitable optimal lineup sprinkled in with a goal/assist or two or three. Without further ado here are the 5 matches being played tomorrow, Saturday 8/18 and the players everyone should be considering in their lineups.

Matches Saturday 8/18 (EDT)

10:00 AM- West Ham United vs. AFC Bournemouth

10:00 AM Tottenham Hotspur vs. Fulham

10:00 AM Everton vs. Southampton

10:00 AM Leicester City vs. Wolverhampton Wanderers

12:30 PM Chelsea vs. Arsenal

EPL Draftkings DFS Forwards to Target

Jamie Vardy, Leicester City $8,000

So I’m on the full fade of Harry Kane this weekend. At an $11,000 price tag and $1,700 higher than the next best forward on the slate in Eden Hazard, fading Kane while being risky might be the optimal move. Not to mention it’s August and Kane hasn’t scored a league goal in over 1000 minutes on the pitch in the respective month. With no Kane, enter Vardy. He’s exactly $3,000 cheaper in a decent matchup. Vardy last week didn’t start due to rest but did come on as a sub to score late against Manchester United with 2 shots and 2 crosses in a brief 27 minutes of action. Despite not being a heavy favorite, Leicester City is still the 2nd biggest favorite on the slate based off Vegas. Meaning Vardy in a centralized striker role should have lots of opportunities to net one. One interesting note is the Wolves, even with a man up advantage for over 60 minutes last week against Everton only managed to garner 58% possession and settle for a draw. I expect Leicester City in this game to definitely be the better side and win the possession battle, so play Vardy because odds are if Leicester does net one it will be behind his right foot.

Gylfi Sigurdsson, Everton $7,100

So back to the well with Gylfi. Yes, Everton trolled us by pulling Gylfi in the 43rd minute due to a tactical substitute from a red card that caused them to go a man down, but just like last week Gylfi is still the play while only seeing a $700 price increase. Due to him being a total workhorse and high volume primary set piece taker for Everton, Gylfi’s floor is exceptionally high and I’m convinced his price will gradually increase as the season progresses. To reiterate, Gylfi averaged 13 FPPG last season. Everton are favorites in this match against Southampton, so Gylfi should have a chance for double-digit crosses and possibly a few free kick/ goal scoring opportunities. He’s also their primary PK taker so that’s always a huge advantage. Don’t be worried and double down on Gylfi

EPL Draftkings DFS Midfielders to Target

Ruben Neves, Wolverhampton Wanderers $5,600

Neves Premier League debut was quite memorable. He scored off a sublime free kick and collected an assist off the header of Raul Jimenez which equated to 25.3 daily fantasy points at almost a 5x return on value. I would be highly reluctant to expect a performance like that against Leicester City but there’s good reason to believe he should be able to return 2x value. He was highly active on the pitch last week getting in 3 shot attempts and 3 crosses, while drawing two fouls. Also after scoring such a beautiful free kick there’s no reason to think he shouldn’t get more opportunities in those situations which enhances his scoring potential. With such an economical price tag, playing Neves should be dictated by the combination of salary relief and a relatively low floor at the midfield position.

James Maddison, Leicester City $6,600

One Leicester player isn’t enough tomorrow and James Maddison appears to be the perfect stack compliment to Vardy. Maddison appeared to be Leicester’s primary set piece taker against Manchester United last week. Up against a much easier opponent in the Wolves tomorrow, there’s big reason to believe Maddison will be heavily involved in orchestrating goal scoring opportunities. In 63 minutes of action he managed to whip in 6 crosses, take 2 shots, and draw 4 fouls. With the improved match-up, Maddison should be able to eclipse the 12 fantasy point mark he collected his last week for at least 2x value at his price tag. Playing in a central attacking mid role in the projected 4-2-3-1 formation, Maddison should be able to find lots of pockets of space to create threatening attacks against the Wolves. Also keep track if Rachid Ghezzal or Marc Albrighton start over Ricardo Pereira tomorrow, if it is Albrighton, he could potentially take some set piece opportunities away from Maddison.

EPL Draftkings DFS Defenders to Target

Kieran Trippier, Tottenham Hotspur $6,000

This one is simple, if Trippier starts, START HIM. He’s the best attacking fullback on the slate  on the team with the highest projected goal total. Trippier rested last week due to England’s deep run in the World Cup, but there’s reason to believe he should be back in the starting XI tomorrow. He loves to push forward and whip in crosses, not to mention he’s a brilliant free kick taker. Not much to say besides he’s world-class in terms of fantasy production at his position and has a high floor. Once again PLAY HIM, if he’s in. He also should have a fair chance for a clean sheet bonus as well.

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Ben Chilwel, Leicester City $5,300 

As previously mentioned, one Leicester city player isn’t enough. So let’s complete a  Leicester 3 man F/M/D stack with Ben Chilwel. He is priced relatively high for a defender, but the production warrants the price tag. Previously discussed, Leicester City are the 2nd biggest favorites tomorrow, which should equate to a possession advantage for them. As another attacking fullback  , Chilwel should have lots of opportunities to attack forward on the left side and get crosses in. Evidenced by his 8 crosses against a superior opponent in Manchester United last week. He also took some corners as well and drew two fouls with one interception. He’s my favorite defender of the weekend so lock him in with/without Kieran Tripper.EPL Draftkings DFS Goalkeeper to Target

Hugo Lloris, Tottenham Hotspur $5,900

Once again we’re going to chase the Clean Sheet/ Win combo on DK which automatically gets you 10 fantasy points. Sure Hugo is priced relatively high and the most expensive GK on the slate but based off the other matchups, he is the safest option at the position up against Fulham. Tottenham are -375 favorites according to Vegas while Fulham has the lowest projected goal total tomorrow. Fulham does have talent in the attacking mid and third, so there should be chances for save opportunities as well. Based on the potential value for a lot of economical targets tomorrow there shouldn’t be much problem in plugging in Hugo. Safety at GK is the potential edge and optimal play tomorrow, even though he might garner a high ownership rate. Lock him in Cash games. I also like Fabri for Fulham at $3,800 as a potential gpp punt as he might be forced to make a lot of saves and there’s a possibility no GK tomorrow gets a clean sheet.

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