This article is part of our DraftKings Fantasy Soccer series.
Lineup No. 1: High Floor, High Ceiling
Sunday's slate of MLS matches is much more interesting than Saturday's. By my entirely subjective estimate, at least half of the league's most dangerous and capable scorers are in action. The Galaxy will want to finish the season strongly and make one last gasp effort for the Supporters Shield (need everything to fall just right today and next weekend), but face a Portland team fighting for their playoff lives. D.C. United and Seattle Sounders are jockeying for playoff positioning within their respective conferences, and play teams that are largely just waiting for the offseason to arrive. The New York Red Bulls will look to tie FC Dallas on points for the Supporters Shield with a win over Philadelphia, and head into the final weekend in control since they'd have the better goal differential. We should be cautious not to pick a lineup solely based on motivations, but these four games give us a lot to think about.
Let's start up top, where I've eschewed the priciest five forwards in favor of a balanced and formidable attacking group. Fabian Espindola ($9,800) is tallying shots, crosses and fouls drawn at a torrid pace and plays a Chicago Fire team with very little to play for. The Fire have allowed 14 goals in their previous six matches. I view Espindola as having the upside of a top forward, but he comes with about a $1,000-$2,000 discount. Next, I'm once again relying on Gyasi Zardes ($8,000) to provide us with all of the attacking potential the LA Galaxy possess, at a fraction of the price. Robbie Keane costs $3,500 more. With a match against a strong looking Timbers defense, I'd rather save the salary to spend on players with better matchups, even if Keane and Giovani dos Santos are better plays than Zardes. Ultimately, Zardes is always under-owned relative to his scoring potential, while Keane and dos Santos are typically over-owned. Finally, I'm looking to Patrick Nyarko ($5,800) to admirably fill our flex position. Nyarko has looked quite active lately and I'm not convinced that D.C. United can keep a clean sheet. Nyarko's Chicago Fire have little reason to play defensively, having been eliminated from playoff contention and without the pressure to perform, I expect them to continue letting loose offensively.
A large reason for not buying Bradley Wright-Phillips and Obafemi Martins is that I love the value of Lloyd Sam ($8,800) and Marco Pappa ($6,600). Sam should thrive on the wing against the Philadelphia Union and is a key reason for the Red Bulls' success this season. As they push to end the regular season atop the standings, I expect Sam and company to bury multiple goals at home against a lifeless Union side. Pappa is a great way to get exposure to Seattle's numerous attacking talents. Obafemi Martins, Clint Dempsey and Nelson Valdez should overpower Houston, even on the road, and Pappa will be pulling the strings. By purchasing these value midfielders, rather than their teams' corresponding forwards, we've created an extremely well-balanced attacking group with exposure to all of the best offensive matchups. While this article is typically geared towards tournaments, I'd feel good about entering this into cash games, even without exposure to the popular top forward options.
Finally on defense, I'm going back to the well with a strategy that worked great for us Saturday: punting a defender slot. The only defender of note to score more than eight points yesterday was Ambroise Oyongo (9.5). With DraftKings making the most talented fullbacks nearly impossible to afford, I'm still in favor of locking in a minimum priced defender even if they aren't even on the game day roster. So, Andrew Jeane-Baptiste ($2,000), your parents will not be the only ones using you in their lineups today! Once again, the $3,000-$4,000 range of defenders is fairly barren, so I scraped together the salary to afford Connor Lade ($4,400). The Red Bulls should dominate the Union and Lade is capable of getting up the wing to join the attack. Finally, I've opted for Stefan Frei ($4,600) on the road. I buy into talent over home/road fixtures and it worked Saturday night with Jesse Gonzalez. I expect similar returns for a motivated Seattle team, even with a possibly depleted back line.
Devil's Advocate: Scrolling past Wright-Phillips, Keane and Martins is a good way to miss out on somebody's multi-goal game. David Accam and Fanendo Adi are also two players who could have big games that we'll miss out on. With so many viable cheap midfield options, spending up for Sam and Pappa could be unnecessary.
Why We'll Win: Building a team this well-rounded has been rare lately, with salaries for good players continuing to climb. While we may not have the ceiling that some stacked lineups provide, we've diversified out risk and kept plenty of scoring potential. Zardes and Sam should be great differentials with opponents looking to Keane, BWP and Sacha Kljestan for points.
Lineup No. 2: Low Floor, Higher Ceiling
Consider this my last hurrah for some players I have placed a lot of faith in this year, some to much success and some to very little. Players like Cubo Torres, Harry Shipp and Fanendo Adi are quintessential tournament plays for this slate. The Red Bulls defense and Bradley Wright-Phillips are great plays no matter what. Adam Kwarasey plays one of the strongest attacks in MLS history, but Portland's post-season hopes are on the line and I think they could shut the Galaxy down with Kwarasey garnering a boatload of saves. Tweak this lineup to suit your desired risk-level.
The first team that this lineup is centered around is the Red Bulls. The Union have been lacking any sort of punch lately, and the Red Bulls have been one of the league's brightest teams. BWP is the slate's most expensive forward, but also the one with the best matchup and most upside. I'm locking him in with hopes that a pair of goals are in reach. Defensively, I'm picking both Red Bulls fullbacks, Kemar Lawrence and Connor Lade. I think they keep a clean sheet and they can both attack well. Luis Robles would be a great keeper selection, but is fairly expensive for somebody who may not collect many save points.
The second team I'm looking to are the Portland Timbers. Fresh off a 1-0 shut out at Rio Tinto Stadium versus Real Salt Lake, I'm confident this team can compete with the L.A. Galaxy, who have kept just one clean sheet in their past six matches. They looked the part of a playoff team with crisp passing and calm control of the match. Adi has a good track record against the Galaxy and has been in great form as the season winds down, but he will be overlooked by most daily fantasy players on this slate. I'll be using him in quite a few tournament lineups. Kwarasey plays the man he replaced, Donovan Ricketts, and is capable of stealing this match from a high-powered Galaxy attack. This is a risky play, but would bring a very high reward.
Tying up our loose ends, I like Shipp a good deal this week. As mentioned earlier, Chicago should play a very open and attacking game with nothing to lose, and D.C. United are not the defensive juggernaut of past seasons. He's relishing his regained No. 10 role with a new manager and Shaun Maloney out the door. Further, Gonzalo Pineda's price is too good to pass up on if he starts. He's essentially Marco Pappa with a lower floor, but has been getting healthy minutes lately. In a talented Seattle attack, Pineda could easily pay off his salary. If he is not in the starting lineup, I've left $500 and there are several capable options right around the $4,000 range. Finally, Cubo Torres fills the flex spot. Houston should also unleash all of their attacking talent, with little left to lose, and Torres won't want to end the season without having one big performance. He has all the talent in the world and is a great tournament dart against a Sounders defense who may be missing a few key pieces.
Devil's Advocate: The bottom line is we're relying on a lot of uncertain players outside of the Red Bulls. Even if a few hit, we could be on the outside looking in should Robbie Keane, Obafemi Martins or Fabian Espindola have a big day. We're seriously picking the goalie playing Los Angeles?
Why We'll Win: Portland and New York have the most to play for and we're relying on their talents. Harry Shipp is on the rise and Cubo Torres may finally pay off this writer's never-ending faith!
