Fantasy MLS: Saturday Cheat Sheet

I hope you all enjoyed the appetizer that was the EPL this morning and are ready for the MLS main course! While Major League Soccer's brief moment as soccer's top dog on DraftKings is over, there's still plenty of the season left to be played and plenty of contests left to be entered. Three of the teams playing Saturday were present in midweek U.S. Open Cup semifinal action: New England, Los Angeles and Dallas. While Los Angeles largely rested their top players, they went 120 minutes against FC Dallas. Sebastian Giovinco has been mercurial in his past four games, all at home, but whether he can keep it up in the Houston heat will go a long way to determining DFS success this weekend.

MATCHES (EDT)

7:00 p.m: New York Red Bulls v. Montreal Impact
7:30 p.m: Columbus Crew v. NYC FC
7:30 p.m: New England Revolution v. Philadelphia Union
8:00 p.m: D.C. United v. Portland Timbers
9:00 p.m: Houston Dynamo v. Toronto FC
9:00 p.m: FC Dallas v. Sporting KC
10:30 p.m: Los Angeles Galaxy v. Colorado Rapids

ODDS REPORT

EXPECTED CORNER TAKERS

D.C. United: Lloyd Sam
Portland Timbers: Diego Valeri
New York Red Bulls: Sacha Kljestan
Montreal Impact: Ambroise Oyongo
Columbus Crew: Federico Higuain
NYC FC: Andrea Pirlo
New England Revolution: Chris Tierney, Lee Nguyen
Philadelphia Union: Tranquillo Barnetta
Houston Dynamo: Cristian Maidana
Toronto FC: Sebastian Giovinco
FC Dallas: Mauro Diaz
Sporting KC: Graham Zusi, Benny Feilhaber
Los Angeles Galaxy: Steven Gerrard
Colorado Rapids: Shkelzen Gashi

PLAYER RECOMMENDATIONS

GOALKEEPER

Alex Bono, TOR at HOU ($4,100): I see very few reasons to pay for a keeper pricier than Bill Hamid ($4,500) this week, and even he doesn't make the most compelling case. Bono is the first option I get really excited about, primarily thanks to his matchup against the least dynamic attack in MLS, Houston Dynamo. Yes, he's on the road, but I'm not bothered. Toronto have won four straight matches and defeated three of those opponents by three goals apiece! Houston may forget what scoring three goals looks like. Bono will face some shots but is highly unlikely to torpedo a lineup. On the flip side, a win and clean sheet wouldn't surprise anybody. The knock on Bono is that there's a plethora of even cheaper goalkeeping options.

Tim Howard, COL at LAG ($3,400): Finding Howard for this cheap is probably a once-in-a-lifetime event, particularly when he's playing for one of the top defenses in Major League Soccer. Sure, Los Angeles are an intimidating opponent, but they may be without Robbie Keane and they're somewhat less rested than the Rapids. I won't fault anyone for being squeamish to use Howard, with the Galaxy holding an eight-game unbeaten streak and having scored in seven straight. However, he is made for big games and this clash of Western Conference heavyweights certainly classifies as that. Howard makes for an ideal tournament target, and makes it easier to use Giovinco in cash games, too.

DEFENDER

Ronald Matarrita, NYC at CLB ($5,800): This isn't your typical slate. Multiple expensive defenders are jumping up and demanding attention. Last week's article featured Taylor Kemp, who grabbed a goal and is once again a good option. Ambroise Oyongo continues to take corners. Harrison Afful even presents an encouraging outlook against a vulnerable NYC FC defense. The best combination of value and potential, though, is Matarrita, who appears set to return from a month-long ankle injury. The Costa Rican was one of City's brightest stars early in the year and realistically might be their best wing player offensively, too. Columbus are having a miserable year thus far, and have allowed multiple goals in four of their prior six matches. If you like to stack defenses, RJ Allen is a very affordable $3,700 on the opposite side.

Ryan Hollingshead, FCD v. SKC ($4,900): FC Dallas are the second-biggest favorites on the slate, despite playing most of their starters in a grueling 120-minute U.S. Open Cup match on Wednesday. Hollingshead played fewer than 70 minutes, however, and could earn another start on the attacking wing. His purpose there is far more to shore up the team's overall defensive posture, but it still affords him more freedom to join the attack than a typical fullback. I suspect Dallas will initially sit back and feel the game out, playing a defense-first attitude against a rested Kansas City side that have yet to find their scoring touch yet this season. That gives Hollingshead a solid defensive floor with upside to far surpass his value.

Jack Jewsbury, POR at DCU ($3,600): I unenthusiastically submit to you, Jack Jewsbury. He has a few things going his way: set piece duty if Diego Valeri is for some reason not taking them, a goal last week, potential to accumulate defensive points against a D.C. United attack that has never been described as organized. He's on the road and his price is a little steep, but if you're not gambling on a centerback, Jewsbury is one of the few palatable choices in this price range. Portland's defense is a huge question mark, but so is the United attack, so clean sheet points are also in play here.

MIDFIELDER

Sacha Kljestan, NYR v. MTL ($8,700): If it feels like you've been alternating weeks when you're disappointed with Kljestan and Ignacio Piatti, you're not alone. This week they play each other. Both have been a bit of a rollercoaster. Both have ceilings that rival the likes of Valeri and Mauro Diaz, who are more expensive and in less-than-ideal situations this weekend. All things factored in, I like Kljestan's value the best this week among top shelf midfielders. The Red Bulls are 8-1-2 at home this season, and even with Bradley Wright-Phillips' injury concern, they are the day's largest favorite. Come for Kljestan's corner kick safety, and stay for his league leading 11 assists!

Tranquillo Barnetta, PHI at NER ($6,800): Full disclosure: this is a bit of recency bias. Barnetta was outstanding last week in Philadelphia's 2-2 draw with D.C. United. He's had some defensive mishaps this season, but when he gets it right, he can be a huge asset on both sides of the ball. I suspect few people will own Barnetta, with similarly talented teammate Roland Alberg costing $500 less and Alejandro Bedoya looming as a potential starter at $3,000 and that makes Barnetta a fantastic underdog selection. Union opponent, the New England Revolution, are downright dreadful in defense and are slightly less rested than usual. Plenty of appealing midfield choices pop up if you scroll a little bit past Barnetta, such as Frank Lampard, Justin Meram and Lloyd Sam, but if you can afford the slight bump in salary, Barnetta is the most balanced player of the bunch. Besides, none of those other guys play New England.

Jay Chapman, TOR at HOU ($4,000): Chapman has looked very capable in his recent run of matches for Toronto FC, and while it hasn't translated to DraftKings success and fame, it might help us out this week. Houston aren't good, Giovinco is expensive and the value plays in midfield are sparse. If Bedoya doesn't start for Philly, the Gonzalo Veron ($3,900) and Marlon Hairston ($3,700) bandwagons are going to be overflowing. Those guys have some quality potential, and I encourage you to consider them as well, but if you want something to set yourself apart from the crowd, go with Chapman. The attacking midfielder has been sitting just behind Giovinco and Toussaint Ricketts, a position that most midfielders in the league would quickly trade their situation for, and he continues to improve each week in his young career. That's enough for me to trust him in a few Toronto stacks.

FORWARD

Didier Drogba, MTL at NYR ($10,100): All three of the elite forwards on this slate are playing on the road. If you're reading this, you likely know enough about Giovinco by now, and can decide if you're comfortable paying $14,500 for him on the road. David Villa plays a vulnerable Columbus Crew, but it's worth noting he has only seven shots in his last four games, with just one on goal. Who would have thought that earlier in the year when he was rattling off seven or more a match? Drogba, on the other hand, is well rested after serving a suspension for his typical antics (this time, kneeing a dude sitting on the ground right in front of the referee). Apart from that, he's been holding up his end of the bargain on the field, just two games removed from a hat trick. The Red Bulls will try to nullify Drogba and Piatti by attacking early, often and aggressively, but I can't see their defense keeping the league's most dangerous attacking pair off the scoreboard. I'm far from Drogba's biggest fan, but I'll be swallowing a bitter pill and using him in a good chunk of my lineups this weekend.

Graham Zusi, SKC at FCD ($6,400): Zusi returns from injury and instantly feels like a super chalky play. He's popular because of a perceived floor that may not always be there. I often stay away from Zusi, who is a few too many years removed from being a must-own fantasy MLS player. However, his lone healthy match after returning from Copa America also looms in my memory. He looked great, he's taken time to get healthy again, and he'll team with Benny Feilhaber and Dom Dwyer to attack a tired FC Dallas defense. Selecting Zusi largely depends on what your goal for the second forward spot it. If you want to gamble on a higher ceiling, C.J. Sapong ($6,800) and Gyasi Zardes ($6,600) stand out more. If you already have a heavy hitter like Drogba or Giovinco, the safety of Zusi may prove invaluable.

Mauro Manotas, HOU v. TOR ($3,700): The lower levels of forward pricing this week are one huge guessing game. It's difficult to tell if Tesho Akindele or Getterson will start for Dallas and the same goes for Kennedy Igboananike of D.C. United, Jack McInerney of Portland and various others. Anyone under $5,000 will surely require some extra attention to starting lineups, and I may be inclined, along with all of our opponents, to just grab the first appealing value that presents itself. The one player who I'm really hoping to see is Manotas. He's already an obvious upgrade on Will Bruin and deserves a chance to feature before Cubo Torres returns to action. Houston need somebody quick up top that will make the Toronto midfield pause before joining Giovinco on the attack, and Manotas is that player. My sense is that there's a greater than 50 percent chance starts, but keep him in the flex position just in case. Marlon Hairston and others should be available as a pivot play if I'm wrong.