MLS Fantasy Rankings: Week 20

MLS Fantasy Rankings: Week 20

This article is part of our MLS Fantasy Rankings series.

The rankings below are based on Major League Soccer's official fantasy game and cover all games in Week 20. While they can be used for DFS purposes, they are done with a focus on the league's season-long game.

If you have any questions or feedback, please feel free to leave a comment below, or hit up JD on Twitter @dfsMLS.

Additional comments will be added later

Forwards

RankPlayerMatchupPriceNotes
1Brian FernandezPOR v. ORL, at SEA10.5Prevailing wisdom is to go with the double home game players, but this isn't just any road match, it's Fernandez's first taste of a big rivalry. Don't let 120 scoreless minutes distract from the fact that he scored in each of his previous five matches to kick off his MLS career. 
2Josef MartinezATL v. HOU, v. DC12.0Josef looks hungry after returning from Copa America. Both opponents have been pretty good in the defensive end this year, but Houston are having a very poor stretch of late. 
3Jozy AltidoreTOR v. NYRB, v. HOU10.3Jozy will likely be underowned, with the above two strolling into most lineups and everyone assuming that Pozuelo will provide enough TFC attacking coverage. With some other expensive options in the midfield, I don't foresee myself being able to afford this good third attacking choice.
4Wayne RooneyDC at FCC, at ATL10.8The Cincy game is appealing, but I'm comfortable passing on Rooney this round.
5Alberth ElisHOU at ATL, at TOR10.6Unlucky not to score multiple goals last week.
6Gustavo BouNE v. VAN, at FCC9.5New England's attack gets instantly frightening with Bou in the mix. Bruce Arena sounds ready to unleash him this week.
7Carlos VelaLAFC at LA12.0 
8C.J. SapongCHI v. CLB, at PHI7.4 
9Gyasi ZardesCLB at CHI, v. MTL8.7 
10Kekuta MannehFCC v. DC, v. NE7.1Two home games make Manneh a solid choice for your third forward (from the bench),
11Mauro ManotasHOU at ATL, at TOR8.3 
12Romell QuiotoHOU at ATL, at TOR8.0 
13Fredy MonteroVAN at NE, v. SJ8.4 
14Teal BunburyNE v. VAN, at FCC7.8 
15Darren MattocksFCC v. DC, v. NE6.5Presumably gets at least one start now that he's settled back in from the Gold Cup.
16Jeremy EbobissePOR v. ORL, at SEA5.3 
17Tesho AkindeleORL at POR, v. NYRB6.3Slightly more assured of minutes folllowing Dwyer's red card.
18Fanendo AdiFCC v. DC, v. NE7.4 
19Brian WhiteNYRB at TOR, at ORL6.7BWP could steal a start, but it's more likely he continues to work his way back to fitness with substitute appearances.
20Bradley Wright-PhillipsNYRB at TOR, at ORL8.0 

Midfielders

RankPlayerMatchupPriceNotes
1Alejandro PozueloTOR v. NYRB, v. HOU10.9The gang is back together and Pozuelo should overcome two solid opponents in the comfort of his home stadium.
2Carles GilNE v. VAN, at FCC11.3(NOTE: Weather looks ugly Wednesday.) One yellow away from suspension, but he gets to play two of the league's worst teams. 
3Diego ValeriPOR v. ORL, at SEA11.5Tough situation here because if Portland rotates it will be Wednesday, not for the rivalry match. However, if Portland rotate, Nani is the only big name to bring in that has a remaining DGW.
4Pity MartinezATL v. HOU, v. DC9.5NOTE: Not in starting lineup Wednesday
5Sebastian BlancoPOR v. ORL, at SEA11.1See Diego Valeri^
6Nicolas GaitanCHI v. CLB, at PHI10.1Gaitan will want to erase the bad memories of last week with a big game. I like the narrative!
7NaniORL at POR, v. NYRB9.5 
8Pedro SantosCLB at CHI, v. MTL8.1It's a big week for cellar-dwelling Columbus who desperately need to win at least one of these matches. Both opponents are susceptible and Santos will be tasked with leading the attack.
9Michael BradleyTOR v. NYRB, v. HOU9.1 
10Yordy ReynaVAN at NE, v. SJ8.5 
11Daniel RoyerNYRB at TOR, at ORL9.5 
12Jonathan OsorioTOR v. NYRB, v. HOU9.3 
13KakuNYRB at TOR, at ORL8.4 
14Aleksandar KataiCHI v. CLB, at PHI8.5 
15Julian GresselATL v. HOU, v. DC8.1NOTE: Playing at right back Wednesday
16Paul ArriolaDC at FCC, at ATL8.4 
17Emmanuel LedesmaFCC v. DC, v. NE7.6I think Ledesma is certainly worth a look for a 4th or 5th midfield option at this price.
18Chris MuellerORL at POR, v. NYRB6.4 
19Justin MeramATL v. HOU, v. DC7.0NOTE: Not in starting lineup Wednesday
20Cristian PenillaNE v. VAN, at FCC7.9 

Defenders

RankPlayerMatchupPriceNotes
1Larrys MabialaPOR v. ORL, at SEA8.5NOTE: He is questionable to start Wednesday and may be held out as a precaution ahead of the big rivalry match against Seattle this weekend.
2Leandro Gonzalez PirezATL v. HOU, v. DC6.5 
3Miles RobinsonATL v. HOU, v. DC6.4I'm leaning towards using both top Atlanta CBs this week.
4Omar GonzalezTOR v. NYRB, v. HOU7.0 
5Francisco CalvoCHI v. CLB, at PHI6.5 
6Jorge MoreiraPOR v. ORL, at SEA7.0 
7Chris MavingaTOR v. NYRB, v. HOU6.4Gonzalez projects for more bonus points, but Mavinga saves 0.6 on a week with a tight budget.
8Bastian SchweinsteigerCHI v. CLB, at PHI5.8 
9Jalil AnibabaNE v. VAN, at FCC4.9One of the best values of the week, but careful with Wednesday's weather.
10Leonardo JaraDC at FCC, at ATL6.6 
11Kendall WastonFCC v. DC, v. NE5.7When price comes into play, I'd probably go find a cheaper FCC defender, but Waston is top dog if we're strictly projecting points.
12Steve BirnbaumDC at FCC, at ATL6.7 
13AuroTOR v. NYRB, v. HOU6.0 
14Frederic BrillantDC at FCC, at ATL6.6 
15Justin MorrowTOR v. NYRB, v. HOU5.7 
16Harrison AffulCLB at CHI, v. MTL5.4 
17Aaron LongNYRB at TOR, at ORL6.8All road games are winnable for the Red Bulls.
18Michael Amir MurilloNYRB at TOR, at ORL5.6 
19Kemar LawrenceNYRB at TOR, at ORL5.9 
20Edgar CastilloNE v. VAN, at FCC5.9 

Goalkeepers

RankPlayerMatchupPriceNotes
1Brad GuzanATL v. HOU, v. DC5.3 
2Matt TurnerNE v. VAN, at FCC4.9 
3Quentin WestbergTOR v. NYRB, v. HOU6.2 
4Steve ClarkPOR v. ORL, at SEA6.5 
5Bill HamidDC at FCC, at ATL6.4 
6Kenneth KronholmCHI v. CLB, at PHI5.1 
7Spencer RicheyFCC v. DC, v. NE4.8 
8Eloy RoomCLB at CHI, v. MTL5.0 
9Luis RoblesNYRB at TOR, at ORL5.4 
10Brian RoweORL at POR, v. NYRB6.3 

Value Rankings

(forwards and midfielders under $7.5, defenders under $6.0; not ranked above)

RankPlayerMatchupPriceNotes
1Cristian CasseresNYRB at TOR, at ORL7.0Casseres is a very steady source of cheap points that also can sneak onto the score sheet. 
2Brandon ByeNE v. VAN, at FCC5.3 
3Mathieu DeplagneFCC v. DC, v. NE4.5A wingback with two home games is almost always worth considering, given their opportunities at both ends.
4Marco DelgadoTOR v. NYRB, v. HOU7.4 
5Juan AgudeloNE v. VAN, at FCC6.8With Bou joining the lineup this week, there are enough questions about how Agudelo fits into the lineup that I am being cautious in projecting his minutes.
6Hwang In-beomVAN at NE, v. SJ6.7 
7Marc RzatkowskiNYRB at TOR, at ORL6.9 
8Allan CruzFCC v. DC, v. NE7.2 
9Alvas PowellFCC v. DC, v. NE4.7Andrew Farrell and Jorge Luis Corrales are some other cheap defender options, but Powell has a little more appeal with the double home games. 
10Erickson GallardoTOR v. NYRB, v. HOU7.0Another attacking piece for a Toronto team looking to make a push. The quick winger should get his first minutes this week.

Captain Rankings

RankPlayerMatchupPriceNotes
1Alejandro PozueloTOR v. NYRB, v. HOU10.9With Portland rotation (I think only mildly likely) and Gil's yellow card risk, Pozuelo is the safe choice this week.
2Carles GilNE v. VAN, at FCC11.3NOTE: Probably would bump him down a few spots with Wednesday's weather news.
3Brian FernandezPOR v. ORL, at SEA10.5 
4Josef MartinezATL v. HOU, v. DC12.0NOTE: A lackluster lineup release minutes ago would have me reconsidering Josef for captain.
5Jozy AltidoreTOR v. NYRB, v. HOU10.3 

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
JD Bazzo
JD is a former RotoWire contributor. He was a finalist for the 2017 FSWA Soccer Writer of the Year award. JD had been writing for RotoWire since 2015. He is a proud Pittsburgh native, purveyor of fantasy sports, and likely the first Penn State Basketball fan you've ever met.
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