MLS Fantasy Rankings: Week 8

MLS Fantasy Rankings: Week 8

This article is part of our MLS Fantasy Rankings series.

MATCHES (EDT)

Forwards

RankPlayerMatchupPriceNotes
1Diego RossiLAFC v. VAN, v. SJ9.1Don't take Brian Rodriguez, who looks to be leaving for Italy.
2Kacper PrzybylkoPHI at FCC, v. INT12.0 
3Gustavo BouNE v. MTL, at DCU8.9A wise Revs fan told me Bou could be a trap this week, but I am nevertheless tempted.
4Raul RuidiazSEA at POR, at LAG14.0Jara, but with a better MLS track record and surrounding team. Oh and also $5.2 more expensive!
5Franco JaraDAL at ATL, v. ORL9.8 
6Cristian PavonLAG at RSL, v. SEA11.3He's playing well enough to be on the Argentina National Squad for October's matches!
7Bradley Wright-PhillipsLAFC v. VAN, v. SJ7.6BWP has two great matchups, safer playing time post-BRod, and saves some salary.
8Gyasi ZardesCLB v. MIN, at TOR11.4This feels like a low ranking for someone having such an awesome 2020 season, but I can't confidently bump him in front of any of the top-7. It's close!
9Robert BericCHI v. HOU, v. ATL9.4At least he's definitely on penalty kick duty now, right?
10Diego RubioCOL v. SJ, v. SKC7.8Kei Kamara out is a boost, but Rubio was already starting lots and scoring not a lot. Two good matchups though, including a revenge game!
11HeberNYC v. TOR, v. FCC5.2 
12Ola KamaraDCU at NSH, v. NE5.9 
13Jeremy EbobissePOR v. SEA, at VAN6.6 
14Jordan MorrisSEA at POR, at LAG11.7Double game weeks are the best time to play MLS Fantasy's ultimate boom/bust attacker.
15Jozy AltidoreTOR at NYC, v. CLB7.4 
16ChicharitoLAG at RSL, v. SEA8.1 
17Mauro ManotasHOU at CHI, at NSH6.0 
18Alan PulidoSKC v. ORL, at COL10.4Not guaranteed to start Wednesday, as Vermes eases him back from injury.
19Dominique BadjiNSH v. DCU, v. HOU5.4 
20Jurgen LocadiaFCC v. PHI, at NYC5.6 

Midfielders

RankPlayerMatchupPriceNotes
1Diego ValeriPOR v. SEA, at VAN12.4Valeri inexplicably has again reached the high of his powers, at age 34! Two cascadia matches and rest last week lead me to believe he's a decent bet to fully feature in both.
2Alejandro PozueloTOR at NYC, v. CLB14.5High price and tough matchups, but Poz has been so good that you have to bet on him having one good match out of two chances.
3Nicolas LodeiroSEA at POR, at LAG13.7 
4Johnny RussellSKC v. ORL, at COL9.4Russell's playing time always makes me nervous, but he's in form and I've always loved his game.
5Pedro SantosCLB v. MIN, at TOR9.2Zelarayan is being eased back in, but worth noting that he could be the ultimate dice roll alternative to Santos if he can sneak a start in this week.
6NaniORL at SKC, at DAL8.5Another candidate for rest this week, Nani is worth taking your chances on in game two if he is in the first lineup.
7Carlos Darwin QuinteroHOU at CHI, at NSH8.2 
8Brenden AaronsonPHI at FCC, v. INT10.0Aaronson appears on the verge of a transfer to Europe, but if he plays Wednesday night, I'll roll the dice on getting a second game. He has been enthusiastically involved in all Philly games.
9Jose CifuentesLAFC v. VAN, v. SJ6.7I'm not overreacting to LAFC's rough patch - they're still a good group of players with a really good coach playing against two pretty poor teams.
10Mark-Anthony KayeLAFC v. VAN, v. SJ8.5 
11Emanuel ReynosoMIN at CLB, v. RSL7.4Reynoso is not only the new guy, but now surrounded by backups thanks to a plethora of injuries in the Minnesota midfield and attack.
12Lewis MorganINT v. RBNY, at PHI10.5Morgan is already playing well and now Gonzalo Higuain is nearing his first action!
13Hany MukhtarNSH v. DCU, v. HOU9.6 
14Joao PauloSEA at POR, at LAG10.7 
15Cole BassettCOL v. SJ, v. SKC9.0Younes Namli is out for at least the first match and I'm eager to see how Bassett reacts. Braian Galvan also becomes an intriguing option.
16Sebastian LletgetLAG at RSL, v. SEA9.9 
17Albert RusnakRSL v. LAG, at MIN8.1 
18Alvaro MedranCHI v. HOU, v. ATL10.3He owes Fire fans and Rapha Wicky a goal after last week's debacle.
19Jamiro MonteiroPHI at FCC, v. INT8.4Potential to return to a role higher up the field if/when Aaronson leaves. He was a fantasy force there before.
20Rodolfo PizarroINT v. RBNY, at PHI9.4Honorable mentions to Andres Ricaurte, Chris Mueller, Maikel Chang, Pablo Piatti, and Kaku.

Defenders

RankPlayerMatchupPriceNotes
1Anton TinnerholmNYC v. TOR, v. FCC9.0His sore achilles is only a very slight concern as that matchup with Cincy is too exciting to pass up.
2Reto ZieglerDAL at ATL, v. ORL10.7 
3Lalas AbubakarCOL v. SJ, v. SKC7.2 
4Alexander ButtnerNE v. MTL, at DCU8.5His chances to get either a clean sheet or assist are high this week. The upside is both in the same match!
5Jonathan MensahCLB v. MIN, at TOR11.6Not sure how anyone could drop $11.6 on a defender, but price aside he's undoubtedly a good option.
6Ronald MatarritaPHI at FCC, v. INT10.0It sounds like he'll be available to return to the lineup Wednesday.
7Mark McKenziePHI at FCC, v. INT9.1 
8Harrison AffulCLB v. MIN, at TOR10.8 
9Walker ZimmermanNSH v. DCU, v. HOU8.1I'd like Nashville even more if Lovitz weren't suspended for yellow cards, but DC United's poor form give me little reason to believe it matters much.
10Kyle DuncanRBNY at INT, v. MTL8.4 
11Aaron LongRBNY at INT, v. MTL9.5 
12Diego PalaciosLAFC v. VAN, v. SJ5.4You won't convince me that LAFC are playing bad enough that I should ignore their defense against San Jose and Vancouver.
13Ryan HollingsheadDAL at ATL, v. ORL7.8 
14Eddie SeguraLAFC v. VAN, v. SJ6.0 
15Richie LaryeaTOR at NYC, v. CLB7.2Thanks to an ijury spell, it's gone under the radar just how good Laryea has been this year.
16Milton ValenzuelaCLB v. MIN, at TOR10.5 
17Joevin JonesSEA at POR, at LAG8.9 
18Brandon ByeNE v. MTL, at DCU6.7 
19Keegan RosenberryCOL v. SJ, v. SKC7.3 
20Francisco CalvoCHI v. HOU, v. ATL6.8 

Goalkeepers

RankPlayerMatchupPriceNotes
1Andre BlakePHI at FCC, v. INT8.4 
2Sean JohnsonNYC v. TOR, v. FCC10.9Johnson has been so good, he's also stopped his own team from scoring goals!
3Matt TurnerNE v. MTL, at DCU8.1I rarely don't take advantage of the 2nd keeper contingency plan in MLS Fantasy, but Turner's matchups are good enough that I may plug him straight into the lineup to save salary. Romell Quioto will be out for Montreal, and he has been half their attack.
4Eloy RoomCLB v. MIN, at TOR10.0If you have the funds, Room is a great play against Minnesota's decimated attack.
5William YarbroughCOL v. SJ, v. SKC6.7 
6Pablo SisniegaLAFC v. VAN, v. SJ4.3 
7Steve ClarkPOR v. SEA, at VAN4.8 
8Bill HamidDCU at NSH, v. NE6.2DC's defense has not been the main problem.
9Joe WillisNSH v. DCU, v. HOU5.4 
10David JensenRBNY at INT, v. MTL5.6 

Value Rankings

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

RankPlayerMatchupPriceNotes
1Latif BlessingLAFC v. VAN, v. SJ6.6With Rodriguez out, Blessing could be thrust back into an attacking role rather than toiling at right back.
2Sam VinesCOL v. SJ, v. SKC6.0 
3Daryl DikeORL at SKC, at DAL4.8 
4Alexandru MitritaNYC v. TOR, v. FCC5.0It's confounding how poor NYCFC's attack has been under Ronny Deila, but I think Mitrita is the one who helps it break out.
5Mohamed El-MunirLAFC v. VAN, v. SJ4.0There's a small but notable chance El-Munir gets time on the attacking wing.
6Adam BuksaNE v. MTL, at DCU4.1If he starts the super early 5pm EST match, he'll be a salary-saving bench play for many managers.
7Bryan ReynoldsDAL at ATL, v. ORL4.1 
8Lee NguyenNE v. MTL, at DCU4.3Nguyen is another great candidate to start from the bench and see how it goes before deciding on the rest of your team.
9Anthony FontanaPHI at FCC, v. INT4.0Yet another super-sub in Philly? Fontana hasn't been playing close to 90 minutes, but he's fired four shots in each of the past two matches and collected a trio of goals for his efforts.
10Adrien PerezLAFC v. VAN, v. SJ4.0Perez, Danny Musovski, and Christian Torres all stand to get some additional minutes with Brian Rodriguez on his way out, but it's doubtful any will be a lock for consistent minutes.

Captain Rankings

RankPlayerMatchupPriceNotes
1Diego RossiLAFC v. VAN, v. SJ9.1Losing his help right and left, but still my favorite fantasy play.
2Diego ValeriPOR v. SEA, at VAN12.434 year old legs make me nervous when assigning the arm band in a congested schedule.
3Alejandro PozueloTOR at NYC, v. CLB14.5Tough matchups aren't ideal, but he's performed well enough in every two-game stretch this season.
4Nicolas LodeiroSEA at POR, at LAG13.7Even if you told me he only could score via PKs, I'd still like him this week.
5Johnny RussellSKC v. ORL, at COL9.4Assuming a full complement of playing time, Russell should feast against the Orlando and Colorado left backs.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Andrew M. Laird
Andrew is a former RotoWire contributor. He was the 2017 and 2018 FSWA Soccer Writer of the Year. He is a nine-time FSWA award finalist, including twice for Football Writer of the Year.
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