This article is part of our The Armband series.
The World Cup is wrapping up and almost everyone is back from international duty, with Carlos Vela the biggest name coming back to MLS. His return makes things a little more interesting for LAFC after Adama Diomande blew up for nine goals and two assists in his absence. Diomande probably won't continue that scoring rate, but how much will Vela cut into his production? That will be something to watch over the coming weeks, but even with a home match, LAFC take a backseat in Week 20 with three teams on a double.
NYC FC (v. MTL, v. CLB) will be under the microscope for most MLS Fantasy bosses with two home matches even though David Villa is still questionable to appear. Without Villa, Maximiliano Moralez is the clear top captain with at least nine fantasy points (two goals, four assists) in his last five starts. If he can do that this week, his total won't be far off from last week's top captains who all managed close to 20 points. Home against two teams that struggle on the road (Columbus and Montreal have 11 combined goals in 19 road matches) anyone on NYC FC can be considered for captain. Ismael Tajouri-Shradi is the safest of the forwards, though he played just 58 minutes last match and there is worry he could be subbed out for Villa in one of these contests. I'd be more inclined to go with a defender like Alexander Callens, and as long as he gets one clean sheet he'll easily reach double-digit points. Rolling with anyone other than Moralez involves risk, but most players should be headed for close to 10 fantasy points assuming the lineup doesn't change too much between matches.
Montreal travel to NYC FC in their first match and host San Jose on Saturday. After getting benched, Ignacio Piatti's fantasy value has been revived with four goals and an assist in his last four starts. Even if he can't make the score sheet at NYC FC, the home match against San Jose should result in some positive numbers. Saphir Taider probably has a higher floor than Piatti, though his upside is a little harder to trust even with two goals and two assists in his last four matches. He's definitely in the conversation, but the potential for a huge performance is less than that of Piatti or Moralez.
Chicago (v. PHI, at DAL) are the hardest of the three to back only because they've been out of form most of the season. Dallas haven't lost at home, but Philly have four goals in eight road matches, so the competition evens out. Unfortunately, none of the Fire's top players have the upside needed, especially if they don't score in the trip to Dallas. Nemanja Nikolic remains out of the conversation, while Aleksandar Katai only managed 12 fantasy points when he scored a brace a couple weeks ago. Katai is making the score sheet in almost every appearance, yet that's where most of his fantasy points come from. If you prefer defensive options like Dax McCarty or Bastian Schweinsteiger, know that four fantasy points from each match is a real possibility.
If you want to step out of the box and give the armband to someone without two matches, good luck. New York (v. SKC), Atlanta (v. SEA) and LAFC (v. POR) are all at home, but none of their matchups can be considered easy, and there's little reason to take any of them over Moralez. Miguel Almiron, Josef Martinez and Diomande are all playing well, but so is Moralez and he has two matches.
