With the International Break behind us, we now have an eight-week sprint to the end of the Premier League season. Saturday’s EPL DFS slate features four teams in the top half of the league, as well as a matchup between Sheffield and Leeds. Liverpool is a shell of its former self but they have been dangerous when Diogo Jota plays, as he is expected to against Arsenal. Arsenal are unbeaten in their last four games but injuries to Bukayo Saka and Emile Smith-Rowe could cause problems even if Arsenal have one of the deeper squads in the league. Manchester City could easily rest many of their top players as they focus on winning other trophies, but their “B” team is capable of beating just about anyone. That being said, Leicester’s style should match up well against City, and getting James Maddison back would provide a huge boost.
| Goalkeepers |
| Player | Team | Opp. | DK $ | DK FPPG | FD $ | FD FPPG |
| Aaron Ramsdale | SHU | LEE | 3900 | 5.26 | 7 | 8.31 |
| Only Chelsea and the Manchester teams have allowed more saves to opponents than Leeds. Manchester United have scored 11 more goals than Leeds and Manchester City have scored 19 more goals than Leeds. There is some risk here, but Ramsdale has at least four saves in six consecutive games, and so long as he can hold Leeds to fewer than four goals, his floor should be awfully high. |
| Bernd Leno | ARS | LIV | 4500 | 6.83 | 9 | 10.48 |
| Liverpool has allowed one fewer save than Leeds and they have scored three more goals. You can pay up hoping for a win and a clean sheet if you want to, but Leno is cheap and is a pretty good bet for a handful of saves. |
| | | | | | | | |
| Forwards |
| Player | Team | Opp. | DK $ | DK FPPG | FD $ | FD FPPG |
| Kelechi Iheanacho | LEI | MCI | 7500 | 7.27 | 17 | 11.76 |
| With James Maddison likely back for this game but not fit enough to start, there is a decent chance this is Iheanacho's last game as a viable fantasy starter before he turns into a pumpkin. I obviously do not like the matchup, but it has served to keep his price down, and he will likely be low-owned as well. |
| Oliver McBurnie | SHU | LEE | 4300 | 4.31 | 10 | 8.92 |
| Only Crystal Palace and Newcastle have allowed more headed shots than Leeds over the last six gameweeks, and McBurnie has 10 more headed shots than any of his teammates. I think I would pay up for David McGoldrick if I could afford him, but McBurnie is an enabler in GPPs. |
| Diogo Jota | LIV | ARS | 7200 | 10.27 | 17 | 16.42 |
| This seems like an insane statement for a team with Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane, but Jota has provided some much-needed scoring punch for his new team, with a goal in three of his last four starts. He probably won't create more than one chance or put in very many crosses, but he might be the best bet to score a goal for Liverpool. |
| | | | | | | | |
| Midfielders |
| Player | Team | Opp. | DK $ | DK FPPG | FD $ | FD FPPG |
| Willian | ARS | LIV | 7300 | 8.14 | 8 | 7.06 |
| Willian is much too cheap on FanDuel, which is a double-edged sword. I think he will start and provide very nice value with Emile Smith-Rowe and Bukayo Saka out. That being said, this is the last game of the slate and if Willian doesn't start or if he isn't going to be on corners, you could have an awfully hard time replacing him. That being said, he has six chances created and 15 crosses in the last three games he has played at least 45 minutes, and I want him in my lineups if he starts. |
| Bukayo Saka | ARS | LIV | 6500 | 13.18 | 13 | 13.66 |
| Saka has not been great the last five games, but his floor is awfully high considering his price. I think Mikel Arteta should give Saka more time to rest and roll with Willian, but if that is not the case, Saka is a fine alternative. |
| Raphinha | LEE | SHU | 10000 | 15.15 | 19 | 19.74 |
| Between his forward-eligibility, matchup and price, I think Raphinha is the best cash play on the slate, even ahead of Kevin De Bruyne. Raphinha has at least five crosses in seven consecutive games, with 24 chances created in that span. |
| Martin Odegaard | ARS | LIV | 6700 | 7.43 | 14 | 8.80 |
| For as much as I like Willian and Bukayo Saka, Martin Odegaard may be safer. Unfortunately for us, he is more expensive on FD and is not eligible at forward on DK. Still, Odegaard has one goal on seven shots (three on target) with 14 crosses and eight chances created in his last three games. He should play after going 90 minutes against Turkey last week. |
| Youri Tielemans | LEI | MCI | 6300 | 10.58 | 12 | 14.57 |
| Tielemans is probably on even more of a clock than Iheanacho, as James Maddison will almost certainly take most of the free kicks when he returns. Tielemans has 21 crosses and eight chances created in his last three games, and I think his floor is high even in a tough matchup against Manchester City. |
| | | | | | | | |
| Defenders |
| Player | Team | Opp. | DK $ | DK FPPG | FD $ | FD FPPG |
| Luke Ayling | LEE | SHU | 5000 | 7.76 | 12 | 13.02 |
| Sheffield ranks 10th in fantasy points allowed to defenders on DraftKings, and Ayling has at least 7.7 DK fantasy points in six of his last seven games. He isn't as flashy as the Liverpool outside backs but Ayling is cheaper and has a better matchup. |
| Enda Stevens | SHU | LEE | 3700 | 4.45 | 9 | 9.93 |
| Stevens struggled against Leicester his last time out but he had four crosses and two shots against Southampton before that. So long as he is starting out wide, I think he is a solid play on DraftKings. |
| Trent Alexander-Arnold | LIV | ARS | 6600 | 13.46 | 14 | 13.96 |
| Andrew Robertson is a fine alternative if you need to save some money, but I think Alexander-Arnold is safer, and that safety is worth paying up for. |
| Calum Chambers | ARS | LIV | 3200 | 7.32 | 6 | 16.60 |
| In two starts this season Chambers has five chances created, 10 crosses and 12 clearances. I'm not sure I trust any of those numbers, especially because I don't know if he will play right back or center back with David Luiz out, and that is assuming Chambers starts at all. That being said, Chambers is cheap enough to be worth a shot on DK even in a bad match against Liverpool. Liverpool have allowed 241 more clearances than any team in the league this season, so I will probably go with on FanDuel no matter where he ends up. Rob Holding and Pablo Mari are strong plays if they start for Chambers, and I would even consider playing two Arsenal defenders on FanDuel. |
| Robin Koch | LEE | SHU | 2700 | 4.71 | 5 | 10.88 |
| Prior to suffering a knee injury, Koch had double-digit FD fantasy points in eight of his 10 games. Diego Llorente and Liam Cooper may be safer, but Koch is a must-play on FanDuel if he starts. |
As always, the lineups below are examples of lineups you can make using the players in the Playbook and are not for plug and play.
| DK Cash | | | DK GPP |
| Pos. | Player | Team | Opp | FPPG | Salary | | | Pos. | Player | Team | Opp | FPPG | Salary |
| F | Willian | ARS | LIV | 8.14 | $7,300 | | | F | Diogo Jota | LIV | ARS | 10.27 | $7,200 |
| F | Raphinha | LEE | SHU | 15.15 | $10,000 | | | F | Mohamed Salah | LIV | ARS | 14.43 | $7,700 |
| M | Youri Tielemans | LEI | MCI | 10.58 | $6,300 | | | M | Martin Odegaard | ARS | LIV | 7.43 | $6,700 |
| M | Martin Odegaard | ARS | LIV | 7.43 | $6,700 | | | M | Youri Tielemans | LEI | MCI | 10.58 | $6,300 |
| D | Enda Stevens | SHU | LEE | 4.45 | $3,700 | | | D | Calum Chambers | ARS | LIV | 7.32 | $3,200 |
| D | Trent Alexander-Arnold | LIV | ARS | 13.46 | $6,600 | | | D | Andrew Robertson | LIV | ARS | 12.18 | $5,800 |
| GK | Aaron Ramsdale | SHU | LEE | 5.26 | $3,900 | | | GK | Aaron Ramsdale | SHU | LEE | 5.26 | $3,900 |
| Util | Stuart Dallas | LEE | SHU | 8.67 | $5,200 | | | Util | Phil Foden | MCI | LEI | 11.94 | $8,900 |
| | | | | Total | $49,700 | | | | | | | Total | $49,700 |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| DK Pivot Cash | | | DK Pivot GPP |
| Pos. | Player | Team | Opp | FPPG | Salary | | | Pos. | Player | Team | Opp | FPPG | Salary |
| F | Bukayo Saka | ARS | LIV | 13.18 | $6,500 | 1 | | F | | | | | |
| F | | | | | | 1 | | F | | | | | |
| M | | | | | | 1 | | M | | | | | |
| M | | | | | | 1 | | M | | | | | |
| D | | | | | | 1 | | D | | | | | |
| D | | | | | | 1 | | D | Trent Alexander-Arnold | LIV | ARS | 13.46 | $6,600 |
| GK | | | | | | 1 | | GK | | | | | |
| Util | Marc Albrighton | LEI | MCI | 7.48 | $5,500 | 1 | | Util | Patrick Bamford | LEE | SHU | 12.03 | $8,000 |
| | | | | Total | $12,000 | | | | | | | Total | $14,600 |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| FD Cash | | | FD GPP |
| Pos | Player | Team | Opp | FPPG | Salary | | | Pos | Player | Team | Opp | FPPG | Salary |
| F/M | Willian | ARS | LIV | 7.06 | $8 | | | F/M | Diogo Jota | LIV | ARS | 16.42 | $17 |
| F/M | Kevin De Bruyne | MCI | LEI | 23.73 | $22 | | | F/M | Kevin De Bruyne | MCI | LEI | 23.73 | $22 |
| F/M | Raphinha | LEE | SHU | 19.74 | $19 | | | F/M | Raphinha | LEE | SHU | 19.74 | $19 |
| F/M | Riyad Mahrez | MCI | LEI | 17.67 | $21 | | | F/M | Phil Foden | MCI | LEI | 15.78 | $16 |
| D | Calum Chambers | ARS | LIV | 16.60 | $6 | | | D | Rob Holding | ARS | LIV | 12.30 | $8 |
| D | Liam Cooper | LEE | SHU | 16.24 | $14 | | | D | Diego Llorente | LEE | SHU | 12.69 | $11 |
| GK | Aaron Ramsdale | SHU | LEE | 8.31 | $7 | | | GK | Aaron Ramsdale | SHU | LEE | 8.31 | $7 |
| | | | | Total | $97 | | | | | | | Total | $100 |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| FD Pivot Cash | | | FD Pivot GPP |
| Pos | Player | Team | Opp | FPPG | Salary | | | Pos | Player | Team | Opp | FPPG | Salary |
| F/M | Bukayo Saka | ARS | LIV | 13.66 | $13 | 1 | | F/M | | | | | |
| F/M | | | | | | 1 | | F/M | | | | | |
| F/M | | | | | | 1 | | F/M | | | | | |
| F/M | | | | | | #REF! | | F/M | | | | | |
| D | Rob Holding | ARS | LIV | 12.30 | $8 | 1 | | D | Trent Alexander-Arnold | LIV | ARS | 13.96 | $14 |
| D | Robin Koch | LEE | SHU | 10.88 | $5 | 1 | | D | Robin Koch | LEE | SHU | 10.88 | $5 |
| GK | | | | | | 1 | | GK | | | | | |
| | | | | Total | $26 | | | | | | | Total | $19 |
