This article is part of our DraftKings Fantasy Soccer series.
Lineup No. 1: Building from the Back
This week's DraftKings slate is quite challenging due to a true lack of viable low- to mid-tier priced defenders and keepers. If we must pay $4,000-plus just to have decent fullbacks and $4,500-plus to grab a keeper who shouldn't get shelled, then I'm inclined to pay a little more to set myself apart from our opponents.
Bobby Shuttleworth, Chris Tierney and the rest of the New England Revolution play host to the Houston Dynamo this weekend in a match that is crucial to their playoff hopes. While the Dynamo are in the midst of their best form of the season, New England coming off of a bye week could be in consideration for a clean sheet. Shuttleworth can steal a game, and the possible return of Jermaine Jones to the starting lineup could solidify a back line that has potential to return to its stifling form of 2014. Chris Tierney benefits from this fine defensive outlook, and adds heaps of attacking potential. New England is not reluctant to release Tierney up the flank, and many claim that the fullback possesses the best left foot in the league. Tierney is a prime candidate for our strategy of paying up for a differential. Our opponents will scoff at Tierney's $6,000, but it's a calculated risk that could pay dividends for our tournament entries. To round out our back three, I'm bringing in Kemar Lawrence. Recently rumored as a target for Newcastle United of the Premier League, Lawrence brings a dangerous element to the Red Bulls' wing that Toronto FC shouldn't have an easy time stopping. With a great target in Bradley Wright-Phillips and a talented cast of attacking players in front of him, Lawrence's forays up the field could prove quite fruitful.
Naturally, we're working on a tight budget for the rest of our lineup and can't reasonably afford any of the top-shelf attackers. Giovani dos Santos and Lee Nguyen present top-tier attacking potential at a discounted rate, and we'll be leaning on them to pace our lineup. Nguyen has grabbed a goal in three straight matches and looks like the stat sheet-stuffing monster that became a permanent fantasy fixture last season. Dos Santos may provide an even higher upside than star striker Robbie Keane, who often looked happier setting up Sebastian Lletget or dos Santos than pressing the back line himself last match.
Our final three offensive selections will prove pivotal to our success this weekend. Michael Bradley completes our midfield, after posting a slick goal last match. The midfielder has three goals and three assists in his last seven matches, and continues to look dangerous when he joins Giovinco in the attack. While Bradley doesn't necessarily have a high floor, a $5,600 price tag does not do justice to the U.S. National Team's best player. With our final forward and flex spots, I'm looking to the match in Rio Tinto Stadium. Real Salt Lake is quite motivated, but also struggling defensively. It will push the envelope in this one, which could mean fireworks for both sides. Fanendo Adi is questionable for this match, and manager Caleb Porter should be itching to get $5.5 million signing Lucas Melano his first start. Should the speedy Argentine get significant time against Real Salt Lake, he sets up to introduce himself to the league in a big way. On the other side, we'll hope that RSL's aggressive attack will help Sebastian Jaime continue a great run of form. The forward has a goal or assist in each of his last five matches but continues to fly under the radar on DraftKings.
Devil's Advocate: This is arguably the least exciting attacking bunch I've trotted out in this column all season. If Giovinco, Bradley Wright-Phillips and Robbie Keane are potential pieces of your "name-brand" lineups, this group is most definitely the cheaper store-brand version. Sometimes you get what you pay for, and sometimes the cheaper version works just as well. Not having Giovinco and BWP should make us nervous, while New England might not end up as great a defensive bet as we hope.
Why We'll Win: With one of the strongest possible defensive trios, we stand to benefit greatly if some of the top attacking options falter. Giovinco plays a tough Red Bulls squad, and if anyone can stop him they are a decent candidate. As long as Nguyen and dos Santos perform as expected, and the defense excels, we only need some of our three cheap attacking picks to pan out. Jaime and Melano are significantly under-priced, while an attacking Michael Bradley can compete with the highest-priced midfielders on DraftKings. It's a complicated slate of Saturday soccer, but our unique approach could vault us to the top of the tournaments.
Lineup No. 2: RSL = Really Salty Losers
We mentioned Real Salt Lake near the end of lineup No. 1, but let's take a deeper look. Last weekend, RSL rested nearly every important starter in anticipation of its midweek U.S. Open Cup semifinal match. The average age of that starting group was less than 23! Eventually, RSL suffered a disappointing defeat at the hands of Sporting Kansas City, and now enters the weekend with three straight difficult losses. Most importantly, it is ninth in the Western Conference, but just three points out of the sixth playoff spot. This weekend's match could make or break Real Salt Lake's season, and the buzz around the team seems to echo that sentiment. Finding motivation among an often meaningless MLS schedule (12 of 20 teams make the postseason) is often key to fantasy success, and this lineup plays on this gritty RSL team's desperation.
A RSL-centric back three of Nick Rimando, Abdoulie Mansally and Tony Beltran is somewhat of a dice roll considering they've allowed 13 goals in their previous three appearances. I'd argue, however, the upside greatly outweighs the downside. Nick Rimando and Tony Beltran both recently featured in the MLS All-Star match. The ageless Rimando is hands down the best keeper in league history and can steal any match on any night. Beltran looks to have been boosted from his all-star appearance against Tottenham and has been livelier on the wing, in addition to his ultra-reliable defending. Abdoulie Mansally showed his attacking chops with a tally against DC United and is a prime candidate to benefit from an aggressive RSL approach to this match. Portland is rounding into form, but Real Salt Lake provides some of the more affordable defensive options and certainly has the ability to suffocate the Timbers at home in Rio Tinto.
In the attack, I'm looking to a red-hot New York Red Bulls team against a porous Toronto FC defense. Bradley Wright-Phillips remains one of the league's premier finishers, and I'm not sure TFC has ever had a center back that he'd have trouble with in the history of its franchise, let alone this season. Where BWP is set up to dominate the center of the defense, Lloyd Sam is equally fit to torment TFC right back Justin Morrow. Sam's speed creates plenty of scoring opportunities, but also supplies fantasy owners with a wealth of crosses and fouls drawn. One slight concern with Sam is that he only gets 60-70 minutes with Shaun Wright-Phillips and Gonzalo Veron presenting wing options on the bench, but I'm siding with talent rather than worrying about predicting substitutions.
Once again, I want a piece of the Los Angeles Galaxy juggernaut, and I will look to Giovani dos Santos. He should be one of the most expensive players on any slate, but we can get him for just $8,600. Landon Donovan's No. 10 replacement might be on the road in Dallas, but he also will get plenty of support from the wealth of Mexican National Team fans traveling to Dallas. To afford Gio, we'll have to find another pair of cheap attackers. Cristian Techera was a must-have for anyone hoping to cash last weekend, and faces another tough test against Sporting Kansas City this weekend. The short and slippery talent really hasn't been a player affected by matchups this year, though, and his unpredictable output is outweighed by a sky-high ceiling at a $4,600 salary. Finally, we'll return to Real Salt Lake and round out our offense with Devon Sandoval. Sandoval's size will allow him to compete with Portland's lumbering center backs, and his tireless work rate may even give him an advantage. Cubo Torres, Tesho Akindele and Jose Villareal are likely better options for our remaining budget, but are less uncertain to start. Pivot to one of them if one gets into the lineup and Sandoval seems unappealing.
Devil's Advocate: Real Salt Lake have allowed 13 goals in three matches, and we're stacking its defense on short rest?!
Why We'll Win: RSL's form must be taken with a grain of salt. (Perhaps one from Salt Lake? Bad joke!) Six goals allowed against DC United was the result of a surprisingly open match where RSL scored four goals themselves. The following match against Vancouver featured a "B Team" of sorts, without many of its typical starters. Even the last U.S. Open Cup match, where they ceded three goals to Sporting Kansas City was 1-1 heading into the 80th minute. This lineup gives us two smart stacks in RSL and the Red Bulls, while filling in the remaining spots with two great values.
