This article is part of our FanDuel Fantasy Soccer series.
MATCHES (EDT)
- 9:30 am: FC Schalke 04 vs. Werder Bremen
- 9:30 am: FSV Mainz 05 vs. 1899 Hoffenheim
- 9:30 am: Hertha BSC Berlin vs. FC Augsburg
- 9:30 am: VfL Wolfsburg vs. Eintracht Frankfurt
- 12:30 pm: Bayern Munich vs. Fortuna Düsseldorf
For detailed stats and odds, check out the
FORWARDS/MIDFIELDERS
Robert Lewandowski, MUN v. DUS ($23): In all my time doing these previews, I've never seen a player with more than -500 odds to score, and Lewandowski is between -550 and -600 at most sites. Timo Werner was about -250 on Wednesday, and he was on more than 60 percent of lineups in the Wonder Strike. Lewandowski is a fade candidate similar to Werner, but he's also someone you need if he scores a brace, which he's almost favored to do (+110). Even if he busts like Werner last slate, he won't destroy your lineup because most others will have Lewandowski. The question is who else you use from Bayern Munich, especially since they're the late match. I still believe Serge Gnabry ($19) will go off soon and being three dollars cheaper than Thomas Muller ($22) is reason enough to back him. I know Muller may be more consistent than Gnabry, but he doesn't have the same upside, mainly because he's more of a creator with 17 assists and seven goals. Joshua Kimmich ($18) scored last match, but that's not a regular occurrence, and he's expensive for a floor play. There are reasons to take any of Bayern's attackers, but don't forget someone like Ivan Perisic ($13) could start, leaving you with extra cash to burn.
Wout Weghorst, WOLF v. FRAN ($15): Unless you fade Lewandowski and Muller, you won't be able to build a lineup of four Bayern forwards and midfielders. Weghorst can be used with Lewandowski and Gnabry or by himself if you fade Bayern completely. He's simply a GPP option because he has no floor, totaling 0.5 fantasy points in his last 180 minutes. However, he's the most likely non-Bayern player to score on the slate and I think he will hit the back of the net against a struggling Eintracht Frankfurt back line that has allowed 15 goals in the last four league matches. The more popular Wolfsburg options will surely be Renato Steffen ($17) and Maximilian Arnold ($16). Steffen has two goals in the last three matches and Arnold had a goal and two assists Tuesday. While both have had higher floors, I'm not sure going all-in on them in cash games is the best idea since it's not like the extra five or 10 points they get will make a difference. Weghorst is struggling a bit in the second half of the season, but he opened the campaign with at least 12 fantasy points in 10 of the first 13 matches. If you want cheaper GPP plays, both Josip Brekalo ($14) and Joao Victor ($12) play in attacking roles.
Christoph Baumgartner, HOF at MAI ($13): This is an absolute trap and everyone else is going to play him, but there's no reason for Baumgartner to go down in price after making the score-sheet three times. On one end, he almost had no floor in Wednesday's match, but he has 10 shots in his last three starts and has a shot on goal in nine of his last 10 appearances. In a match with the second-highest implied goal total, it only makes sense to use a guy who will get at least a shot on target. If Munas Dabbur ($13) starts again, he's a GPP option as a cheaper top striker. While there are goals expected in this match, most of the expected starters have floors under 10 points and sometimes below five. You could hope Jacob Bruun Larsen ($11) and Steven Zuber ($10) make the score-sheet again or try your luck with Mainz, who blew up in my face last match. Robin Quaison ($17) may be most likely to score, but he had a floor of zero points Wednesday. Ridle Baku ($16) at least has a floor, though as a wing-back, I'm not sure he's worth it over Kingsley Coman ($16)
Matheus Cunha, HB v. AUG ($18): I'm not sure the Hertha forwards need to be this expensive, (Vedad Ibisevic is $20), but that's what FanDuel is giving us. Hertha are the second-biggest favorite on the slate and are in form, so there are reasons to back them. Should Ibisevic be more expensive than Gnabry? No. Fortunately, Cunha is a tad cheaper and more likely to score. Even though his streak of four straight matches with a goal ended, he still managed a shot on target and floor of 8.9 points against RB Leipzig. Similar to most teams in the Bundesliga, there isn't really a viable stacking piece on Hertha because no one has a consistent floor. Vladimir Darida ($13) makes the most sense as the main set-piece taker, especially if Marvin Plattenhardt misses out with a concussion. Otherwise, you're kind of guessing with everyone else, similar to Marko Grujic ($13) scoring last match. As a bonus, Grujic has a floor around 10 points because he's a defensive midfielder who racks up tackles and clearances.
DEFENDERS
Robert Skov, HOF at MAI ($15): Unlike last slate, I'm probably not going to fit Skov into all of my lineups simply because of Bayern. In order to get two of Lewandowski, Muller and Gnabry, you'll need cheaper defenders. Skov is listed as a defender despite having the best odds to score in the match with the second-highest implied goal odds, but his floor has also been a bit unreliable because he's no longer accruing defensive stats. If you fade the high-end Bayern guys, it makes sense to grab Skov and possibly stack him with someone like Dabbur or Baumgartner. It's a similar case for any of the high-priced defenders because while some of them have better floors, that's not reason enough to spend your money away from a -2,000 favorite (Bayern), who could score five goals.
John Brooks, WOLF v. FRAN ($7): Brooks may be the cheapest starting defender on the slate and he's oddly stayed at the same price even with a floor of 10 points without a clean sheet in each of the last two matches. Now with better clean-sheet odds against Frankfurt, who have forced the second-most clearances in the league, he's going to be in all of my lineups. Outside of players like Kevin Vogt ($6) and David Abraham ($7) possibly returning, there aren't any likely starters this cheap.
GOALKEEPER
Jiri Pavlenka, WER at S04 ($12): Koen Casteels ($11) is my choice on first look, but he doesn't have a save the last two matches and it's almost inevitable Andre Silva or Bas Dost will find the back of the net. Pavlenka has been a fantasy star in recent matches, making 11 saves to go with back-to-back clean sheets. He's an underdog, but I'm not sure anyone would put money on Schalke to win this match considering they've failed to score in five of their last seven league matches. This feels like the perfect spot for Manuel Neuer ($15) to make no saves and allow a goal in a 5-1 win, so I'd avoid him at max price. In terms of a cheap goalkeeper, Markus Schubert ($8) is a decent play, mainly because there has been one goal total in Bremen's last two matches.
