This article is part of our FanDuel Fantasy Soccer series.
MATCHES (ET)
- 10:00 am: Burnley vs. Brighton & Hove Albion
- 10:00 am: Chelsea vs. Crystal Palace
- 10:00 am: Everton vs. Southampton
- 10:00 am: Leicester City vs. Wolverhampton
- 10:00 am: Watford vs. Aston Villa
- 12:30 pm: Norwich City vs. Liverpool
FORWARDS/MIDFIELDERS
Mason Mount, CHE at CRY ($18): Chelsea are the biggest favorites on Saturday's slate despite traveling to Crystal Palace. They're coming off a Super Cup win earlier this week in which Mount came on in the 65th minute and played his regular role. He was a major part of England's success at the Euros, which shouldn't come as a surprise given his influence in Chelsea's attack last season. Mount scored at least 15 fantasy points in 14 of 17 matches on his way to helping Chelsea to the Champions League title. Timo Werner ($21) is a more expensive option, which is likely due to his higher anytime goal scorer odds. I believe in Mount's ability to justify his price more than I believe Werner can find the back of the net. Christian Pulisic ($17) has only been winning trophies over the past three months and will look to cement himself in Chelsea's starting XI this season. He's less of a sure thing than Mount but does offer plenty of upside if he starts. Finally, Hakim Ziyech ($15) injured his shoulder in the Super Cup win and is expected to miss the match. This should ensure Kai Havertz ($16) is in the lineup with the three aforementioned attackers, giving Chelsea plenty of options to produce.
Diogo Jota, LIV v. NOR ($17): It's hard to look at any slate that includes Mohamed Salah ($23) and not make him the first player in your roster. No player has been better at scoring goals since Salah returned to the Premier League. For that reason, he's the most expensive player on the slate against a newly promoted Norwich City side that conceded the most goals in the Premier League two seasons ago. Liverpool are heavy favorites and you could rightfully consider a Liverpool stack with Salah and Sadio Mane ($20). While there's no doubting the abilities of both Mane and Salah, Jota is cheaper and arguably out-shined Mane when they were briefly on the field together last season. In Jota's injury-shortened season, he averaged over two shots on goal per 90 minutes and scored nine goals in 12 Premier League starts. With Norwich as the opponent, it's not if Liverpool will score but how many. Oddmakers like them to fill it up with an implied goal total over two, providing plenty of room to share in the Reds' attack. Roberto Firmino ($18) is another consideration, but it's very well possible Jota is given the start ahead of him, or manager Jurgen Klopp opts for all four in attack.
Harvey Barnes, LEI at WOL ($14): Despite missing the final 12 league matches of the season following knee surgery, Barnes made 25 appearances (22 starts) and contributed nine goals and four assists. Notably, he averaged 1.5 shots on goal and a little over one chance created per 90 minutes. He's fully recovered from last season's injury and should have no issue starting where he left off. Aside from Barnes, James Maddison ($15) offers great value for his skill set, including 1.3 shots on goal and nearly three chances created per 90. Expect to see his price go up as the season progresses. I thought there might be more value for Kelechi Iheanacho ($21) heading into the season opener, but he's Leicester's most expensive player, ahead of Jamie Vardy ($19)
Solomon March, BRI v. BUR ($5): Similar to Barnes, March is coming off an extended absence due to a knee injury in February. He's trained for most of the preseason and should recoup his starting role now that he's fully fit. Prior to injury, he was able to consistently hit double-digit points including some monster performances due to his ability to be involved in both attack and defense. When you consider his price, it's a no brainer to at least consider him against a Burnley side that were not far off from relegation last season. Pascal Gross ($13) and Leandro Trossard ($14) are both appealing options, though they're nearly triple the price of March. Yves Bissouma ($12) is as consistent as they come after finishing last season with 10 straight matches of at least 11 fantasy points. Neal Maupay ($16) is the front man and led Brighton in goals last season with eight, but once again he is not nearly the steal that March could be.
DEFENDERS
Trent Alexander-Arnold, LIV v. NOR ($15): Even though he's consistently one of the most expensive defenders, that are very few similarly priced midfielders who will produce at Alexander-Arnold's level. While he and Salah should be two of the most popular players, it'll be tough to overlook them in either GPPs. Andrew Robertson ($13) has already been ruled out Saturday and Kostas Tsimikas ($5) is expected to fill in for him at left-back. There's a good amount of value there even if Tsimikas produces half of Robertson's typical output.
Matt Targett, AVL v. WAT ($11): Targett started a remarkable 38 matches last season, playing all but 15 minutes of Aston Villa's Premier League season. He provides value in a number of ways, whether that's chances created or more on the defensive end, where he averaged one tackle won, 1.45 interceptions and 2.67 clearances per 90 minutes. His consistent contributions make him a relatively safe play, and one that may be best used in tournaments. Matty Cash ($14) is expected to start on the opposite side and has slightly more upside than Targett, while Tyrone Mings ($13) and Ezri Konsa ($10) are expected to pair at center-back, with Mings preferred because he consistently accumulates five or more clearances and interceptions.
GOALKEEPER
Jordan Pickford, EVE at SOU ($12): After the departure of Danny Ings ($18), I'm still unsure how Southampton are going to score goals. When he was injured, they were especially poor in front of the net, and they didn't do much to replace his contributions after moving to Aston Villa. Che Adams and Nathan Redmond don't exactly strike fear into Premier League defenses. For that reason, and the oddsmakers giving Everton the fourth-best clean sheet odds, Pickford is a solid option in net.
