This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Soccer series.
MATCHES (EST)
- 10:00 am: Burnley vs. West Ham United
- 10:00 am: Newcastle United vs. AFC Bournemouth
- 10:00 am: Southampton vs. Everton
- 10:00 am: Tottenham Hotspur vs. Sheffield United
- 12:30 pm: Leicester City vs. Arsenal
FORWARDS
Jamie Vardy, LEI v. ARS (£26): There's no striker in the Premier League hotter than Vardy, who scored seven goals in his past five matches. He and Harry Kane (£28) are the two most expensive options on the slate, so you'll likely need to opt for one or the other. Leicester are the second-biggest favorites on the slate, which is considerable given they're hosting fifth-placed Arsenal.
Nicolas Pepe, ARS at LEI (£21): Leicester and Arsenal have the highest implied goal total on Saturday's slate and Pepe has been the main set-piece taker when in the starting XI. Mesut Ozil and Dani Ceballos took over free kicks with Pepe out of the lineup last weekend, but Pepe should take the duties back over. Alexandre Lacazette (£21) and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (£22) have better goal-scoring odds and will likely be higher owned, but Pepe's had a floor of seven points in his past three starts and is a solid mid-tier forward target.
Chris Wood, BUR v. WHU (£15): Ashley Barnes (£14) is slightly cheaper but hasn't scored since Aug. 25, while Wood missed the past two weeks with a minor injury but is back in contention against West Ham. Prior to being sidelined, he had scored in three of his previous four matches. West Ham are in the bottom half of goals allowed (17) while Burnely have the third-highest implied goal scored total for Saturday's slate.
MIDFIELDERS
James Maddison, LEI v. ARS (£20): Maddison is a consistent plug and play. He and Kevin De Bruyne are the two most reliable midfielders in the Premier League and offer safety in lineup construction. The Foxes continue to impress under Brendan Rodgers and Maddison has built on his performances from last season. He's added goals to his resume over the past five matches with three to go along with his consistency on set-pieces.
James Ward-Prowse, SOU at EVE (£14): Ward-Prowse scored his second goal of the season against Manchester City last weekend and has now had three straight performances of eight or more points. This is a huge early season matchup, as both teams are hovering around the relegation zone. He's hardly one of the top midfield options, but a match between two sides that have struggled this season is a good place to target.
Jonjo Shelvey, NEW at BOU (£14): Shelvey is filling in for the suspended Sean Longstaff, and he has been responsible for the majority of free kicks for Newcastle when in the lineup. His low cost makes him an attractive option in a matchup between two evenly-matched sides, and while this match has the lowest implied goal total, you're not rostering Shelvey for his propensity to score goals, even though he was on target last weekend against West Ham.
DEFENDERS
Diego Rico, BOU v. NEW (£15): Rico has scored at least eight fantasy points in five of his past seven starts, making him one of the most consistent defenders on Yahoo. His share of set pieces is a sight boost, though most of his value has come from Bournemouth's three straight clean sheets. Newcastle have scored nine goals all season (second-fewest in the league), giving Rico and the Cherries a good chance for another shuout.
Lucas Digne, EVE v. SOU (£16): The French defender provided a season-high six accurate crosses in last weekend's draw against Tottenham, which was a nice bounce back from a poor outing against Brighton. He and Gylfi Sigurdsson split set-piece duty, but Digne does enough from open play to warrant consideration. Southampton have shown they're no stranger to conceding goals, including nine-spot against Leicester, and Everton are in need of a win.
Danny Rose, TOT v. SHU (£15): Tottenham cruised to a 4-0 win in the Champions League this week and Rose was able to add his first assist of the season. The rest of Saturday's slate has close to even odds, while Tottenham are the clear-cut favorites despite being three points adrift of Sheffield United in the table. They'll benefit from playing at home, where Rose and the Spurs backline could make it consecutive clean sheets.
GOALKEEPER
Paulo Gazzaniga, TOT v. SHU (£15): Tottenham have the best clean sheet odds and Gazzaniga is inexpensive. The Tottenham shot-stopper has double-digit points in three of his past four matches and will face a Sheffield United side that are averaging just over a goal per match.
