No fantasy soccer fan ever wants to overreact based on what happened the week before but having that type of restraint could be difficult this week. Watford is coming off a pair of impressive wins over Aston Villa and Norwich, and with so many reasonable priced players available on their roster, it only makes sense that we will take advantage of it this weekend. Here is a look at the optimal lineup for Saturday’s DraftKings Premier League Daily Fantasy Leagues.
GK: Heurelho Gomes, Watford
Salary: $3,300
Gomes hasn’t been the most consistent goalkeeper from a fantasy perspective over the course of the season but he produced a solid performance last week with a clean sheet win over Norwich City. He is in line for another strong day with a favorable matchup versus Sunderland this Saturday.
D: Nyom, Watford
Salary: $3,300
Nyom has been Watford’s best defender from a fantasy perspective this season and his consistency on the back end makes him an easy pick to plug in to our lineup.
D: Nathan Ake, Watford
Salary: $2,700
Ake hasn’t been as productive as Nyom but the fact that he plays substantial minutes for a Watford side that we have already endorsed this week is important. When you combine that with the fact that he is available at such a reasonable price, it only makes sense to plug him in here.
D: Virgil van Dijk, Southampton
Salary: $2,900
Southampton is winless in its last three but they are bound to break through eventually. While Crystal Palace isn’t the easiest opponent, we are willing to trust van Dijk as a productive defender available at a decent cost.
M: Kevin De Bruyne, Manchester City
Salary: $7,800
The money we saved on our goaltender and defender positions allows us to spend big on the attacking positions. We begin by plugging in the most expensive midfielder on the board with De Bruyne. He has been outstanding since arriving at Manchester City and should be in for another strong performance as City looks to bounce back from last week’s loss when they clash with Swansea.
M: Ashley Young, Manchester United
Salary: $4,200
United has certainly experienced its share of troubles both in the Premier League and Champions League, and the focus remains on the offense as they look to get their attack on track. Young is available at a pretty good price so we will take a chance on him in this spot.
M: Junior Stanislas, Bournemouth
Salary: $4,1000
Bournemouth will be looking to add to United’s misery this weekend and Stanislas has been excellent for them all season. The fact that he is available at just $4.1K is a bonus, so you might want to keep an eye on him as the one play that should be a lock in most lineups based on production potential versus price tag.
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F: Odion Ighalo, Watford
Salary: $6,200
Ighalo and fellow forward Troy Deeney stole the show as the top two fantasy forwards in the Premier League and considering their cost, it it’s a good business decision to go back to them. Ighalo is up to nine goals in 15 games this season and we hope he reaches double-digits on Saturday.
F: Troy Deeney, Watford
Salary: $5,300
Deeney actually had the stronger overall performance of the two Watford strikers last week with a goal and an assist. Considering he is almost $1K cheaper than Ighalo, it makes a lot of sense to go back to him. The scoring potential is certainly there and it’s clear we are banking on Watford coming through again.
FLEX: Graziano Pelle, Southampton
Salary: $6,700
Pelle has six goals in 14 games this season and is a good complement to the Watford tandem up front with a high potential to produce this weekend. Pelle is a little more expensive than Ighalo but not enough that we have to completely break the bank.
FLEX: Daley Blind, Manchester United
Salary: $3,200
With just over $3K left over to spend on our final FLEX spot, we’ll take a chance on a player with high potential – even if he hasn’t been the most consistent player this season. United is coming off a busy week and will need Blind to step up so it makes sense to take a chance on him as one of the top players that we can still afford.
