The Premier League season will resume with a full slate of games on Boxing Day as 16 different teams will be in action. That will mean a lot of choices to make in DraftKings daily fantasy leagues but if you want to win you might want to start with narrowing down your options to the best matchup on the board to begin win. Here is a look at the optimal lineup for this week’s DraftKings EPL Fantasy Leagues.
GK: Claudio Bravo, Manchester City
Salary: $5,700
Manchester City will need to play with a sense of urgency when they take on Hull City in a game where they absolutely need to lock in three points. Bravo has been excellent for Manchester City this season but they are looking up at both Chelsea and Liverpool and can’t afford to give up any more ground if they are going to challenge for a league championship. City should be able to keep the Hull City attack in check and that could mean a strong performance from Bravo as he attempts to pick up another clean sheet win.
D: Gael Clichy, Manchester City
Salary: $4,000
Hull City has been limited to just 14 goals in 17 Premier League games this season and their inability to score should work out favorably in terms of stacking City’s goalkeepers and defenders this week. Clichy has been a consistent play on the back end and at $4K he should make for an excellent value pick in EPL fantasy this week.
D: Nicolas Otamendi, Manchester City
Salary: $3,900
The fact that Hull City is buried at the Premier League table makes us very confident in doubling down on Manchester City’s players with a pair of strong value defender picks. Otamendi is one of those players at under $4K and he will benefit if City can shut the door on Hull’s attack.
M: Raheem Sterling, Manchester City
Salary: $8,600
Sterling was excellent in City’s win over his former team in Arsenal and we are banking on him delivering another strong performance against the worst team in the Premier League. Sterling has registered a point in each of his last two games and he could be on the brink of a major statistical breakthrough.
M: David Silva, Manchester City
Salary: $8,100
Silva is another player that will look to extend his point streak against Hull City after registering three points in his last three games. City could break through for three or four goals against Hull on Boxing Day so we are putting all of our stock in their ability to capitalize on the most favorable EPL fantasy matchup on the board.
F: Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Manchester United
Salary: $9,000
Our first venture away from City’s roster is to lock in Ibrahimovic, who might also benefit from a favorable matchup when United clashes with Sunderland. Ibrahimovic has four points over his last two games alone and could be in line for another multi-point performance in Monday’s EPLfantasy leagues. Manchester United is currently in fifth place in the standings table with 30 points in 17 games.Their 24 goals scored are the sixth most in the EPL.
F: Jermain Defoe, Sunderland
Salary: $6,800
After locking in Ibrahimovic as the highest priced player on our board, it makes sense to roll with Defoe as our second striker option based on price point and overall potential. Defoe went a couple of games without a point before registering an assist in Sunderland’s 1-0 win over Watford and he could be primed for an even better performance on Monday when Sunderland attempts to keep up with United. Sunderland is rarely a team we look for when it comes to EPL fantasy outside of Defoe. They have scored just 15 goals in 17 games so far this season and are currently in 18th place in the Premier League standings table.
FLEX: Gary Cahill, Chelsea
Salary: $3,900
Chelsea will look to celebrate the holidays by extending their win streak and lead atop the Premier League table and they have a favorable matchup with Bournemouth. Cahill has registered clean sheet bonuses in three straight wins for the Blues and it wouldn’t be a surprise if he registered another in Monday’s competitions.
Click here to get the latest England Premier League betting lines, totals and props for every single game this week!
