The Premier League season continues this week with a ton of money up for grabs including the $20K equalizer that DraftKings will run for Saturday’s schedule. Building the optimal lineup for Saturday’s action will mean achieving the perfect balance between star players and sleeper plays, so it will be important to double back and check starting lineups in order to find the best possible starting XI. Here is a look at our optimal lineup for Saturday’s DraftKings Premier League fantasy soccer action.
GK: Adrian, West Ham
Salary: $5,000
Nobody expected West Brom to keep Manchester City’s explosive attack in check in its opener but they looked much better defensively in a 0-0 draw at Watford last week. They could be in line for their first three points of the season at home against Bournemouth this weekend. The newly promoted side is still looking for its first goal of the season following a pair of 1-0 losses to Aston Villa and Liverpool, and Adrian should be up for the challenge when tested in this game.
D: Ben Davies, Tottenham
Salary: $3,900
Leicester has looked in fine form with consecutive wins to open the season but Tottenham will arrive at King Power Stadium still looking for its first win of the year following some tough luck against both Manchester United and Stoke City.
This could finally be the week they get some bounces. Davies has the potential to jump into the attack and provide some offense in addition to his defensive abilities, so he looks like a strong bargain play for the defender position.
D: James Tomkins, West Ham
Salary: $3,500
Sticking with the theme of West Ham looking much better defensively, it makes sense to take a chance on Tomkins as a sleeper bargain play this weekend with a favorable matchup at home to Bournemouth. His offensive upside isn’t as high as some of the other options on the board but the price point makes him worth slotting in to this second defender position in order to save money for more important spots up front.
M: Marc Albrighton, Leicester
Salary: $6,900
Albrighton has been an absolute stud for Leicester so far this season and he is among the biggest reasons why they are now 2-0 on the year. Leicester will be tested by a resilient Spurs side that is desperate for its first win of the year. However, there is no denying Albrighton’s ability and the fact that he is still available at a very reasonable price makes him that much more attractive of a play.
M: Jason Puncheon, Crystal Palace
Salary: $6,400
Crystal Palace didn’t look nearly as good in a 2-1 loss to Arsenal as it did in its 3-1 win over Norwich the week before but Puncheon has been fairly consistent for The Eagles. They will have a much better matchup this week against an Aston Villa side that barely scraped out a 1-0 win over Bournemouth before losing to United by the same score last weekend.
F: Harry Kane, Tottenham
Salary: $10,500
Anybody who banked on Kane up front over the first two weeks of the Premier League season will be disappointed that their investment produced just four shots over that span. We are hoping that is enough to convince them not to turn back to the Spurs star striker again this weekend. It is only a matter of time before Kane breaks through and we are willing to invest $10.5K and take a chance on that it will happen this weekend against Leicester.
F: Jermaine Defoe, Sunderland
Salary $7,100
It sure didn’t take long for Sunderland to hit the panic button as they followed up a disappointing 4-2 loss to Leicester with an absolutely brutal 3-1 loss to Norwich in front of their home fans. It won’t get much easier with Swansea in town this weekend following its 2-0 win over Newcastle. We like Sunderland to show a much greater sense of urgency with Defoe leading the way up front.
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FLEX: Jonjo Shelvey, Swansea
Salary: $6,400
Shelvey has recorded an assist and six shots on goal in his first two games with Swansea this season and while we expect much more from Sunderland this weekend, we don’t expect them to suddenly be able to shut down the Swansea attack after allowing an average of 3.5 goals per game through their first two contests.
