Rivalry week provided some intriguing outcomes including San Jose’s dominant win over the LA Galaxy and Vancouver’s 2-1 win over New England. But that’s behind us now as the the focus has already shifted to this coming weekend with an absolutely loaded schedule for Saturday night in particular. Here is a look at the optimal lineup for this weekend’s DraftKings MLS Daily Fantasy Leagues.
GK: David Ousted, Vancouver
Salary: $4,800
The Whitecaps are alone atop the Western Conference standings and they will have an excellent opportunity to add to that lead with a date against Colorado this weekend. The Rapids have are the worst team in the Western Conference standings and have scored an MLS-low 12 goals on the season. Ousted has been excellent for Vancouver and considering his reasonable price tag, it makes sense to roll with him for Saturday.
D: London Woodbury, New England
Salary: $4,600
The Revolution are coming off a tough loss to Vancouver but they should be able to bounce back with a better performance this week against FC Dallas. Woodbury has been fairly consistent this season and considering we can plug him in at under $5K we will use him in this spot.
D: Ambroise Oyongo, Montreal
Salary: $3,400
Montreal is right there in the mix of teams challenging for a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference and a home game against New York City FC represents the opportunity to earn an important three points. NYCFC has the third-fewest points in the MLS this season (17) and have score just 18 goals in 17 games. If Oyongo and company can contain David Villa, they should be in good shape for a clean sheet. He’s a solid option for the Impact based in large part on his very reasonable price tag that makes him a value play among this week’s MLS defenders.
M: Diego Valeri, Portland
Salary: $6,300
Portland has surged up the Western Conference standings with five wins in its last six games. They enter the weekend with 28 points, which is just four short of first place in the West. Considering they earned seven of a possible nine points against San Jose last year, they should be able to stay hot. Valeri has been a force for the Timbers and he should be able to find the scoresheet again this weekend whether via goals or assists.
M: Sebastian Lletget, LA Galaxy
Salary: $4,800
The Galaxy simply can’t afford to keep letting winnable games slip from their grasp and considering they haven’t lost a league game to Toronto FC since 2008, they could be in line for a win this week. Lletget isn’t a household name but he is the real deal for LA and his price tag makes him worth banking on for this week’s fantasy action.
F: Robbie Keane, LA Galaxy
Salary: $9,200
Sebastian Giovinco and David Villa are both tempting options here but considering the Galaxy’s matchup and Keane’s availability at under $10 K, we would rather use him in this spot. Keane hasn’t looked his best throughout the year but he is still an elite talent that is capable of breaking through at any instant. Toronto FC has allowed 19 goals on the season, which might seem low but they’ve only played 15 goals, which far less than many of the other teams. For example, DC United – who leads the East – has played 20. On a per-game basis, Toronto’s defense has been mediocre, so we’ll take a shot with Keane.
F: Kei Kamara, Columbus
Salary: $8,800
Columbus is another team that will have a favorable matchup at home and Kamara has consistently been one of the most lethal strikers in the MLS week in and week out this season. The Crew have been much better at home than on the road this season so we will bank on Kamara to get the job done for us.
FLEX: Juan Aguedelo, New England
Salary: $7,700
By passing on Giovinco and Villa at over $10 K at the forward spots, we can plug in another very dangerous forward in the FLEX spot with Aguedelo. New England should score one or two goals this weekend against FC Dallas. The 23 goals Dallas has allowed this season is the most in the West.
