RADIO
Welcome back, RotoBallers! I had taken some time off from DFS over the last week or so, but I am back for this slate on Wednesday. We have another decently sized EPL slate on Wednesday with four games! All of the games except for one will start at the same time too so we won't have to do a ton of guessing on starting lineups. Tuesday's games went well for my personal lineups, so hopefully, I can carry that over to this breakdown for Wednesday.
This is obviously a larger slate that any others we have had for EPL recently. We will no longer need to force in expensive plays purely due to lack of other options. With eight sides in action, there will be plenty of good plays with several different viable strategies as well. Keep reading this breakdown for my DFS soccer picks on RotoBaller and see how to have success on Wednesday's slate.
With the conclusion of the Bundesliga season, I have turned my focus to solely EPL now. If you want to chop it up with myself and other RotoBaller writers, consider becoming a premium member and joining our ever-growing community of DFS and fantasy sports enthusiasts! In this article, I will be providing you with my English Premier League daily fantasy soccer lineup picks for FanDuel on 7/8/20 for the slate that locks at 1:00 pm ET. Be sure to also check out our other DFS lineup picks for other active sports. You can always find me on Twitter @vdray5 if you have any questions. Good luck, RotoBallers!
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EPL DFS Lineup Picks - Overview
Manchester City vs Newcastle
Manchester City (-2.5) is by far the slate's largest favorite. However, with the league already decided some teams are playing uninspiring football. City was one of those teams as they lost to Southampton 1-0 their last time out. They have another top-tier matchup this week at home against Newcastle. Manchester City just beat Newcastle 2-0 on the road less than two weeks ago and they SHOULD roll in this game. The slate's highest goal total over/under also belongs to this match at 3.5.
Brighton vs Liverpool
Speaking of lackluster teams, in their two games since they won the league, Liverpool (-1.0) have lost to Manchester City 4-0 and beat Aston Villa only 2-0 where they did not find the back of the net until late in the game. Liverpool quite literally having nothing left to play for except pride and joy over their league title. They'll be playing on the road here against a Brighton side that has gone DWDLW in their five Project Restart games. Brighton aren't quite clear of relegation mathematically, but they can make a big step towards that with a good result here. Liverpool might be significant favorites, but this is not a place to stack them.
Sheffield United vs Wolverhampton
This is a matchup between two teams surprisingly in the top half of the table this season. Wolverhampton sit firmly in contention for a UCL spot next season. They have been one of the better teams since play returned going 3-1. Sheffield, on the other hand, look to be dropping out of the race for European football next season. However, the spread of this game is 0.0. It will be fairly evenly played, but there will not be a ton of action for fantasy purposes. The goal total over/under is a slate-low 2.0.
West Ham vs Burnley
West Ham (-0.5) are slight home favorites on Wednesday even though they sit 15 points below their opponent on the table. This likely has more to do with Burnley's recent struggles than it has anything to do with West Ham. West Ham also has a ton to play for as they sit only four points clear of relegation. Burnley, however, sit in tenth place. They won't gain much by winning and they won't lose much by losing. This could be one of those games where we see the worse team control the ball due to the circumstances under which they are playing. The goal total over/under here is also only 2.0.
*A quick note: EPL scoring on FanDuel has stayed the same as it was pre-COVID. This means that chances created are back to being worth three points and crosses will not give you any points.
FanDuel DFS Forwards / Midfielders
Is paying for a top-tier stud on a team who is no longer playing for anything still worth it? That is the million-dollar question as this EPL season comes to a close. Sure, Kevin de Bruyne ($22) has a prime matchup on paper at home against a weak Newcastle defense. Is City going to come ready to play? Or are they going to get shutout again? The same question can be asked about Liverpool. Sure, they should beat Brighton, but are we actually paying $20+ for guys on a team who are only playing for pride? I would feel more confident with City studs like KDB, Gabriel Jesus ($18), Raheem Sterling, ($19), Riyad Mahrez ($20), or Phil Foden ($16) at home against a poor defense than I do paying for Mo Salah ($21) or Sadio Mane ($21). Liverpool will be on the road against a solid Brighton defense who have been playing well during Project Restart.
One place to look for non-City/Liverpool attacking exposure is West Ham. They have been far better at home this year, and they are facing a Burnley defense that allows 1.6 goals per game on the road this season. They need to keep getting good results to stay in the Premier League for next season. They could benefit from a lackadaisical performance from Burnley here as they really aren't playing for much at all. Michail Antonio ($18) and Jarrod Bowen ($17) have formed a great combo up top for West Ham recently. Antonio has scored in his last two games and is averaging 25.3 FanDuel points per game since the restart. Bowen has not scored, but his three assists plus peripherals is good enough for 19.7 FanDuel points per game since the restart. You can start your lineup with one of these guys or you can pair them with a City stud.
Another one-off strategy is to target a guy like Raul Jimenez ($19). He and Wolverhampton still have a ton to play for, they're playing well with three wins out of four, and they're facing a slipping Sheffield defense (2.0 goals allowed in last five games). Jimenez himself has two goals in four games since returning. He has been the only real useful Wolverhampton player since the league restarted, but a value guy like Adama Traore ($12) can be used here too.
Some decent value plays on this slate are Declan Rice ($14), Aaron Mooy ($13), Ashley Westwood ($12), Yves Bissouma ($11), or even Josh Benson ($6) if he starts for that price.
FanDuel DFS Defenders
Normally, I only pay up for attacking defenders. However, James Tarkowski ($15) needs to be mentioned on this slate. He is averaging 22.6 FanDuel points (without his goal) over his last three games. West Ham will pressure Burnley's defense and Tarkowski should be busy again here. Plus, the other attacking defenders on this slate like Trent Alexander-Arnold ($15), Benjamin Mendy ($14), and Matt Doherty ($14) are not worth the price.
Aaron Cresswell ($13) grabbed my interest in the top tier. He has some attacking upside and gets good defensive peripherals too. He should be looking to get involved in this game on home turf where West Ham need a good result.
Newcastle's defense will be under siege for the large majority of this game against Manchester City. They have two top-priced defenders, but it makes so much more sense to save your money and ride Emil Krafth ($7) and/or Javier Manquillo ($7) instead. They are both great value plays and need only a few peripherals to be good plays.
I don't see any reason to shy away from Tariq Lamptey ($6) either for this price against Liverpool.
FanDuel DFS Goalkeepers
For a similar reason why I don't trust their expensive attackers, I find it hard to trust Liverpool and Manchester City goalkeepers. They are expensive and all it takes is one slip-up and they end with single-digit points. Alisson ($14) will be on the road facing a decent Brighton team who have shown they are still showing up to win games. Ederson ($13) does not look too attractive either even though he's at home with Newcastle scoring 2.0 goals per game in Project Restart.
Rui Patricio ($12) has kept three clean sheets out of Wolverhamptons's last four games. The same applies for win bonuses. He'll face a low-scoring Sheffield team this week who have struggled to win games lately.
I don't mind Mat Ryan ($6) either if you're fading Liverpool. Aside from a blowup against Manchester United, they have only allowed one other goal in three games since the EPL returned. Liverpool did not attack well in their last game even though they scored two late goals. If we see another lackluster performance from the Reds, Ryan has potential to score very well.
Thanks for reading my EPL DFS lineup picks breakdown on RotoBaller and good luck!
