RADIO
Welcome back, RotoBallers! We had another full week of UCL action and a Friday EPL game to get us to the weekend. Matchday 31 in the English Premier League kicked off Friday with a nice single-game slate, and now we have three more games Saturday. There will only be two games on the main slate on FanDuel, and I have another full breakdown for you all. Keep reading this breakdown for my DFS soccer picks on RotoBaller and see how to have success on Saturday's slate.
The very large majority of my DFS content will be EPL-related, however, there is more soccer than just what is being played in England. If you want to chop it up with myself and other RotoBaller writers about non-EPL leagues or other sports, 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 4/10/21 for the slate that locks at 10:00 am 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
Liverpool vs Aston Villa
The early game on Saturday features two teams that once sat in 1st place earlier this season who have both taken some serious falls from grace. Liverpool (-190) have been trying to claw their way back up to a top five spot with two straight wins in the league against Arsenal and Wolves. However, they just lost the first leg of their UCL quarterfinal tie against Real Madrid 3-1. The name of the game for Aston Villa has been inconsistency. Aston Villa had been struggling to score with just one goal in four games prior to their 3-1 win over Fulham last weekend. Liverpool will likely be ready to continue their win streak in the PL and avenge their shortcomings during UCL this week at home. The goal total over/under is a slate-high 3.0.
Crystal Palace vs Chelsea
Chelsea (-195) are the slate's largest favorite as I write this just edging Liverpool as they travel across London to take on Crystal Palace. Chelsea's unbeaten run under Tuchel was ended in ugly fashion after a despicable 5-2 loss to West Brom. They followed it up nicely with an important 2-0 "away" win in their UCL game against Porto. Chelsea are hanging on for dear life in the race for a top four spot, and Palace will not make it easy for them. Chelsea have not scored many goals on the road this year, but Palace's home defense is not as stout as it has been in years past. They should play well enough to win and dominate ball possession in this game. The goal total over/under is 2.5.
FanDuel DFS Forwards / Midfielders
Mo Salah ($22) is likely going to be pretty chalky on this slate, but still, all signs point to playing him. He is the most likely anytime scorer on the slate at home against a defense that has just one clean sheet in their last five games. Salah is in nice form as well with a two-game goal streak for Liverpool. Aston Villa are in the bottom half of the league in allowing both SOGs and chances created which should help boost Salah's floor in this game. He is one of the best plays on the slate with not many other enticing pay-up attackers.
Timo Werner ($21) and Sadio Mane ($20) are both far out of form, and I'm not going to chase Ollie Watkins ($19) against Liverpool on the road especially without Jack Grealish ($18). That leaves just a chalky Salah remaining at the top of most people's lists along with another in-form Liverpool attacking in Diogo Jota ($18). Jota laid a goose egg against Real Madrid during the week, but he is in good EPL form with three goals in two games. He should do well in this matchup and can absolutely be paired with Salah.
Mason Mount ($17) continues to be one of the best players on the Chelsea squad. He is showing some true goal upside in the second half of this season with six goals in all competitions in two months. Mount's floor has been strong too, and he has a good floor again here against a Palace defense that allows sixth-most shots on goal and sixth-most chances created. Chelsea should control the majority of the ball in this game which will give Mount plenty of opportunities.
As the projected starting lineups sit right now, the value attackers on this slate are quite literally the worst I have ever seen. Douglas Luiz ($7) is about the only attacker worth considering who is expected to start under $15. We will need to monitor Chelsea's lineup come Saturday for some possible mid-tier or value attackers worth playing. Tammy Abraham ($14) is back in squad contention, but he has missed a lot of time with an ankle injury. I'll be looking for either Callum-Hudson Odoi ($13) or Christian Pulisic ($12) to get a start - and either would make building a lineup much easier with their price tags in this good matchup.
FanDuel DFS Defenders
Liverpool force the most clearances by far out of any team in the league (34.5/game compared to 25.9/game for Burnley who are second). They also lead the league in blocks allowed and are high in tackles and interceptions. That all points to targeting Aston Villa defenders, and they do have several defenders that can collect tons of defensive stats. Tyrone Mings ($14) leads the team in clearances and should absolutely feast in this game environment. He also gets a good number of other stats which will come often against Liverpool. Matty Cash ($10) is the other obvious play here. He actually averages more fantasy points per game than the other two Villa defenders, but he's cheaper.
Trent Alexander-Arnold ($15) has had some downfalls defensively this season, but he has been able to be more effective attacking for Liverpool recently with at least two chances created in nine straight EPL games. The attacking upside is definitely there with TAA in this game as well as a possible clean sheet bonus if you can find the money to pay for him.
Reece James ($8) is stupidly cheap here for Chelsea. He collects good defensive stats and has attacking upside. Marcos Alonso ($11) is a great defender to target as well with his attacking upside in a game where Chelsea should dominate the possession. Three of his last four EPL games have been 20+ point games. Clean sheet bonuses also look likely for James and Alonso.
FanDuel DFS Goalkeepers
Edouard Mendy ($13) is my favorite goalkeeper on this slate. He has the best odds at getting a win bonus on the slate's largest favorite. He also facing a poor attacking team in Crystal Palace who only average 1.0 goals per game on the road. Chelsea's defense has been tight under Tuchel with seven goals allowed in 16 games in all competitions. That includes the five goals they just allowed to West Brom, so they only allowed two goals in the other 15 games.
I like Alisson ($11) some here as well. Liverpool's defense has clearly not been great, but Aston Villa's scoring has slowed down some without Grealish. Liverpool are still big home favorites here, so Alisson should get a win bonus. Villa are also good enough to force Alisson to make some saves which will boost his floor. He could have a great fantasy performance with both bonuses.
Thanks for reading my EPL DFS lineup picks breakdown on RotoBaller and good luck!
