RADIO
Welcome back for another English Premier League season, RotoBallers! We were fortunate to have the Euros this summer to hold us over until domestic leagues begin play. We have the first of 380 matches in the Premier League starting on Friday. I will be breaking down that game in full for you here. Keep reading this breakdown for my DFS soccer picks on RotoBaller and see how to have success on Friday's slate.
A week ago on my Twitter (@vdray5) I started a dialogue with some people in the community regarding improvements or additions for my content this coming up season. If you have any ideas for me for changes to make or things to improve on, don't hesitate to contact me.
The very large majority of my DFS content will be EPL or UCL-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! There was some great conversation over the four UCL slates we had this week, and the Premium Slack chat is as full as ever!
Featured Promo: For this week only, take 50% off any full-season or yearly Premium Pass on the site! Just enter discount code THANKS when checking out. Thanks for being a reader, and Happy Holidays! Sign Up Now!In this article, I will be providing you with my English Premier League daily fantasy soccer lineup picks for FanDuel on 8/13/21 for the slate that locks at 3:00 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!
EPL DFS Lineup Picks - Overview
Brentford vs Arsenal
The 2021-22 EPL season opens up with a bit of an odd matchup. We have one of the league newcomers - Brentford - making their first appearance in a Premier League game ever after seven straight top-half finishes in The Championship. They're a bit of an inexperienced team with only one player having played in the PL before, but they definitely have the talent to send the other 19 teams a message. They get to host an Arsenal (-115) squad that has been down the last few years. Still, Arsenal are favored slightly on the road and will likely be the chalkier of the two teams DFS-wise. The goal total over/under is 2.5. Let's take a deeper dive into this game.
Set Piece Takers
| Team | PKs | Free Kicks | Corners |
| Arsenal | Aubameyang, Lacazette | Xhaka, Soares | Saka, Pépé |
| Brentford | Toney | Jensen, Toney, Mbeumo | Jensen, Canos |
FanDuel DFS Forwards / Midfielders
Arsenal were a team that was pretty difficult to get right from a fantasy perspective last season. Their poor team form and individual player struggles were mostly the culprits. Hopefully, for the sanity of fantasy players, we get a little more consistency this season.
I have some interest in Arsenal on this slate. They've had a decent - but not great - preseason, and they're favored in this matchup against Brentford. Alexandre Lacazette ($15) has the best anytime scoring odds on this slate at +120. He had a nice run of goals last spring with five goals in seven games. Lacazette also netted twice in Arsenal's preseason games. Brentford allowed less than one goal per game in The Championship last year, however, this is a new level of competition they will be facing now. I like Lacazette to start this season off right and find the back of the net.
Emile Smith-Rowe ($8) is an elite way to save some salary on this slate. The young star is vastly underpriced, playing in a great spot in Arsenal's formation, and has shown tons of upside last season and this preseason. He could ery well be the highest-owned player on the slate, but he is still a top-tier play regardless.
Arsenal did not rush Bukayo Saka ($10) back into action after he competed for England at the Euros all summer. He has been playing more minutes in preseason tune-up games, and if he starts, he'll be in consideration especially at this price. At times his game isn't always very translatable to fantasy stats, however, he looks primed to take another step forward this year.
Let's step over to the Brentford side here. This team essentially ran through Ivan Toney ($13). He had involvement in 51% of their goals last season with 33 goals and 10 assists. Aside from about five minutes on the field as a substitute for Newcastle in 2015, Toney has no top-flight experience. The 25-year-old, however, seems determined to show his worth on a larger stage. His +155 anytime scoring odds are second on this slate only behind Lacazette. Not only does Toney score, but he also led the squad in big chances created last season. So, if Brentford can find the net here against a solid Arsenal defense, chances are high that Toney is involved.
Bryan Mbeumo ($9) and Sergi Canos ($8) are both decent mid-tier options if you're looking for someone to pair with Toney. While both have equal goal scoring odds in this matchup, Canos had a marginally better fantasy season last season. He also has a role on corner kicks for Brentford which adds to his value. For $1 cheaper, I'll take Canos, but Mbeumo is a solid play as well.
FanDuel DFS Defenders
Rico Henry ($8) has good attacking upside for Brentford especially in a 3-5-2 formation they have played some in the preseason. He's fairly priced on this slate, and his ownership will likely remain somewhat low for now until people realize his fantasy upside. We all know Arsenal had some major attacking struggles last season, and Brentford had a strong defense in The Championship last year. A clean sheet bonus is not completely out of the question here either.
I think Ben White ($9) is going to be very good this year for Arsenal, however, he's a little pricey in this matchup specifically. White is not a peripherals monster and Arsenal did not defend well in the preseason. They conceded in all six games which makes a clean sheet bonus unlikely here on the road against a Brentford side with some good attacking power. I would rather save $3 and play Pablo Mari ($6). He should get called on to start the season as a regular CB for Arsenal. He did well in limited games last year, and his price makes him very attractive on this slate.
Thanks for reading my EPL DFS lineup picks breakdown on RotoBaller and good luck!
