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Welcome back, RotoBallers! We had an awesome week of Champions League soccer Tuesday and Wednesday. My FanDuel article for the four slates were strong with the best coming for the main slate Wednesday with tons of successful goal calls. There's a full weekend of EPL action now, and the RotoBaller soccer team will look to stay hot! We have a fun five-game slate on our hands Saturday, and I have another full breakdown for you all here. 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 9/18/21 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
Burnley vs Arsenal
Arsenal (+105) finally got their first win of the season last weekend against Norwich. They'll look to build a winning streak Saturday in a nice matchup against Burnley. Burnley have struggled mightily this year going winless in their first four tries. This is not expected to be that great of a match for fantasy purposes, but I wouldn't completely eliminate it from your list of games. The goal total over/under is 2.5 with the under at -125.
Liverpool vs Crystal Palace
Liverpool (-475) have been rolling to start the season with four wins in five games in all competitions. They secured a nice 3-2 win over AC Milan on Wednesday in UCL play and host Crystal Palace in a great matchup on Saturday. Palace have been better since their opening week 3-0 loss to Chelsea with clean sheets against Brentford and Tottenham. I highly, highly doubt they keep Liverpool out of the net in this game. This is a fantasy spot where there are several good plays on both teams. More on that coming up. The goal total over/under is 3, 3.5 with the over still at +100.
Manchester City vs Southampton
Manchester City (-600) also got a nice UCL group stage win this week, and they did so scoring six times against RB Leipzig at home. They have an elite matchup Saturday at home against a weaker Southampton side. They have some strong attacking momentum coming into this game - and if they can keep that going - watch out. The goal total over/under is a slate-high 3, 3.5 with the over still at -122.
Norwich vs Watford
This is a matchup between two newly-promoted squads who are not off to good starts this year. Watford won their first game against Aston Villa and have lost three games since. Norwich (+120) - on the other hand - are suffering from four straight losses. They'll be at home here against one of the other weaker teams in the league looking for their first win. This is another one of those games that we are not really focusing on fantasy-wise. The goal total over/under is 2, 2.5.
Aston Villa vs Everton
The late game on Saturday has Aston Villa (+145) hosting Everton in an intriguing matchup. Everton have yet to those this EPL season with three wins and a draw to Leeds, while Aston Villa have a mixed bag of results. I'm slightly surprised to see Everton as the underdogs, but I guess home-field advantage is a thing and we saw it work this week in UCL action. This should be a somewhat even game which will mean there are good plays on both teams that I will cover soon. The goal total over/under is 2.5.
FanDuel DFS Forwards / Midfielders
Mo Salah ($23) has started this season off white-hot. He is a VAR decision away from having scored in all of his five games so far this year, but nonetheless, three EPL goals in four games is great form. Salah is -155 to score at home against Palace which are the best odds on the slate. He has been getting great peripherals as well making his floor/ceiling combo the best on the slate. He's my top option on Saturday.
Last year, Crystal Palace's defense was uncharacteristically poor. They look like they might have turned a corner now with two clean sheets, but taking on Liverpool at Anfield is one of the most difficult matchups in the league. Liverpool has the potential to score multiple goals on this slate making both Sadio Mane ($21) and Diogo Jota ($20) viable. Both have two goals in four league games, good peripherals, and good goal-scoring odds at +120 and -105, respectively. It's not a must to pay big bucks for a second Liverpool attacker with the other great plays on Saturday, but it is one way to approach this slate.
Manchester City have a great matchup at home against Southampton, they are the largest favorite on the slate, and they are coming into this game just days after scoring six against RB Leipzig. The question isn't whether or not to get City exposure, it's who to play. Kevin de Bruyne ($23) is clearly one of the best midfielders on the planet, but there's no denying he's not in the best form dating back to the end of last season. Paying top dollar for KDB makes my stomach turn until he starts to produce fantasy-wise. I can't get behind Gabriel Jesus ($21) either. He has struggled for many months with his form in front of the net, and he doesn't even seem to be Pep's first-choice striker anymore.
Instead, I would recommend saving a few dollars and rostering Jack Grealish ($20). Grealish is averaging 23 fantasy points in his last three EPL games. He has a good floor with his ability to create chances in this dangerous attacking group, and he has real goal upside (+150) in a game where his team are two-goal favorites. Ferran Torres ($19) brings big goal upside at a fair price in this matchup. He actually leads this game in anytime goal odds at +105 and will likely go under-owned on this slate with the other popular names available.
Ilkay Gundogan ($14) is one of my favorite cheaper attackers on the slate. He fits very nicely in a full or mini Manchester City stack.
Outside of the Liverpool and City chalk on this slate, there are actually several good spots to consider Saturday. Danny Ings ($19) has two goals and one assist in three games this year and has a good matchup at home against Everton on Saturday. You can run him back with some Demarai Gray ($18) exposure for the same price to attack Aston Villa's defense that has not been very good to start the year. Gray has scored in three straight games for Everton, and you can continue to ride his hot hand (foot?).
Watford's defense has not kept a clean sheet so far this year, and it is unlikely that they do so on the road against Norwich. Teemu Pukki ($18) took the EPL world by surprise two seasons ago and is back for more. He scored his first goal of the year at home against Leicester, and now he has solid +140 anytime scoring odds on Saturday. Pairing him with Pierre Lees-Melou ($12) is a good GPP strategy as a low-owned ministack.
You can get even riskier in GPPs by getting a Watford piece with some Norwich. Watford has an elite matchup against Norwich - the worst defense in the league. Their goals have all come from different players this year, and they're going to be a little tough to predict this year. Ismaila Sarr ($18) and Emmanuel Dennis ($17) are the two Watford attackers I am looking at on Saturday. Sarr has the better goal odds and has created more chances this year.
From a value perspective, I already mentioned Gundogan. I also like John McGinn ($13) paired with Ings, Dwight McNeil ($14) or Ashley Westwood ($13) at home against Arsenal, Oriol Romeu ($8) for some peripherals against City, and Thomas Partey ($6) if he starts.
There are a ton of different ways to go about picking your attackers on Saturday. This is a great slate for GPPs and for playing multiple lineups.
FanDuel DFS Defenders
On the last few Liverpool slates, I have been recommending the Salah/Trent Alexander-Arnold ($15) pairing. It's been awfully successful, and they're both set up for good fantasy games again. TAA has three straight 25+ fantasy point games in the EPL, and he had a fantastic fantasy game Wednesday against AC Milan. I get that there are a ton of top-priced attackers to play on this slate, but you have to think about TAA like a $15 midfielder. He has a better floor and ceiling than any attacker at that price.
There are three Crystal Palace defenders $10 or less, and they are all firmly in play on this slate. They have one of the best matchups for defenders who rely on defensive stats against Liverpool. Joel Ward ($10) and Tyrick Mitchell ($9) are my two favorites. They are cheap enough in this matchup to even be paired together if looking to punt twice at DEF.
Max Aarons ($11) has some solid appeal on this slate. He has created at least one chance in all of his games except in a brutal matchup against Manchester City. There are not going to be a ton of matchups to play wingbacks for Norwich this year, but at home against Watford is a plus spot for Aarons.
I don't often recommend Kyle Walker ($7), but he is too cheap to ignore on this slate. He has an elite matchup to get involved in the attack opposite Joao Cancelo ($13). Walker is also the cheapest defender expected to start on the slate. He needs just a few defensive stats and a clean sheet bonus to be of value. Any attacking stats he adds in on Saturday is topping on the cake.
FanDuel DFS Goalkeepers
Ederson ($13) and Co. had one of the league's best defenses last season, and they're off to another strong start this year. They have conceded just one goal in four league games to Tottenham. They did just allow three to RB Leipzig in UCL action on Wednesday, but I think Guardiola and the team use this as motivation to improve for Saturday. Ederson has the best odds at getting the win bonus on this slate and very strong odds to add on a clean sheet bonus.
Alisson ($12) also has one of the better chances for a win bonus on this slate at home. Liverpool's defense looks like it's back to the same high quality it was back in 2019. They should dominate possession stats in this game and give Palace very limited opportunities to score. I think Alisson joins Ederson in getting both bonuses on Saturday.
Thanks for reading my EPL DFS lineup picks breakdown on RotoBaller and good luck!
