FanDuel Soccer: EPL DFS Helper for 9/16/23

Club football is back after the international break.

As always, we're covering FanDuel's main slate, which kicks off at 10 a.m. EST on Saturday. All betting lines come from the soccer odds at FanDuel Sportsbook, and they may change after the article is published.

Slate Overview

Sheffield United (+1000) at Tottenham (-390)
Over 2.5 Goals: -228 | Most Likely to Score: Son Heung-Min (-110)

Brighton (+195) at Manchester United (+120)
Over 2.5 Goals: -264 | Most Likely to Score: Marcus Rashford (+160)

Manchester City (-210) at West Ham (+550)
Over 2.5 Goals: -189 | Most Likely to Score: Erling Haaland (-140)

Luton Town (+430) at Fulham (-155)
Over 2.5 Goals: -118 | Most Likely to Score: Raul Jimenez (+180)

Crystal Palace (+370) at Aston Villa (-115)
Over 2.5 Goals: -122 | Most Likely to Score: Ollie Watkins (+150)

Brentford (+500) at Newcastle (-190)
Over 2.5 Goals: -159 | Most Likely to Score: Alexander Isak (+130)

Positional Breakdown
Forwards/Midfielders

We've got six games on the main slate this Saturday, varying from matches that could be close to others that look like potential blowouts.

For a change, the biggest favorite is not Manchester City. Instead, it's Tottenham. They've played well under new manager Ange Postecoglou, winning their last three matches. Son Heung-min ($22, -110 any time goal scoring odds) scored a hat trick last game and is the top goal-scoring option for Spurs.

James Maddison ($23, +170) has the highest salary on Tottenham. With his role on set pieces, he's been able to exceed 39 FanDuel points in three of four matches this season and has a higher floor than Son does. The matchup against a Sheffield United team that has allowed the second-most expected goals (xG) in the Premier League makes these two a nice pair to stack.

Manchester City players are still excellent options, especially Erling Haaland ($25, -140). He has the best goal-scoring odds on the slate. As has been the case this season, Julian Alvarez ($21, +140) makes for a good pivot off Haaland. He's taking some corners, his goal-scoring odds aren't much worse than Halaand's, and he has at least 23 FanDuel points in all four matches. Jeremy Doku ($16, +280) is a nice value play alongside either of these guys as a two-player Man City stack.

Newcastle are the next biggest favorite, but with how poorly they've played lately and the fact that this is the later game, I'd probably avoid their forwards/midfielders, with the exception being Alexander Isak ($18, +130).

A team that's in an interesting spot is Fulham. They have been the worst team -- by FBRef's xG model -- this season, but they've played one more game than their opponents, Luton Town, who could be the worst team in the league talent-wise. This makes Andreas Pereira ($15, +280) an intriguing option, as he's taken most of the set pieces for Fulham and is capable of chipping in with a goal.

The Manchester United-Brighton match is the closest one on paper, so most of the players in it will probably go overlooked. I'd still be interested in guys like Bruno Fernandes ($21, +280), Evan Ferguson ($19, +170), Karou Mitoma ($18, +280), and Rasmus Hojlund ($16, +160).

Added time -- Some nice values on teams not mentioned above are Yoane Wissa ($15, +370), Douglas Luiz ($14, +500), and Elijah Adebayo ($13, +410).

Defenders

With the new scoring system, the best plays at defender are ones who take set pieces. The ones who do that and are favored on this slate are Kieran Trippier ($14) and Lucas Digne ($13). Digne has been crossing more and racking up more defensive stats, but Trippier is probably more likely to score a goal with his prowess on free kicks.

Luton's Ryan Giles ($12) has 32 crosses in three games, and all of those games were tougher matchups than this game against Fulham. If you want to save a little salary off Trippier or Digne, Giles is a fine play.

Man City have two modest-salaried defenders in Kyle Walker ($9) and Ruben Dias ($9). They aren't the best for fantasy, but they can be used as values in the hopes they can contribute to a goal in a clean-sheet victory.

Added time -- The defenders who could get a lot of the defensive stats are always in play. The best low-salary defenders of that type on this slate are Amari'i Bell ($11), Marc Guehi ($10), Ben Mee ($10), and Yasser Larouci ($9).

Goalies

Guglielmo Vicario ($13) has the best odds to win and best odds to keep a clean sheet (+100). He has two clean sheets in four league matches this season and faces the team with the lowest xG tally in the league.

Brentford have just one win in four matches but own the second-best xG differential in the league. This makes me interested in Mark Flekken ($8) as a value keeper, as the salary doesn't truly reflect how well Brentford have played this season. They could sneak out a win at Newcastle.

Added time -- If you're going with a punt option, Alphonse Areola ($7) is a bit easier to stomach than Wes Foderingham ($7). Areola is at home, plays for a better side, and could benefit if West Ham try to park the bus and force City to shoot from outside the box.

Looking to build some EPL DFS lineups? Check out FanDuel’s daily fantasy soccer lobby to see all the offerings for today’s slates.

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The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author's advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.