After a busy four-game slate Tuesday, we have five games on Wednesday’s EPL DFS slate. A few of these games figure to be pretty lopsided, but with so many of the top sides losing games to teams at the bottom of the table in January, very little would be surprising.

The thing that stands out in Wednesday’s slate is the depth of the defenders. It is only a slight exaggeration to say all the fullbacks who send in crosses consistently are playing Wednesday. That has helped drive down the price of some defenders I would normally shy away from, though there are enough bargains on both sites that you don’t need to pay up at all if you don’t want to. I feel like you almost do need to pay up for attackers, though most of those will likely be midfielders and not pure forwards.

 

Goalkeepers
PlayerTeamOpp.DK $DK FPPGFD $FD FPPG
EdersonMCIBRN59008.871414.21
Burnley have been shut out 11 times this season, and they have just one goal in seven games in all competitions against City. Ederson probably won't get very many saves, but he is -155 to keep a clean sheet and City are -490 to win, and that is attractive even at an inflated price.
Nick PopeBRNMCI36009.93615.76
He's riskier than normal, but he is also cheaper than normal. It is also worth noting that Pope did not play in Burnley's 5-0 loss to City in November. Only Liverpool have allowed more saves to opposing Goalkeepers than City, and they have played one more game. Pope has at least six saves in three straight games, and if he can do that and hold City to fewer than four goals, he'll be perfectly serviceable for fantasy.
Lukasz FabianskiWHUAVL45007.18811.33
Opposing keepers have 74 saves and have allowed just 34 goals against Aston Villa. Fabianski had five saves and allowed just one goal against Villa back in November, and he'll be a very nice bargain if he can do that again.
Robin OlsenEVELEE47007.81512.00
Olsen will get the spot start for Jordan Pickford, and he is $4 cheaper on FD than Pickford is. I don't like the matchup against Leeds, but Everton are at home. I'm only considering Olsen on FanDuel, but he may be safer than Nick Pope. I'll feel even better about Olsen if Bamford, Raphinha and Rodrigo are all out.
Kasper SchmeichelLEIFUL53008.31212.93
Only three teams have been shut out more than Fulham this season, and only two have scored fewer goals. What's even better, Fulham are tied for 12th in opponents' saves. Schmeichel is like the goalkeeper version of Richarlison; I'm never on the right foot with either of them. That being said, his ceiling may be higher than Ederson's, even if he isn't quite as likely to get there.
        
Forwards
PlayerTeamOpp.DK $DK FPPGFD $FD FPPG
Dominic Calvert-LewinEVELEE600012.11920.49
I know he's struggled, but I just think he's too cheap on DraftKings, especially in this matchup. Outside of James Rodriguez or the fullbacks, I think playing Calvert-Lewin is by far the best way to target a soft Leeds defense.
Midfielders
PlayerTeamOpp.DK $DK FPPGFD $FD FPPG
Riyad MahrezMCIBRN850012.571917.97
Mahrez has eight goals in his last seven appearances against Burnley, including five in his last two Premier League games against them. Burnley have been better of late defensively, especially at home, and I think City looked like they missed Kevin De Bruyne against Sheffield. That being said, City have scored at least three goals in four straight games against Burnley and six of their last seven, and I think Mahrez is the most likely player to score from this game.
James MaddisonLEIFUL920014.861716.19
His floor is as high as anyone's, especially on DraftKings. Fulham haven't allowed a ton of goals, but this still isn't a scary matchup. Maddison is averaging 5.71 crosses, 2.29 chances created and 2.71 shots per start this season.
Mohamed SalahLIVBHA1000016.762226.24
I'm not sure I'm buying this narrative that Salah is better when Mane is out. But I'm not not buying it. Salah has two goals in each of the two games Mane missed, though he didn't have a single shot on goal against Brighton when Mane came on as a sub. Much like Mahrez, I think Salah is a better GPP play, but I won't feel comfortable fading him considering he is +360 to score two or more goals.
Xherdan ShaqiriLIVBHA70005.777.16
I think it is interesting that Shaqiri is cheaper than Curtis Jones. I think Shaqiri is easily the better play on FanDuel, and I would rather pay up for him on DraftKings if I could.
Helder CostaLEEEVE45006.2199.14
Costa is averaging more DK fantasy points than Xherdan Shaqiri and is $2500 less on that site. He's risky, but I don't trust Everton's defense, and I thought Costa looked good early in the season before he fell out of the starting lineup.
MidfieldersTeamOpp.DK $DK FPPGFD $FD FPPG
Harvey BarnesLEIFUL780011.161516.48
He has either a goal or an assist in six of his last seven games, including both that Jamie Vardy missed. Barnes won't hit very many crosses but he does have 11 chances created in his last four games.
James RodriguezEVELEE800015.121718.67
He hasn't been great lately, but He has at least four crosses in seven of his last eight games, and that's pretty good for someone with forward eligibility. Only West Brom have conceded more goals than Leeds this season.
Ademola LookmanFULLEI690011.521617.18
Don't let the matchup fool you. I don't love it, but Lookman did score in the reverse fixture. He is arguably the safest forward on the slate in DraftKings, and he's a GPP play on FanDuel.
Defenders
PlayerTeamOpp.DK $DK FPPGFD $FD FPPG
Joao CanceloMCIBRN570011.261519.72
No team has allowed more crosses than Burnley and only two teams have allowed more shots. He is more expensive on FanDuel but he is safer there, having scored at least 16.4 fantasy points in seven consecutive starts. On DraftKings I think Cancelo finds the happy medium of an elite fantasy defender without having to pay a ridiculous price.
Aaron CresswellWHUAVL490010.711313.97
Cresswell costs $1,100 less on oDraftKings than he did on Sunday, and while a relatively poor performance at Liverpool is partly to blame, mostly his price is being depressed by the crazy number of elite defenders on the slate. Aston Villa's defense is good but they do allow a fair number of crosses.
Kyle WalkerMCIBRN46006.73910.05
Oleksandr Zinchenko is probably safer, but Walker is cheaper. Burnley is by far the best matchup on the slate for defenders, and Walker is a lot more affordable than Joao Cancelo
Ben WhiteBHALIV27004.2479.56
We've been riding the Joel Veltman train for a while now, and if he cannot go, my guess is Ben White would slide over to right wing back. White is averaging 8.7 DK fantasy points in his last three games, and he's a steal if we get that from him this week. If Veltman is in the lineup, I'd like him yet again.
Kenny TeteFULLEI49008.561013.83
He only played nine minutes against West Brom Saturday but still managed to get off three crosses. No team on Wednesday's slate has allowed as many goals as Leeds, and Tete is as good a players as any to take advantage. He is a strong play on FanDuel as well, where he has double-digit fantasy points in every start this season.
PlayerTeamOpp.DK $DK FPPGFD $FD FPPG
Caglar SoyuncuLEIFUL25003.1778.09
He was averaging 12.2 FD fantasy points in four starts before suffering a groin injury, and he has only featured in four games off then bench since, scoring 16 FD fantasy points in 106 minutes. If Wesley Fofana is out, Soyuncu is a great play on FanDuel, especially for cash lineups.
Mason HolgateEVELEE37007.161016.22
He is playable in DK cash games, but I really don't understand his price on FanDuel. Holgate may not be quite as safe as Kenny Tete but his FPPG speaks for itself. It also helps that he had 15.4 FD fantasy points in the reverse fixture back in November.
Stuart DallasLEEEVE48009.061415.69
He's listed as a defender but he's been playing as an attacking midfielder, and he could play an even more prominent role in the attack if Raphinha and Rodrigo are out. He has 20+ FD fantasy points in four of his last eight games, making him a nice GPP play if you can afford him.

Example Lineups

As always, the lineups below are examples of lineups you can make using the players in the Playbook and are not for plug and play.

 

DK Cash  DK GPP
Pos.PlayerTeamOppFPPGSalary  Pos.PlayerTeamOppFPPGSalary
FJames RodriguezEVELEE15.12$8,000  FRiyad MahrezMCIBUR12.57$8,500
FAdemola LookmanFULLEI11.52$6,900  FDominic Calvert-LewinEVELEE12.1$6,000
MJack GrealishAVLWHU20$9,400  MMohamed SalahLIVBHA16.76$10,000
MMarc AlbrightonLEIFUL7.93$5,600  MCurtis JonesLIVBHA3.69$4,600
DKenny TeteFULLEI8.56$4,900  DVladimir CoufalWHUAVL9.64$4,700
DAaron CresswellWHUAVL10.71$4,900  DStuart DallasLEEEVE9.06$4,800
GKNick PopeBURMCI9.93$3,600  GKNick PopeBURMCI9.93$3,600
UtilJarrod BowenWHUAVL11.39$6,600  UtilHarvey BarnesLEIFUL11.16$7,800
    Total$49,900      Total$50,000
              
DK Pivot Cash  DK Pivot GPP
Pos.PlayerTeamOppFPPGSalary  Pos.PlayerTeamOppFPPGSalary
F     1 F     
F     1 F     
MIlkay GundoganMCIBUR12.07$8,1001 M     
M     1 M     
D     1 DAaron CresswellWHUAVL10.71$4,900
D     1 D     
GK     1 GK     
UtilJack HarrisonLEEEVE13.39$7,7001 UtilOllie WatkinsAVLWHU12.52$7,600
    Total$15,800      Total$12,500
              
FD Cash  FD GPP
PosPlayerTeamOppFPPGSalary  PosPlayerTeamOppFPPGSalary
F/MRiyad MahrezMCIBRN17.97$19  F/MRiyad MahrezMCIBRN17.97$19
F/MMohamed SalahLIVBHA26.24$22  F/MMohamed SalahLIVBHA26.24$22
F/MJack GrealishAVLWHU25.77$19  F/MHarvey BarnesLEIFUL16.48$15
F/MJames MaddisonLEIFUL16.19$17  F/MXherdan ShaqiriLIVBHA7.16$7
DCaglar SoyuncuLEIFUL8.09$7  DJoao CanceloMCIBRN19.72$15
DKenny TeteFULLEI13.83$10  DMason HolgateEVELEE16.22$10
GKNick PopeBRNMCI15.76$6  GKKasper SchmeichelLEIFUL12.93$12
    Total$100      Total$100
              
FD Pivot Cash  FD Pivot GPP
PosPlayerTeamOppFPPGSalary  PosPlayerTeamOppFPPGSalary
F/MIlkay GundoganMCIBRN17.84$161 F/M     
F/M     1 F/M     
F/M     1 F/M     
F/M     #REF! F/M     
DMason HolgateEVELEE16.22$101 DStuart DallasLEEEVE15.69$14
D     1 DKenny TeteFULLEI13.83$10
GK     1 GK     
    Total$26      Total$24