What a difference a few weeks make. Sunday’s EPL DFS slate features a matchup between the last three Premier League Champions, and just a few weeks ago, it would have had major championship implications. Instead, Manchester City looks like the only team that actually wants to finish at the top of the table, while Liverpool have lost three of their last five games, including their last two at home. If Liverpool can somehow pull out a win they would be just four points back of Manchester City, but that seems nearly impossible considering the two teams’ current form.

The other games may actually be more interesting, especially for fantasy. Third-place Leicester City expect to get Jamie Vardy back, though we don’t know if he will start or how long he will play. They take on Wolves, who have struggled ever since their top forward, Raul Jimenez, went down against Arsenal. Wolverhampton’s form is actually really impressive when you consider they have scored in the first half just seven times this season and have conceded the first goal in nearly all of their games the last few months.

Sheffield and Chelsea are both playing much better of late, and while that could lead to Chelsea winning comfortably, that isn’t exactly a given, especially with Sheffield at home. That game will probably be pretty low scoring, but with all of the firepower new Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel has at his disposal, his team could be poised to finally score a bunch of goals.

 

Goalkeepers
PlayerTeamOpp.DK $DK FPPGFD $FD FPPG
Kasper SchmeichelLEIWOL50008.481113.25
Wolves have scored the fifth-fewst goals this season while they have allowed the seventh-most saves and eighth-most clean sheets to opponents. Schmeichel hits that sweet spot of having a decent floor and a nice ceiling at a reasonable price.
Edouard MendyCHESHU56007.681312.28
Sheffield are playing much, much better of late, but outside of two goals against Manchester United, their improvements have mostly been on the defensive end. I'm not sure Chelsea is as likely to win or keep a clean sheet as the oddsmakers think, but they probably do have the best chance of both.
Aaron RamsdaleSHUCHE38004.9677.66
Ramsdale has been very solid of late, allowing one goal with at least three saves in three consecutive games, including at both Manchester teams. Only three teams have allowed more saves to opponents than Chelsea, and while Chelsea has played better under new manager Thomas Tuchel, they have managed more than one goal in a game just once in their last eight games.
Forwards
PlayerTeamOpp.DK $DK FPPGFD $FD FPPG
Callum Hudson-OdoiCHESHU74008.751110.38
It is interesting to see a player listed at forward on DK and midfielder on FD who is actually playing wing back for his team. He hasn't been super consistent, but he was very impressive against Burnley and Wolves. His forward eligibilty makes him interesting for cash games, but mostly I think he is a GPP play.
Willian JoseWOLLEI55003.87137.73
I'm all for buying cheap forwards in GPPs since we know goals will come sooner than later. The difference between Willian Jose and guys we've had success with lately like Danny Ings and Dominc Calvert-Lewin is that those players are proven in the Premier League while Jose is not. That being said, Jose is cheaper than those players were, and it is reasonable to expect more from his as he adjusts to the new league. The fact that he's new to the league could help to keep his ownership down as well.
Midfielders
PlayerTeamOpp.DK $DK FPPGFD $FD FPPG
James MaddisonLEIWOL910015.231816.99
Even if Jamie Vardy starts, we won't know how many minutes he will play or if he will show any rust. Maddison has been great on both sites, whether Vardy plays or not. Maddison has at least 13 FD fantasy points in 11 consecutive games.
Harvey BarnesLEIWOL670010.891516.08
I was worried that Jamie Vardy's absence would hurt Harvey Barnes, and while that gernerally wasn't the case, Vardy's return should be neutral at the very least, and could even help Barnes. Barnes is better for FanDuel but he is playable on DraftKings, where he has at least 12.4 fantasy points in six of his last eight games.
RodrigoMCILIV40005.881010.13
He has at least three clearances in four of his last five starts, and Liverpool give up a ton of clearances. We're not really expecting attacking returns, but Rodrigo is a cheap cash play on FanDuel.
Ilkay GundoganMCILIV700012.391818.34
I think Liverpool are going to try to muck this game up and play for a 0-0 draw, and I think they could be successful. That being said, Gundogan has seven goals and an assist in his last 10 games, and he is still pretty reasonably priced. I think he is mostly a GPP play but I could get talked into playing him in cash games.
JorginhoCHESHU45008.191415.01
We are mostly interested in him because he is a cheap penalty-taker, though it certainly heps that he has six chances created in his last two games.
MidfieldersTeamOpp.DK $DK FPPGFD $FD FPPG
Mason MountCHESHU870013.041717.98
Mount is the only Chelsea attacker I really trust, both in terms of starting and producing. There is always a rotation risk with a new manager and a deep roster, but I think Mount is simply too good to be denied. He has at least three shots in each of his last two games and at least three chances created in eight consecutive starts. He has 54 crosses in that spand and that's not including his five crosses in seven minutes against Wolves a couple of weeks ago. Mount is a great play on both sites, and he is probably underpriced on FanDuel.
Marc AlbrightonLEIWOL56007.588.98
He didn't do much off the bench against Fulham, but I'm not holding that against him. He averaged 5.2 crosses per game in his previous nine games, and he is the safest mid-priced player on DraftKings.
Defenders
PlayerTeamOpp.DK $DK FPPGFD $FD FPPG
Ruben DiasMCILIV35005.621111.26
His fantasy numbers have suffered the last three games from playing three teams at the bottom of the table. Dias has four clearances in that span after having at least three clearances in six consecutive games before that. Liverpool have allowed 200 more clearances than the next closest team, and while they probably should have learned that throwing dozens of crosses into the box per game isn't the best offensive strategy, I'm not sure they have a better strategy against City. Diaz had four clearances in the reverse fixture and I think he can do even better than that this time around.
Cesar AzpilicuetaCHESHU51007.661014.35
I'm not sure we're going to see him score again anytime soon, though he looked great jumping into the counterattack against Burnley. More importantly for us, Azpilicueta has at least 12.5 FD fantasy points in seven consecutive games, including all three since moving to center back. Only Liverpool have allowed more clearances to opponents than Sheffield this season. That being said, Azpilicueta is overpriced on DraftKings unless he moves to wing back, which is unlikely anytime soon.
Caglar SoyuncuLEIWOL32003.7599.02
His price went up $2 after he scored 16.5 FD fantasy points agianst Fulham in his first start in three months. He's averaging 13 FD fantasy points in five starts this season, and that would be a solid return at his price.
Kyle WalkerMCILIV43006.73910.05
Liverpool's defense isn't exactly scary lately, and this is as cheap as we will ever find Walker. He is solid defensively and will probably send in a few crosses, though his ceiling isn't particuarly high.
Enda StevensSHUCHE33004.2699.81
Whoever plays at wing back opposite Jayden Bogle will be a nice value for Sheffield. The problem is that they play the late game, so our options will be limited by the time we actually know how they will line up. That being said, if we ignore Sheffield, I don't know where else we are finding a cheap defender on DraftKings. Even if Stevens starts, there is a chance he plays as part of a back three, which would be good for FD but bad for DK. If Stevens isn't at wing back, we can pivot pretty easily to Kean Bryan or Max Lowe, though we may not have any place to spend the money we saved.

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
FPedro NetoWOLLEI14.53$8,400  FCallum Hudson-OdoiCHESHU8.75$7,400
FBernardo SilvaMCILIV6.43$5,900  FPedro NetoWOLLEI14.53$8,400
MMason MountCHESHU13.04$8,700  MHarvey BarnesLEIWOL10.89$6,700
MJames MaddisonLEIWOL15.23$9,100  MMason MountCHESHU13.04$8,700
DKyle WalkerMCILIV6.73$4,300  DJames JustinLEIWOL9.61$4,700
DEnda StevensSHUCHE4.26$3,300  DEnda StevensSHUCHE4.26$3,300
GKAaron RamsdaleSHUCHE4.96$3,800  GKKasper SchmeichelLEIWOL8.48$5,000
UtilTrent Alexander-ArnoldLIVMCI13.2$6,400  UtilRuben NevesWOLLEI7.35$5,500
    Total$49,900      Total$49,700
              
DK Pivot Cash  DK Pivot GPP
Pos.PlayerTeamOppFPPGSalary  Pos.PlayerTeamOppFPPGSalary
F     1 F     
F     1 F     
M     1 M     
M     1 M     
DNelson SemedoWOLLEI7.28$4,6001 DNelson SemedoWOLLEI7.28$4,600
D     1 D     
GK     1 GK     
UtilMarc AlbrightonLEIWOL7.5$5,6001 UtilWillian JoseWOLLEI3.87$5,500
    Total$10,200      Total$10,100
              
FD Cash  FD GPP
PosPlayerTeamOppFPPGSalary  PosPlayerTeamOppFPPGSalary
F/MJames MaddisonLEIWOL16.99$18  F/MWillian JoseWOLLEI7.73$13
F/MPedro NetoWOLLEI15.70$18  F/MHarvey BarnesLEIWOL16.08$15
F/MMason MountCHESHU17.98$17  F/MJames MaddisonLEIWOL16.99$18
F/MIlkay GundoganMCILIV18.34$18  F/MIlkay GundoganMCILIV18.34$18
DRuben DiasMCILIV11.26$11  DJoao CanceloMCILIV18.88$15
DCesar AzpilicuetaCHESHU14.35$10  DCesar AzpilicuetaCHESHU14.35$10
GKAaron RamsdaleSHUCHE7.66$7  GKKasper SchmeichelLEIWOL13.25$11
    Total$99      Total$100
              
FD Pivot Cash  FD Pivot GPP
PosPlayerTeamOppFPPGSalary  PosPlayerTeamOppFPPGSalary
F/M     1 F/M     
F/M     1 F/M     
F/M     1 F/M     
F/MRuben NevesWOLLEI14.64$15#REF! F/MPedro NetoWOLLEI15.70$18
D     1 D     
DNelson SemedoWOLLEI12.83$121 DCaglar SoyuncuLEIWOL9.02$9
GK     1 GK     
    Total$27      Total$27