One of the customs I think we need to adopt from Europe is the naming of rivalries. For some reason I cannot put my finger on saying North London Derby just sounds cooler than saying Tottenham vs. Arsenal. I think that could be the most important game on the slate for fantasy, as well as the hardest one to figure out. Spurs really only have three attackers worth worrying about, though it is still difficult to know who to play in any given matchup. Arsenal are even more enigmatic. Bukayo Saka has fallen off after he was one of the best fantasy plays in the entire league for a couple of months. Aubameyang, Willian and Lacazette are all inconsistent, though no one would be surprised if any of them scored in this game.

 

Goalkeepers
PlayerTeamOpp.DK $DK FPPGFD $FD FPPG
Kasper SchmeichelLEISHU57007.91312.29
Schmeichel has allowed at least one goal in five consecutive games, with only one save in three of those games. He does have three wins in that span, and Leicester are the biggest favorites on the slate by far. Sheffield have been held scoreless in 15 of their 28 games this season, including eight of 13 on the road.
Lukasz FabianskiWHUMUN42008.09812.86
Only Manchester City have allowed more saves to opponents than Manchester United. United are also second to City in goals scored, so this could backfire, but I think Fabianski is safe. Only five teams have fewer goals against than West Ham, and Fabianski has 13 saves over his last four games.
Forwards
PlayerTeamOpp.DK $DK FPPGFD $FD FPPG
Oliver McBurnieSHULEI46004.31108.92
Leicester have allowed more headed shots than any team on the slate, and McBurnie has more than twice as many headed shots as any of his teammates.
Harry KaneTOTARS980019.152328.45
Kane was involved in all four goals against Crystal Palace last week, and he has six shots on goal and six chances created over his last three games. He has traditionally been very good in the North London Derby, and Arsenal lead the league in red cards. Kane's ceiling is arguably higher than anyone's.
Kelechi IheanachoLEISHU76004.68187.43
He has scored in each of his last two games, and while that streak probably won't last too long, I like his chances against a Sheffield team that have conceded 45 goals and kept only two clean sheets all season.
Mason GreenwoodMUNWHU49004.79115.14
Greenwood is United's only healthy forward, which doesn't bode well for their attack in this game. That being said, he had three crosses in his last start, and he has at least two shots in each of his last three starts.
Midfielders
PlayerTeamOpp.DK $DK FPPGFD $FD FPPG
Bruno FernandesMUNWHU1080020.982230.06
West Ham are fifth in the table, and they have a habit of playing up to their opponents. That is a bit worrisome for Fernandes, who has done next to nothing against the top six sides outside of scoring on two penalties. That being said, West Ham are not a top six side, and only three teams have had fewer possession this season. That should allow Bruno Fernandes to control the game from the midfield and rack up crosses and chances created. He is the top cash play on the slate if you can afford him.
Youri TielemansLEISHU780010.451414.50
It is pretty shocking his price hasn't gone up more. Tielemans has 16 crosses and five chances created in his last two games. He remains a great play until James Maddison and Harvey Barnes return or his price increases.
Marc AlbrightonLEISHU71007.2489.21
Albrighton has five chances created in his last three games, scoring double-digit FD fantasy points in each. That alone would make him a solid cash play, but it is even more impressive considering he has played 86 minutes total in those three games. If he starts, he will be in all of my lineups.
Wilfred NdidiLEISHU48006.571415.51
He has been great on FanDuel of late, with at least two clearances in five consecutive games and at least two chances created in three of those. He is a nice enabler on both sites, though I don't trust him for cash on DK.
Son Heung-MinTOTARS890016.862122.32
Son has been outperforming Bale in xG and xA, and while Son was awfully quiet against Crystal Palace, I still trust him for fantasy. That being said, I'm fine downgrading to Bale if we need to save some money.
MidfieldersTeamOpp.DK $DK FPPGFD $FD FPPG
Declan RiceWHUMUN33005.881310.79
Rice is on penalties, and that alone makes him a reasonable GPP play. Rice had three shots against Leeds last week, and I think he can keep that momentum going even in a tough matchup.
Defenders
PlayerTeamOpp.DK $DK FPPGFD $FD FPPG
Cedric SoaresARSTOT46007.44910.04
He has at least 6.4 DK fantasy points in six of his last seven games. He isn't always consistent with his crosses, but he usually scores fantasy points one way or another.
Enda StevensSHULEI41004.5599.83
Stevens started out wide and had four crosses and two shots against Southampton. This is a tougher matchup but Stevens should still be safe on DK at his price.
Jonny EvansLEISHU30003.74811.57
Prior to getting injured against Arsenal, Evans had 25 clearances over his last four games. Only Liverpool have had more clearances against than Sheffield, and Evans had nine clearances in the reverse fixture.
Toby AlderweireldTOTARS28004.321115.27
He had 10 clearances in the reverse fixture and he has 19 clearances in his last three games. Alderweireld is a solid FD cash play.
Harry MaguireMUNWHU39006.171214.54
He is second in the league in shots and shots on target among defenders. With all of their injuries up front, United may need to rely on getting Maguire forward for set pieces to generate offense. He is a GPP play on both sites.

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
FMason GreenwoodMUMU4.79$4,900  FKelechi IheanachoLEISHU4.68$7,600
FSon Heung-MinTOTARS16.86$8,900  FHarry KaneTOTARS19.15$9,800
MBruno FernandesMUMU20.98$10,800  MYouri TielemansLEISHU10.45$7,800
MYouri TielemansLEISHU10.45$7,800  MWilfred NdidiLEISHU6.57$4,800
DEnda StevensSHULEI4.55$4,100  DHarry MaguireMUMU6.17$3,900
DCedric SoaresARSTOT7.44$4,600  DCedric SoaresARSTOT7.44$4,600
GKLukasz FabianskiWHUMU8.09$4,200  GKLukasz FabianskiWHUMU8.09$4,200
UtilOliver NorwoodSHULEI5.22$4,600  UtilMichail AntonioWHUMU11.43$7,200
    Total$49,900      Total$49,900
              
DK Pivot Cash  DK Pivot GPP
Pos.PlayerTeamOppFPPGSalary  Pos.PlayerTeamOppFPPGSalary
FGareth BaleTOTARS11.55$8,4001 F     
F     1 F     
MMarc AlbrightonLEISHU7.24$7,1001 MMarc AlbrightonLEISHU7.24$7,100
M     1 MDaniel JamesMUMU6.92$5,200
D     1 D     
D     1 D     
GK     1 GK     
Util     1 Util     
    Total$15,500      Total$12,300
              
FD Cash  FD GPP
PosPlayerTeamOppFPPGSalary  PosPlayerTeamOppFPPGSalary
F/MBruno FernandesMUNWHU30.06$22  F/MKelechi IheanachoLEISHU7.43$18
F/MYouri TielemansLEISHU14.50$14  F/MYouri TielemansLEISHU14.50$14
F/MWilfred NdidiLEISHU15.51$14  F/MDeclan RiceWHUMUN10.79$13
F/MHarry KaneTOTARS28.45$23  F/MSon Heung-MinTOTARS22.32$21
DJonny EvansLEISHU11.57$8  DJonny EvansLEISHU11.57$8
DToby AlderweireldTOTARS15.27$11  DLuke ShawMUNWHU15.75$13
GKLukasz FabianskiWHUMUN12.86$8  GKKasper SchmeichelLEISHU12.29$13
    Total$100      Total$100
              
FD Pivot Cash  FD Pivot GPP
PosPlayerTeamOppFPPGSalary  PosPlayerTeamOppFPPGSalary
F/M     1 F/M     
F/M     1 F/M     
F/MTomas SoucekWHUMUN17.72$151 F/MTomas SoucekWHUMUN17.72$15
F/MSon Heung-MinTOTARS22.32$21#REF! F/MGareth BaleTOTARS17.56$18
D     1 D     
D     1 D     
GK     1 GK     
    Total$36      Total$33