I hope you are all buckled in for a wild mess of a final round, as we have (1) a triple game week for LAFC with them missing their two big star forwards to international duty, (2) nine teams on double-game weeks but many more players missing to international duty, and (3) single-game teams that don't play for another 10 days. All of this is crammed into one hectic and potentially lucrative final round of fantasy soccer. There are a lot of points on the table and some wild swings that could happen if you pick the right or wrong players. Let's dive in.
Week 31 Quick Rankings
Goalkeepers
Hugo Lloris (6.9m), Yohei Takaoka (9.4m), Pedro Gallese (6.3m), Stefan Frei (6.7m), Jayden Hibbert (ATL 5.8m)
Defenders
Ryan Porteous (8.7m), Nkosi Tafari (7.3m), Sergi Palencia (8.8), Mathias Laborda (10.9m *YCW), Jordi Alba (10.0m *YCW), Robin Jansson (6.3m), Alex Roldan (8.4m)
Midfielders
Thomas Müller (12.1m), Martin Ojeda (18.4m), Sebastian Berhalter (12.8m *YCW), Diego Fagundez (9.4m), Djordje Mihailovic (12.9m), Patrickson Delgado (7.9m), Diogo Goncalves (7.7m), Marky Delgado/Timothy Tillman/David Martinez (9.5m/6.8m/5.9m), Owen Wolff (10.4m), Pedro de la Vega (7.3m), Evander (17.1m), Hany Mukhtar (17.9m), Marcel Hartel (12.6m)
Forwards
Leo Messi (17.8m), Petar Musa (13.5m *YCW), Luis Suarez (11.5m *YCW), Tadeo Allende (7.2m), Jordan Morris (6.2m), Jeremy Ebobisse (4.7m), Sam Surridge (14.2m), Brenner (11.2m)
Week 31 schedule
Rather than scroll through every game this final round I'm going to highlight the schedules of the top teams to target.
LAFC – vs TOR 10/8, at ATX 10/12, at COL 10/18
LAFC has the best schedule simply by virtue of having three games, with the first one kicking off tonight at 7:30 pm Pacific. Of course, they will be missing Bouanga and Son, amongst others, for two of the games, but the ones who have 270 minutes on the table will have a very high ceiling. Everyone should have three LAFC players. Probably defenders, but I'll look at some of the mids and forwards below.
Toronto – at LAFC, vs Orlando
Two tough opponents, but Toronto is still on their record-breaking tie streak. They are impossible to put away lately, but they also are vulnerable enough to not get any wins themselves. It would be impressive to end the season getting even more points, though this is all much too late to even be close to the playoffs. They have some important players out for international duty, but I hope you weren't thinking of taking any of them for fantasy.
Miami – vs ATL 10/11, at NSH 10/18
Miami has one of the better schedules of the round. The big question being whether Messi plays one or both or no matches. Argentina is playing two friendlies in the U.S. over this international break, one of them in Florida on Friday and then the other supposedly being moved to 10/14 in Florida (away from Chicago on 10/13 with its particular political situation). Does Messi play all four matches? Does he skip playing in the Friday national team game to play with Miami on Saturday, then play the 10/14 and 10/18 matches? He is chasing the Golden Boot, and these are just friendlies. Anyway, that million-dollar question can be answered on Saturday. The rest of the Miami players that are usually viable are still viable, just watch out for the YCW on Alba and Suarez plus the international absences of RDP/Fray/Segovia.
Atlanta – at MIA, vs DC
A pretty reasonable schedule, but this is Atlanta and they will be missing Almiron, Lobjanidze, Miranchuk and Slisz for the game at Miami. They did look better against LAFC despite the 1-0 loss. It was a close match, but I am not so sure I'd be willing to trust Thiare for goals (or Latte Lath if he's back starting) or the defense for stops in both these games. Of course, DC is that bad and sending Guzan to the bench has helped the defense, so someone here may be worth a punt.
Orlando – vs VAN, at TOR
Hosting Vancouver in one of the longest possible road trips in the league, then going up north for a winnable game is a decent schedule as Orlando has a shot at home field advantage with a couple of wins. They could also fall to ninth if they don't get any points in their two games and Chicago and Columbus win theirs, so plenty is on the line. They are missing Freeman and Pašalić and Brekalo to international duty from their important players, but guys like Ojeda and Muriel should be good for the double.
Vancouver – at ORL, vs DAL
The Whitecaps have the inside track to the number 1 seed in the West, tied with SD on 60 points with a game in hand. If they reach 64 points, the only team that could pass them is LAFC winning out to get to 65 points. They will be missing Ahmed, Cabrera, Cubas and Nelson to international duty, plus Berhalter and basically all the remaining defenders are on YCW, and White is injured (again). So, it won't be the easiest task. It's basically up to Müller to carry the squad. He can certainly do so though.
Seattle – vs RSL, at NYC
Boy, oh, boy. Seattle is absolutely wrecked by injuries and absences for the RSL game, only able to field roughly 13 healthy outfield players for that game. Rusnak is suspended, Cristian Roldan, Vargas, Nouhou, Georgi, Brunell and Baker-Whiting are on international duty, plus Kim Kee-Hee is injured. Joao Paulo has barely played since coming back from injury and Pedro De la Vega has his own minutes limit to consider. The sole good news is young CB Stuart Hawkins is back in full training finally. I would caution against taking almost anyone from this team given the rough state against RSL and the tough cross-country trip to NYC for a 12 pm Pacific kickoff on decision day, certainly not any defenders. On top of all that, they are locked into the #5 spot unless Austin wins their two remaining and Seattle wins zero, and even in that case they can't fall lower than the six seed. We probably see a couple of the attackers have a decent week, but good luck guessing which from a handful of low-floor, high-ceiling options. It's tough out there.
Salt Lake – at SEA, at STL
RSL needs a win in either of their final two matches to clinch a playoff spot, with an eye towards possibly climbing out of the play-in round if results go their way. They have a golden opportunity to take advantage of a short-handed Seattle side this weekend, and then a surprisingly tough trip to STL on decision day. They will be missing a few of their key players against Seattle, with Luna, Gozo and Ojeda on international duty. And St. Louis has won three of their last four matches and have just one loss in their past five games with the one loss against LAFC. RSL has won three of their last five, with their two losses coming against LAFC as well (though they lost three in a row coming out of Leagues Cup). We could see a nice double week out of Goncalves, but unfortunately RSL's two forwards, Olatunji and Rwan, are not in the Fantasy game. Could be tough to pick the right players here but someone is going to have a good week I suspect.
LA Galaxy – vs DAL, vs MIN
The only team with two home games this round, the Galaxy will be desperately looking to avoid becoming the first MLS Cup Winner to Wooden Spoon winning team. They could help knock Dallas out of the playoffs in the process and deny Minnesota a shot at a top two spot in the West. They did just lose on the road to Dallas, but they can certainly score goals. Paintsil is on international duty, and Reus/Pec have been injured, but some reasonable options remain.
Dallas – at LAG, at VAN
They are eighth in the West, a point ahead of RSL, with a game in hand over Colorado and the tiebreaker over San Jose. They should make the playoffs but could really use points in these games. A win would mean they are in the mix for avoiding the play-in round. They are missing Paes and Musa is on YCW, but they do have some interesting options.
Austin – vs LAFC, at San Jose
The next of LAFC's opponents, they have one of the better schedules this round. LAFC will be on short-ish rest and then San Jose has proven completely unable to defend this year. San Jose also has only been shut out twice on the year, but that just goes to show how poor their own defense is as they need a win and help to make the playoffs. That means a great opportunity for Austin to try and move up the standings a bit, as two wins and help would push them past Seattle. No points for Austin also puts them in danger of falling to the play-in round. So, they will be pushing.
Thoughts and Players
Defenses
LAFC – The LAFC defense has been very strong lately, and it is totally reasonable to pick your three LAFC players all from the defense. Hugo Lloris (6.9m) is definitely the top GK pick, then I expect the top two defender picks are Ryan Porteous (8.7m) and Nkosi Tafari (7.3m) with Sergi Palencia (8.8) a very close third. Eddie Segura maybe does three at LCB as well, while Hollingshead and Smolyakov trade time at LB. So, while Son and Bouanga could have amazing days on decision day and there are some mids/forwards who could have decent triple weeks, I do like a full defensive complement.
Vancouver – I know they travel to Orlando, but home to Dallas should be a shutout given how well Vancouver has played lately. I think your best bet here is to take Mathias Laborda (10.9m *YCW) and risk the yellow card, as the only defender that isn't a yellow card risk is Priso and he may be kicked to the bench with Halbouni's return this weekend or on Decision Day.
Jordi Alba (10.0m *YCW) – Another double week for him on YCW, but he clearly has the highest ceiling for his attacking returns. He may need Messi active to really pop off though, so if you want him pay close attention.
Orlando – I really like them if Müller does not travel this weekend, otherwise they are just a solid DGW choice. Oddly, they had a streak of five straight CS earlier this year and then eight in twelve games, but the June 14th CS against Colorado at the end of that stretch was the last time they had a CS. So, pick them with caution. Think the guy you want is maybe Robin Jansson (6.3m) with Freeman and Brekalo on international duty.
Seattle – I don't really recommend it, but the short-handed Seattle side could do well at home against RSL and maybe make a game of it at NYC. If you want someone here, Alex Roldan (8.4m) is probably your best bet as one of the key pieces of this defense and a good option on offense. Ragen is highly likely to go 180 minutes as well, but he is on YCW.
I’m finding it hard to get behind anyone else, though any of the DGW teams could come up big. And not seeing any single-week defenders I can recommend enthusiastically.
Midfielders
Thomas Müller (12.1m) – He's been red-hot when playing, just check to make sure he makes the trip to Orlando. If so, he's a top option.
Martin Ojeda (18.4m) – Decent double game schedule for a player who has a crazy high ceiling and a team that has a lot to play for. Was not as hot against the Crew but is still a top-tier guy.
Sebastian Berhalter (12.8m *YCW) – An insane 17 points against San Jose last week, he's got a point to prove after missing out on the recent USMNT roster. His brace last week was half his goals on the year, so don't necessarily expect more, and he is on YCW, so he could have a pretty boring 3-point down week. But a very high ceiling.
Diego Fagundez (9.4m) – Two home games for a player driving LAG's recent run of goals. At least seven points in his last four games, with two games with assists and two games with goals. I think he's in my squad this week.
Djordje Mihailovic (12.9m) – He has not quite reached the heights of scoring that he did with Colorado, but he has goals in back-to-back games and has a reasonable schedule this round. I am interested.
Patrickson Delgado (7.9m) – The Dallas midfielder has a 5-point average over the past five weeks, 5.5 if we go back six weeks. Two road games for Dallas though, and his scores in his last four starts on the road are 2, 3, 1, and 2, so maybe not the best idea. Still, if he can bring his home form on the road for one of these games I believe we are looking at a great score.
Diogo Goncalves (7.7m) – The remaining heart of RSL's attack with Gozo and Luna out on international duty, he's a good DGW option especially against Seattle's shortened side and St. Louis's vulnerable defense. A high-value differential option.
Marky Delgado/Timothy Tillman/David Martinez (9.5m/6.8m/5.9m) – Delgado and Tillman are looking at 270 minute rounds most likely, and Martinez should have two starts in a high attacking position, so any of these guys could have major weeks. Just know that none of them have high average scores as they don't really do the kinds of things that fantasy values highly (Martinez only has one score of higher than 6 this year and only scored 6+ four times) and with Son and Bouanga out for two matches, goalscoring will be down. Major boom or bust choices here in my opinion.
Owen Wolff (10.4m) – He’s cooled a bit from a stronger run of form earlier in the season, but his 5-week average is still at 5.4 points despite three games with 3 or fewer points. His home game and then game at SJ makes him a pretty attractive prospect this week.
Pedro de la Vega (7.3m) – In his past four starts, he is averaging 7.5 points. His goal (and 8 fantasy points) in 65 minutes against Portland last weekend was an encouraging sign. He had been an 80+ minute player at one point this season, but some tendinitis probably limits him to 60-70 even with Seattle missing some guys. Still, I believe he is in line for two starts and has a pretty high ceiling if Seattle is clicking. The rest of the guys are all missing the RSL game or are minutes risks (Rothrock/Leyva).
Evander (17.1m) – Cincinnati can't quite reach the Shield but still have positioning to play for and get Montreal at home. Not a great week for Evander last week but NYRB have been tough at home. Should be much friendlier environment against MTL for Evander to shine as one of the few options worth a single-game pick in a DGW week.
Hany Mukhtar (17.9m) – 10-point average in his last three games and season average of over 8 points, plus a final home match against Miami's exploitable defense. Very enticing pick and may be more reliable than some of the double/triple picks.
Marcel Hartel (12.6m) – I have been sleeping on him a bit but St. Louis have been rolling the last few matches as Hartel has been unlocked again. He also has a 10-point average in his past three games and 9.8 in his past five. This week it is RSL at home. St. Louis does not have anything to play for as they are locked into 13th in the West, other than pride and entertaining their fans in the last home game of the season. So maybe Hartel puts on a show.
Forwards
Leo Messi (17.8m) – I think it is basically guaranteed he plays at least one of these games as he will certainly want to lock up the golden boot, and that alone would be enough to pick him. But we will see this weekend what his involvement is in Argentina's game on Friday. Ridiculous scores this year, he's basically guaranteed the MVP at this point.
Petar Musa (13.5m *YCW) – Two road games and on YCW, but he's still on a very hot streak as one of the best strikers in the league since Acosta left. Acosta last started week 19, with two 30-minute appearances after that before being transferred. Weeks 1-20 Musa had seven goals. Weeks 21-30 he has had 11, scoring in every game where he played more than 45 minutes. A few other players have been even better in the league, but that kind of pace could be MVP-worthy in other years. Oh and he has had just one yellow card in that span (coincidence? maybe?) with four before, so I think you are likely safe to take him despite the YCW (knocks on wood).
Luis Suarez (11.5m *YCW) – He's back in business. Risky given the YCW and his penchant for nonsense, but 16 points last round shows he still has it when he's on.
Tadeo Allende (7.2m) – He is likely starting with Segovia called up and has at times had a natural connection with Messi. 18 points last round and 7+ in the last three games he's gone more than 45 minutes. Perhaps could run into minutes issues on decision day which would be my main concern for him.
Jordan Morris (6.2m) – He will be getting the starts at forward for Seattle. He has not scored since his return from injury but his minutes have increased weekly and has been getting into good positions to score. I think it is only a matter of time. Risky pick with a low, low floor but a high ceiling. You could go for Jesus Ferreira instead, as he likely starts as the #10 against RSL and takes the set pieces and then gets another start against NYC with a lot of minutes, but his production has been uneven this year.
Jeremy Ebobisse (4.7m) – He should get two starts with Son and Bouanga and Ordaz away. He last scored in week 13 though, so it may be a lot to ask to pick him as one of your three LAFC players. I think I would rather pick Bouanga or Son for their single game if you aren't a believer in LAFC's defense and want LAFC players.
Sam Surridge (14.2m) – The top single-game option I think, he has the golden boot to chase and gets Miami at home to try and do it. I don't think he gets there since Bouanga and Messi have a slight lead, and Messi may get two games, but I think he's probably your best single-game option anyway.
Brenner (11.2m) – Cincy gets Montreal at home and he has been a great pickup to play as a complementary forward to Denkey. Over the last three weeks each of them have two goals, but Brenner has been very slightly the better fantasy pick since he has been starting.
Captain Considerations
Leo Messi – Often a single game is enough for him to be worth your captaincy, despite doubles from other players. It certainly helps though, and if he is playing Saturday then he is almost certainly playing on Decision Day and makes the choice easy. If he isn't playing Saturday, maybe you move him to the bench as you never know what could happen in the midweek friendly. But still, starting him and captaining him for his Decision Day score is not out of the question.
Thomas Müller – Reasonable choice for two games, he is one of the few who can outscore Messi so far in a head-on battle.
Ryan Porteous/Hugo Lloris/Nkosi Tafari/Sergei Palencia – Picking an LAFC defender is not out of the question. You'll need to pick correctly given potential rotation, but they could end up yielding the highest scores, especially if Messi is not even playing this weekend.
Petar Musa – His goalscoring streak is undeniable, I think he is basically a lock for double digit points this week... as long as he does not get a yellow card. So, there is some risk, but I think he's a very high ceiling pick this week especially given the schedule.
