This week we have a DGW starting this afternoon, with only Seattle (and SKC) left out of the equation. Sofascore has it as two separate rounds while Kickbase gives you the full DGW experience, like what we had recently. As before, I am assuming you are competent enough readers to figure out what to do on Sofascore after the midweek games, so I have one article for you up front with a general overview of the best picks that I see.
As always, make sure to check the Player Status Report and the Disciplinary Summary. The biggest surprise on the injury report is probably Petar Musa being questionable with an "upper body" injury. I have seen zero chatter or reporting about whether this means he will miss a game or more, as he played the full match against SKC this weekend, scoring the game-winning goal on a 97th minute PK. He was just called up for Croatia's games later this month so this is probably precautionary, but we'll see.
And for the DGW enjoyers, it is worth noting there are some big players on yellow card watch. Evander is the headliner, with Waterman, Urhoghide, Pereyra, Nico Fernandez, Lovitz, Iloski and Navarro amongst other notable names. Just know you are taking a calculated risk with these guys and make sure it is worth it. It definitely is for Evander; the others might be worth avoiding.
Rounds 24/25 Quick Rankings
Goalkeepers
Takaoka, Lloris, Bond, Dos Santos, Schwake
Defenders
Ocampo, Cheberko, Resch, Duah, Woledzi, Williams, Pierre
Midfielders
Evander, Biel, Gil, Sullivan, Mukhtar, Müller/Gauld, Haile-Selassie, M. Ojeda (M/F), Rodriguez (CLB)
Forwards
Messi, Griezmann, Bouanga/Son, Musa, Guilherme (M/F), Yeboah, Embolo
Rounds 24/25 schedule
I’ll be highlighting some teams I like for the DGW, as well as a couple for the individual rounds tonight and on the weekend.
DGW
LAFC - Possibly the best schedule of the bunch, with Red Bull at home and SKC on the road. That SKC match is enough to catapult LAFC to the top of the rankings even though their results have been quite poor for almost two months now. RBNY and SKC have had just as bad or worse results lately. I expect LAFC to score lots of goals and come out of this with a 4-6 point week.
Chicago - Some difficult matchups but they are both home games, with Miami and New England coming to visit. Chicago is third in the east, Miami is second and the Revs are fourth. I think Chicago will score goals, the question will be whether their defense can withstand this difficult stretch.
Vancouver - They showed some vulnerability, losing at home 3-1 to St. Louis this past weekend, but this week they have the Galaxy and Austin coming to town. These should not be difficult matchups for a team as good as Vancouver.
Charlotte - Two road matches but they are against Montreal and Cincinnati. Those two teams have shipped a combined 99 goals this year. Cincy has been quite strong at home so that will be a battle, but I think you can count on the Charlotte offense to score some goals.
Dallas - They had to work for it but got the win over SKC. This week they are at Minnesota and home against Portland. The Timbers have allowed 10 goals in their past five games, Minnesota has allowed 12 (of course, a big chunk of this is from Portland's 5-4 win over Minnesota this weekend). Dallas has generally proven themselves a step or two above the mid-tier teams in the West, though I am somewhat worried about their prospects if Musa cannot play.
Orlando - They have managed to climb into a playoff spot through the magic of Griezmann and are getting Martin Ojeda healthy. Their defense is still a mess, but they can likely beat Atlanta on the road and Toronto at home with their firepower.
San Diego - Double home week against San Jose and Philadelphia. They were skunked by Orlando last weekend but these should be points for the taking. And I think anytime a DGW team has two home matches, they are worth a look.
Colorado - A pair of 3-0 road losses have marred their recent schedule, but this week is a road match at Austin and a home match against Montreal. They've had shutout wins in each of their last five home games, and a road match against Austin (-13 GD, second-to-last in the conference) is not that daunting. Well worth considering.
DC - Double home this week against Columbus and Atlanta. Those two teams have played 23 road matches and have earned just 15 points. Of course, DC is tied for the worst home record in the East, but on the other hand they haven't played these two very weak road squads. Just beware that the visitors may be getting better as they have had significant makeovers midseason, while DC did not really do much of note.
Houston - Home to RSL and away at San Jose is a very nice schedule right now (assuming San Jose is still figuring out how to score again).
Wednesday Night (Rd 24)
Philadelphia - Home against Cincinnati is a pretty nice matchup. There should be goals and Philadelphia has been hot. Traveling to SD on the weekend is not as good of a matchup, but they could surprise.
Austin - Though I like Colorado's schedule, you could try to take advantage of Colorado's recent road difficulties. I would not recommend them at Vancouver, of course.
Atlanta - Home against Orlando has been a great time for teams to score plenty of goals this year. At DC is a reasonable trip, but Atlanta is also not a great road team. Nice job this past weekend taking a point off Miami, though.
Weekend (Rd 25)
St. Louis - After playing away at Portland (difficult right now) they get Minnesota at home (not as difficult). They may prove to be one of the top 3-4 teams in the West if current trends hold, with their early season struggles all that is holding them back from challenging Vancouver at the top.
After that, uhh, maybe try and pick the winner of the Galaxy vs Seattle match? Seattle is winless in like 120 days but has played better recently, has Joveljić in a bit of a homecoming, and will be more rested than the Galaxy, who have to play in Vancouver tonight. Otherwise, the DGW teams identified above should be enough for your focus.
Thoughts and Players
Defenses
Vancouver - Despite a couple of recent losses, they still have conceded only 21 goals all year. Now they have two home games. Ocampo was a surprise absence last weekend due to a migraine, but he is off the injury report and should be good to go.
LAFC - Look, I know their results have been quite poor recently, but I also very much like their schedule this week. With Porteous out, you might try Hollingshead or new-ish addition in Cheberko (who's very affordable).
Houston - One of the other best defenses in the league, home versus RSL and road at SJ has plenty of potential for one or two shutouts. The guy holding it down here is Resch.
San Diego - Another double home squad, I am not overly enthusiastic about their CS chances but Duah has been excellent in fantasy.
Nashville - Two road games including one at Miami on the weekend, so the schedule is not ideal. Their defense has been good enough to generally overcome that this year though, and Woledzi earns enough bonus points to keep him relevant (Schwake does too, to a lesser extent).
Colorado - Their recent home games have been rough but they have earned some strong clean sheets recently. Better weekend play, but owning them midweek should not be a huge problem at Austin. There are some tough choices here. Cannon is a high ceiling, low floor kind of guy; Holding is solid but does not have a high ceiling; and Williams was off to a very hot start but has cooled somewhat recently. I still like Williams best. Hansen is questionable at GK and has missed time recently, so I probably wouldn't go with their GK, especially for the DGW, unless you are sure he is starting.
Pierre - It's possible the incredible goalscoring numbers will revert to the mean for CBs, but it probably is totally fair to take advantage of his cheap price and try and ride the wave. I am not enthusiastic about Philly's schedule but some of these guys are so good they can score well in fantasy despite giving up a few goals.
Markanich - Even though Minnesota is basically donating goals to opponents, his offensive involvements keep him a top-tier fantasy option.
Midfielders
Evander - Beware that he is on YCW, but he often scores enough to double up 95% of other options anyway, so I think he’s still worth the risk.
Biel - Should have a very strong week, despite having two road games.
Gil - Two road games as well, somewhat more difficult schedule, but his quality has shined despite matchups this year.
Sullivan - He's delivering on the hype and is the best thing going for Philadelphia.
Mukhtar - Extremely disappointing outing against NYCFC, but he's still worth a look against some of the worse defenses in the East.
Müller/Gauld - Two home games is a fine time for them to have some great games. There’s the potential for minutes to be managed for one or both, though Gauld got some time off on the weekend.
Haile-Selassie - He's been on fire for the Fire. Though they have drawn the past three games, he has four goals in that span. On Sofascore, that's good for about a third of his total fantasy points for the season. It's possible this is a mirage in the middle of his desert of production – he only had 3 goals on the year before this stretch – but it's also possible the way he's playing now with this newer look attack for the Fire has unlocked something. Zinckernagel may be the smarter play, but he's significantly more expensive.
M. Ojeda (M/F) - He should be ready to start and has been one of those weekly star performance guys in the past. Now with Griezmann, I'm very interested to see what level he unlocks.
Rodriguez - Columbus spent a fair sum to bring Santi back into the league from Botafogo, and he's already scored a goal. If they're to have a turnaround I think he'll be a big part. Not available on Sofascore yet, he's priced at a super low $15.3m on Kickbase.
Forwards
Messi - What's there to say?
Griezmann - I've already talked about Orlando's good schedule, and he should be the main beneficiary. Ellis is also a very strong budget choice.
Bouanga/Son - You probably want in on one part of this duo to take advantage of their match against SKC.
Musa - Absolutely crushed it against SKC, I am a little worried about his injury designation but he may be worth some risk, especially on Sofascore where you can work around absences.
Lewandowski - Good things happen through him for Chicago.
Guilherme (M/F) - After a week off and a week seemingly getting back to health, he was back to his old self against Charlotte. No goals but very active across the field. He was 8/9 on duels and had 4 key passes. Strong chance he's back to being a top tier option going forward.
Yeboah - A big part of Minnesota's offensive outburst. Not a top option this week I think but well worth considering if you want someone lesser owned.
Embolo - A budget choice on Kickbase, he already earned a PK and scored it against Miami playing about 100 minutes of the game. Very reasonable schedule and could do for Atlanta what they were expecting Latte Lath to do.
Captain considerations
Messi - It may be boring to see his name here first every week, but boring doesn't mean incorrect.
Bouanga/Son - I am kind of expecting them to have 5 G+A over the DGW at a minimum.
Biel - Maybe not the smartest choice for a player with two road games, but I'm excited for him this week anyway.
Müller - Two home games for Vancouver could see him in the top 5 scores for the week. He's got such a high ceiling, just beware that he could be a huge disappointment.
