4 FanDuel Premier League Studs to Target for Matchweek 12

As is the case when playing any sport on FanDuel, it’s imperative to hit on high-priced studs, the players in which you’ve made the biggest investment. This is especially true with strikers in soccer as goals are often the difference between winning and losing in DFS.

Let’s take a look at some high-priced players -- all across the pitch -- who, despite costing a good chunk of change, are worth the investment.

This article is geared toward FanDuel's main slate, which begins at 10 a.m. EST Saturday and features seven matches.

This slate is a game larger than the usual main slate, and it's loaded, featuring four of the top-six clubs. That means there's no shortage of high-priced stars available, with 13 players at the forward and midfield position boasting a salary of at least $9,000.

As you would expect with so many top teams in play, we have some lopsided spreads. Manchester City, Liverpool and Manchester United are all 1.5-goal favorites, with United and Liverpool at home. Chelsea are a 1.0-goal road favorite, as well, so you'll have several routes to take when building your lineup.

Let's get to it.

Forward

Gabriel Jesus, Manchester City

FanDuel Price: $10,000

Manchester City's 2.5-goal implied total for their match at Leicester is the slate's top mark, and it's hard to fade the Citizens with the form they're in. City have shredded the Premier League so far this campaign, netting 38 goals in 11 matches while scoring at least 15 more goals than any other squad.

With their league-leading (and absurd) 65.4% possession rate, City are a good bet to control possession in every league match. That's especially true against Leicester, who are 17th in possession (44.0%), preferring to sit back and play on the counter. The Foxes are allowing the second-most shots per game (16.1) while Manchester City are second in shots per match (17.6). So, yeah, this lines up well for Pep Guardiola's bunch.

City have an abundance of attacking options from which to choose -- four Man City players sit in the top 10 in the EPL in goals scored, each scoring at least six goals -- and either Jesus or Sergio Aguero ($12,000) is a superb play.

Aguero has scored eight goals with three assists in eight total appearances (seven starts). Jesus has bagged seven goals with one assist in 10 total appearances (8 starts). Considering both have been super productive, it's tempting to go with Jesus, who offers $2,000 in savings, which could help you squeeze in another star player elsewhere.

Aguero's fitness is something to watch for here. He had some issues with dizziness over the international break but appears to be good to go on Saturday. If Aguero is held out, Jesus would get a big boost, though it would probably catapult his ownership level through the roof.

If you don't want to swallow the large ownership numbers that will likely come with either of City's high-octane strikers, you could check out Romelu Lukaku ($10,500). Playing at home as a 1.5-goal favorite, Lukaku may see less ownership than he usually would as a big favorite given the nature of this slate. Just know that Newcastle United have been stingy against forwards this season.

Midfielder

Philippe Coutinho, Liverpool

FanDuel Price: $9,500

Liverpool as a commanding home favorite is a situation we want to target. The question is which of the Reds' three midfield studs do we roster -- Coutinho, Sadio Mane ($9,000, questionable to play) or Mohamed Salah ($11,500)? This is going to be a tough decision all year long as you can make a case for any of them -- and, if possible, playing two of them may be the ideal route in the right matchups -- but this week, we'll side with Coutinho.

Coutinho's free-kick responsibilities -- and his wizardry on those kicks -- as well as his corner-taking duties give him additional chances to score, log an assist or create a chance. He's only started five matches this year after his summer transfer saga, but he's scored 2 goals with 1 assist this EPL campaign, averaging 55.6 passes per match and a team-best 4.2 shots per game.

Southampton is far from a pushover, but Liverpool is superb at Anfield, recording a 61.3% possession rate and taking a league-high 18.1 shots per match at home.

If you want to go with Salah, no one can blame you. He's on fire to start the season, scoring seven goals with two assists in 10 EPL starts. But Coutinho is just as potent, significantly cheaper and may see less ownership because of his slower start.

Defender

Harry Maguire, Leicester City

FanDuel Price: $6,500

Maguire was a good DFS producer last year at Hull City, racking up defensive actions playing for a side that spent a lot of time pinned back in its own half. Well, he's doing pretty much the same thing this year for Leicester.

One of the Foxes' summer signings, Maguire is putting up 19.9 FanDuel points per match, and he should be a busy, busy man against Manchester City. As we touched on above, the Citizens will likely run the show in this one in terms of possession, which gives Maguire a nice floor. The Foxes have played four matches this year against top-six clubs, and Maguire has averaged 21.81 FanDuel points in those clashes, scoring at least 19 points in three of them.

Goalie

Nick Pope, Burnley

FanDuel Price: $5,500

Pope has been a DFS monster since taking over as the Clarets' top keeper. He's averaging 20.2 FanDuel points per match this year, and he's scored at least 16 FanDuel points in seven straight outings.

Burnley's style of play puts their goalies in a dreamy spot for fantasy production. The Clarets are 18th in possession (43.9%) while surrendering a league-high 17.7 shots per match, but they've allowed only 9 goals through 11 matches. That means Pope is a safe bet to garner save volume, and he's also a threat to post a clean sheet, something he's done in four of his past six starts.

If you want to pay down, Simon Mignolet (4,500) is vastly underpriced this week. Liverpool's defense -- and Mignolet -- don't get much credit, but the Reds have allowed one goal at Anfield this season and have recorded a clean sheet in six of their past seven home league fixtures (dating back to last season). Southampton is a sweet matchup, too, as they rank 5th in shots per game (14.3) but 15th in goals scored (9).

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Austan Kas is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Austan Kas also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username akas247. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in his articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.