SOCCER

Premier League: 4 FanDuel Value Plays for Matchweek 25

Manchester City players are not often featured as value plays, but Ederson leads this week's picks despite slipping production.

On the day the transfer window closes, Premier League teams will be finishing up Matchweek 25. The focus will be on Wednesday's seven-game slate on FanDuel.

Matchweek 25
Wednesday, January 31st
Bournemouth at Chelsea
Burnley at Newcastle
Brighton at Southampton
Leicester at Everton
West Brom at Manchester City
Manchester United at Tottenham
Watford at Stoke


Sergio Aguero is the most expensive player on the slate at $13,000. A total of 17 forwards and midfielders are priced at or above $9,000. Eight of those players come from either Manchester City or Manchester United.

Defender pricing reaches $8,000 with Marcus Alonso back on the slate. He leads 31 defenders priced at or above $6,000. David De Gea is the most expensive keeper at $6,000 while the cheapest expected starters come in at $4,500.

With the lay of the land established, let's see where the value lies.

Forward

Glenn Murray ($6,500): Murray and Brighton are in one of the matches to target as they take on struggling Southampton. The Saints have failed to win across their last 11 Premier League matches. They also have not kept a clean sheet at St. Mary's Stadium since October.

This is one of those six-pointer games between two squads caught up in the relegation battle. Both teams need the points, and they will go for it with Murray leading the line for Brighton.


Murray should start up top in front of the creative Pascal Gross. With injuries piling up for Southampton on the left side of defense, Brighton should have a way to penetrate down the right side as well as giving Murray a chance to get in the box for crosses.

The last time Brighton lined up against Southampton, Murray scored a goal and finished with 27.25 FanDuel points. Murray also scored the only goal in Brighton's FA Cup win over Middlesbrough last weekend.

Midfielder

Darren Fletcher ($6,500): The last time Fletcher lined up across from Watford, he had his best FanDuel output of the year. The Stoke midfielder will be looking to match his 30-point game and tally another goal to lead Stoke to a much-needed win at home.

Although Fletcher scored in the last game against Watford, he is known more for his defensive abilities shielding the back line. He has at least one interception, one clearance, and two blocks in each of his last three Premier League games. Fletcher was credited for eight defensive actions at Watford in October.

Fletcher might have more freedom to get forward against Watford this time given their form. Watford have been shut out in their last two matches and have won just once in their last six across all competitions. Watford supporters got testy after their team's FA Cup loss this weekend with new manager Javi Garcia still trying to figure out his team.

Stoke will try take advantage of the disorder among the ranks at Watford, and the added chance that Fletcher contributes to the offense along with his usual defensive tasks increases his value.

Defender

Danny Simpson ($5,000): The focus will be on Everton in this matchup as Seamus Coleman is expected to be involved, but it is the Leicester right back who provides value. Simpson has not been off as long as Coleman, but he was able to come back this past weekend.

Simpson had nine defensive actions in the previous meeting between the Foxes and Everton this year. However, he has a chance of getting involved on the offensive end as this game can be full of goals. Combined, these teams average 4.8 goals per match over the last five league games against each other. Also, Sam Allardyce's comments allude to Everton taking a defensive mindset and allowing Leicester on the ball.

Jamie Vardy is always a threat, so Simpson could lump it forward and get a long assist as Leicester are sixth in the league in long balls this season.

Keeper

Ederson ($4,500): It is not often that a player from Manchester City ends up on the value list, but Ederson's price matches the lowest for any expected starting keeper. He also has a great chance for a clean sheet as City host West Brom.

Ederson has been consistent in his last three league matches -- scoring 10, 10.5, and 10.25 FanDuel points, respectively. He had three saves in each of those games.


He may not be too active on Wednesday, but West Brom's lack of scoring all season means a great chance for a shutout. West Brom have tallied just 19 total goals all season, and they have only seven goals on the road. Take advantage of the lower price on Ederson at a chance for a big reward.




Douglas Smith is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Douglas Smith also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username aquemini03. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his/her personal views, he/she may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his/her personal account. The views expressed in his/her
articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.