MLS DGW11 – Tips Fantasy Major League Soccer

MLS DGW11 – Tips Fantasy Major League Soccer

Here we are again, another round of Fantasy MLS to consider. And really, until the Euros start for you all, what else are you going to do with your summer until FPL starts back up? You may as well play FMLS to pass the time.

What I can’t figure out is why any of you would take my advice after last week’s showing on my part. In all honesty, I flubbed last round’s double selections in the worst way possible. Turns out Jermaine Jones isn’t the preferred captain of choice when you have players like Diaz playing twice at home. Oh well. What can you do?

But here’s the thing – any fantasy advice article can be solid gold. If you get onto an article writer that’s really on his game, you can ride his picks to victory. But if you’re savvy enough to see that a writer is on a bad turn, you can just pick the opposite of his selections and cash in. Fair warning, I’m trying extra hard to win this week – so pick against me at your own risk. Since this is the MLS, I can’t be relegated – so I plan on plugging away on this season until I absolutely win big.

And now, the weekly advice on yet another DGW.

#1) Know your DGW teams

There’s a bit of a mixed bag this week. I think we’re all probably pretty glad that we don’t have the usual suspects of Portland and SKC to consider – and just the change in decor on your team page this week will be reason enough to continue to log in and play the game. And even though there are only four DGW teams this week, we have some serious firepower to consider. Should be interesting to say the least.

#1A) Chicago Fire v NYRB (A), HOU (H)

Chicago…meh. Chicago had a DGW this last round and not one of their players scored enough to make the Dream Team. This isn’t a huge deal though because with so many DGW players on the board, it was a tough ask to outpace some of the superstars that played well in their round. The real issue you’re going to have to consider is the fact that Chicago are right in the middle of a severely congested schedule. The Fire were wonderfully scheduled to play four matches from May 11 to May 21. That isn’t due to any Cup schedules to work around at the moment, it’s just something that the MLS decided to do #BecauseMLS.

So what are you going to get with Chicago? Who knows. It’s nearly inconceivable to expect any single player to play another 180 minutes in this short span, so pick and choose very carefully. The only silver lining that I can see is that David Accam played 45 minutes in his return from injury in the second leg of DGW10. It appears that he’s set to play in some capacity in this coming round – but I’m not sure how much they’ll push him in his return to the pitch. Chicago are a bit of a landmine to me. Maybe take a player on a chance if it fits your budget need, but take care not to get carried away with their supposed ‘value’ prices this round.

#1B) NYCFC v TOR (A), NYRB(H)

Tommy McNamara has a goal or assist in each of his last four matches. You’re probably going to want to take a look at him this round. McNamara has the typical ‘long hair/slim headband’ look that a ton of young American soccer players have now, so be careful not to confuse him with a player of lesser quality. TMac (I guess that’s his nickname?) seems to be one of the few players who looked at David Villa and Pirlo and has decided to raise his game to be better with them. Sure, the MLS is full of old legends, but very few young players seem to benefit from what the old dogs can teach them – McNamara isn’t one of those players. So good on him. And given the length of this paragraph, I find him important enough to have on your squad this week.

Speaking of the DP’s in NY though, you probably want to pass on Pirlo this week. Sure he looks like he’s actually contemplating being fully involved in this little MLS experiment of his at times, but his average score over his last four matches is a mere 4.5 ppg – far too low for a player that costs more than $10. But Villa on the other hand is a must-have player. I’m kicking myself for ever dropping him in the first place, even when he wasn’t on a double. Villa’s last three scores are 9, 9 and 15 points. That’s pretty good all by itself. More impressive though is the fact that Villa has been durable and productive at the same time this season, and his average ppg for the entire year (10 rounds) is 8.5 points. That’s a great return that anybody would’ve been happy with had they kept him this entire time.

Now the last time that NYC played a double I said that if you picked up their GK or any defender, you deserve what you get, good or bad. I’m not a fan of Josh Saunders and Co. for my squad, but every now and again they show up strong. Too many valleys, not enough peaks though. Take them at your own risk.

#1C) NYRB v CHI (H), NYC (A)

I guess I’m not sure what to make of the Red Bulls. They had a horrible start to April, but then they finished the month strong with two straight victories. And we all thought that was the sign we were looking for to start snatching these players up again, right? Then they go on the road to Orlando and draw 1-1 and lose outright against DC 0-2. What?

But let’s just play the situation here. The Red Bulls have 3 wins at home this year and their road record is 0-5-1. So we just stop picking them for any road fixtures, right? The second leg of this DGW isn’t really a road game as it’s the ‘NY Derby’, so we don’t have to look at it as extensive travel for this squad that seems to wilt every time they’re asked to board and deboard an airplane. And we just talked about how strained Chicago are going to be this round…

You know what, buy Red Bulls players this week. I’ve talked myself into it. Kljestan, BWP, Felipe, Collin – whatever works for you. I think you’re going to see some big scores out of this group this weekend on both sides of the ball. The only caveat is that Toronto come down to play them next round, and they have a bye after that. So maybe limit yourself to what you can safely sell off in the coming weeks.

#1D) Toronto FC v NYC(H), CLB (H)

Here’s it is folks, the big one. When I think of Toronto on a DGW with two home fixtures all I can picture in my mind is Joe Pesci in Home Alone smiling and saying, “That’s the one, Marv. The Silver Tuna”.

Giovinco is a force of nature in our league here in the States. I think at times he must laugh to himself how easy it is to be a millionaire athlete in a league like ours. He makes it all look so effortless. And after he completely dominated the scoresheet with all of those road fixtures to start the year, did playing at home do anything for him? His last two matches at home yielded tallies of 9 and 20 points. He was simply a class above this last round.

And Giovinco will be front and center again this week as Altidore seems to have suffered another injury while taking a PK against Vancouver. That’s right, Altidore hurt his hammy taking a PK. The most surprising thing is that Giovinco didn’t snatch the ball out of Altidore’s hands to take the penalty himself. And now Altidore knows that when you try to score Giovinco’s goals for him, bad things will happen.

So we all know that Giovinco is a player you need to have – and honestly, don’t be a fantasy soccer hipster and not take Giovinco simply because everybody else is going to have him – but what about the rest of the squad? For starters, Michael Bradley has only once this year failed to hit at least 5 points in any match, and he often does a bit better than that. He’s a decent option for a steady return on points. But maybe most surprising is the fact that Toronto are still tied for second in the fewest goals allowed category (11), only Colorado are better.

So Giovinco is a must, Bradley is a maybe…but don’t exclude the Toronto defense just out of old habit. They have the goods to keep scores low for the other team more often than not.

#2) International dates looming

Perhaps the most frustrating thing about the MLS is the fact that they still haven’t figured out a way to play international dates and take a full week off from league play. It just doesn’t make any sense on the surface. We already know that they really aren’t concerned with scheduling teams with eight straight road fixtures…or four matches in ten days. But whatever the reason, we are going to start to have to worry about call-ups here soon.

We should know what the final USMNT roster will look like by May 20, and other countries will probably be releasing final details about the same time. GW12 may be impacted when these guys go to camp ahead of competition, but it’s something you’re going to want to take into account with players that you have that have already been mentioned in the provisional 40-man rosters that were released earlier. Just another hurdle for you to have to overcome in the coming rounds.

#3) Quick takes

LA play at home this week against San Jose – and it’s still not a bad time to have LA players in your squad regardless of DGW fixtures. San Jose have yet to win a road fixture this year, and looking at LA’s squad…a first win for the Quakes doesn’t sound likely. And just FYI, dos Santos has 5 goals AND 5 assists over his last 5 matches. The only player above him at this point is Giovinco. Other than that, dos Santos has separated himself from the pack. (*He will be affected by call-ups at some point for Mexico – but keep him playing this week if you got him.)
Orlando and Philly have the only DGW’s next week – so holding onto your Philly players from last week isn’t the worst idea. CJ Sapong is still a great option this week against DC.
GW13 and GW18 both have 8 teams on a bye. GW19 features a league-wide wildcard for all players to use to rectify the mess that will be made the week prior. But GW14? Nothing. Whatever changes you make in a couple of weeks for GW13 will have to be undone with your personal transfers alone. So two GW’s have the same conditions – but only one of those rounds will get a WC. Makes sense right? We’re all going to be mad about it when it happens, but prepare yourself now. FYI, loading up on DGW teams in these next two weeks could be hazardous. Toronto, Philly, NYRB and Chicago are all going to be on a bye in GW13. So pick them up now, but get ready for the fire-sale later.

#4) Captain Picks

Cap Giovinco. That’s all I have to say about that.

On the off chance that you are a true hipster…

David Villa and Sacha Kljestan are the second and third picks for captain this week. But honestly, not picking Giovinco could be the worst fantasy mistake ever. Just sayin’.

It’s all about the Silver Tuna this week folks.

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The podcast is below but if you don’t have time for it itself then the guys have a handy chalkboard with their picks on which is below also. (Or will be as ever, just as and when they post it themselves!)

Don’t forget to stop by mlsfantasyboss.com to catch up on their great weekly articles that lead into the deadline.

Or if you are after listening to more of Guy himself then be sure to drop in and give his Married Man’s Guide to Sports Addiction a listen!

To play the MLS game itself it’s fantasy.mlssoccer.com that you need.

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And last but not least, don’t forget to join the FF247 MLS League, Code is: 123-361

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MLS DGW11 – Tips Fantasy Major League Soccer This article was written by Guy Sanchez (FootyFantastic)

Follow @Guy_M_Sanchez