Editor's note: Welcome Rob Banner who'll be covering Soccer (Football to all you Non-Americans) for us. Really excited to have him on board and you can give him a Twitter follow @RobBanner_
The Premier League season is drawing to a close, there are just six gameweeks remaining, but there’s still lots to play for. Leicester City look like they may do the unthinkable and win the Premier League title, although Tottenham and Arsenal aren’t giving up just yet. The two Manchester sides are locked in battle as both teams look to secure the 4th Champions League spot and it’s very tight towards the bottom of the table, although, Aston Villa are already doomed. Anyway, onto my recommendations for Saturday’s EPL slate which will hopefully provide some opportunities to make a profit.
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Joe Hart – DK $3,800
Opponent – West Brom
After missing Manchester City’s last fixture, Joe Hart’s price has plummeted to $3,800 and probably would’ve been valued at $4,500 had he featured versus Bournemouth in their last Premier League outing. Thus making the English number one, the best option in the goalkeeping position this weekend. Furthermore, Hart faces relatively poor opposition at home, in the form of West Brom. This is significant, because goalkeepers receive five points for a victory and five if they keep a clean sheet and of all the teams featuring in Saturday’s slate, Manchester City are the most likely side to win to nil.
Artur Boruc – DK $3,700
Opponent – Aston Villa
Onto another goalkeeper who has an easy fixture, Artur Boruc. The Bournemouth keeper faces the worst side in the Premier League, Aston Villa. Villa have only scored 22 goals all season, that’s fewer than any other side, and therefore Boruc has a good chance of keeping a clean sheet. Moreover, Villa sit bottom of the Premier League and have loss 22 of their 32 games this campaign, thus making Bournemouth the strong favourites to win this match. As I’ve mentioned above, this is significant, because goalkeepers receives five points for a victory and a further five for a clean sheet, whilst they lose two points for each goal they concede, therefore a good goalkeeper is essential.
Leighton Baines – DK 4,900
Opponent – Watford
Aleksander Kolarov excluded, Leighton Baines is the most expensive defender available this slate and rightly so. First of all, Baines has a good fixture against Watford, who have struggled in front of goal, only Aston Villa have scored fewer goals this season. The main reason for me selecting Baines is that he’s very good going forward. He likes to get down the wing and deliver crosses into the box and he also takes Everton’s corners. Players receive 1 point each time they cross the ball, subsequently Baines is a very attractive proposition. The Englishman also takes Everton’s freekicks and penalties, therefore he scores more goals than most defenders.
Cesar Azpilicueta – DK 3,800
Opponent – Swansea City
A cheaper but good option alongside Leighton Baines in defence is Chelsea full back, Cesar Azpilicueta. He’s averaged 7.2 points per game this campaign and there’s a good chance that he’ll outscore his average against a very poor Swansea City side. Chelsea are a far better side than Swansea and as a result, Azpilicueta will get have numerous opportunities to get forward and deliver crosses. Swansea have also struggled for goals this season, therefore a Chelsea clean sheet is likely and this would earn all the Chelsea defenders an extra three points.
Aaron Lennon – DK 4,100
Opponent – Watford
Aaron Lennon has become a regular in the Everton starting eleven and is excellent value at $4,100, assuming he starts. He’s averaged 7.1 points per game this season, but this is slightly misleading because he’s featured five times from the bench and as a result hasn’t played the whole game. In Lennon’s last seven matches, he’s averaged 13.57 points per game which is an excellent return for a player who is valued at just $4,100. It should also be noted that Everton face Watford who have gone five Premier League matches without a win and it’s a fixture that should result in Lennon getting numerous opportunities to score some valuable points.
Jack Grealish – DK 2,500
Opponent – Bournemouth
First of all, ensure Jack Grealish is starting for Aston Villa before fielding him in your side. Should he start, he’s a superb budget option at $2,500 which will allow us to spend big on the forwards. Admittedly, Aston Villa have been woeful this season but Grealish has started very few matches and he has a favourable fixture at Villa Park against Bournemouth. The Englishman is capable of creating opportunities as well as scoring goals and as a result can be a great value play at a very low price.
Alexandre Pato – DK 4,500
Opponent – Swansea City
Alexandre Pato featured for Chelsea for the first time against Aston Villa last weekend after Loic Remy came off injured. He scored Chelsea’s opening goal from the penalty spot and scored 16 points throughout the match despite only playing 67 minutes. It looks like Pato will be the preferred choice to start up front ahead of Falcao and thus making him an excellent option at $4,500. He’s scored goals wherever he’s been in his career, whether that be, AC Milan, Corinthians or Sao Paulo and I’m sure Pato will score if given the chance for Chelsea.
Sergio Aguero – DK 8,800
Opponent – West Brom
It’s very difficult to ignore Sergio Aguero, especially when he’s facing a below average side. The Argentine has averaged 13.7 points per game this season, that’s more than any other forward available in this slate. Aguero has scored 17 goals in 21 Premier League appearances this campaign and he’s scored at this rate season after season since joining Manchester City. Aguero faces West Brom who are a good side defensively, but he’s more than likely to score against the Baggies who have conceded 37 goals in total this season.
Pedro – DK 4,600
Opponent – Swansea City
Chelsea forward, Pedro has been massively undervalued at $4,600 in this slate. He’s not a guaranteed starter, although his performance against Aston Villa last weekend was excellent and would presumably see him start again this weekend. Chelsea face Swansea City who I don’t rate very highly and we should see Pedro get forward on numerous occasions against a poor side. Pedro has scored six goals this season and assisted two and the Spaniard had a great scoring record in Spain. Finally, he’ll notably be coming into this match high on confidence after scoring twice in his last outing.
Max Gradel – DK 5,200
Opponent – Aston Villa
Last but not least is Bournemouth forward, Max Gradel. Since returning from injury in March, Gradel has impressed and has been an excellent point-scorer on DraftKings. He’s averaged 12.5 points per game since returning from injury for Bournemouth and this is largely because he crosses the ball a lot and draws a lot of fouls which are both worth points. The main attraction to Gradel was his opposition, Aston Villa the worst side in the League. They’ve conceded more goals than any other Premier League side, therefore we can expect Gradel to have a few opportunities to score.
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