DraftKings Fantasy Soccer: Monday World Cup Picks

MATCHES (EDT)

10:00 a.m: Saudi Arabia v. Egypt
10:00 a.m: Uruguay v. Russia
2:00 p.m: Iran v. Portugal
2:00 p.m: Spain v. Morocco

FORWARDS

Cristiano Ronaldo, POR v. IRN ($12,900): Portugal need a result against Iran to qualify for the knockout round, which means at least one Ronaldo goal likely puts them through. He comes in tied for the best anytime goal scorer odds, and while they aren't overwhelming, they are significantly higher than anyone else on his team. I always prefer to roster players on teams that have something to play for, and a loss to Iran could send Portugal home, so paying up for Ronaldo is likely to be a popular play.

Mohamed Salah, EGY v. KSA ($10,100): On the other hand we have Salah, who is playing for a team that has already been eliminated from knockout round contention facing off against another team that's already clinched their early exit. Salah is tied with Ronaldo for the best anytime goal scorer odds, expect Egypt actually have a higher implied goal total than Portugal. Salah has been quite disappointing in the tournament, mostly because of the shoulder injury that held him out of the first game, but this is the easiest matchup he'll get, giving him a great opportunity to explode.

Alireza Jahanbakhsh, IRN v. POR ($5,700): Jahanbakhsh was limited to just 16 minutes off the bench against Spain due to injury, but he's considered fit again heading into the vital match against Portugal. The matchup is obviously tough, especially with Portugal also needing a win to ensure they advance, but with a partial role on set pieces and lots of upside for peripheral stats when Iran have the ball, Jahanbakhsh could be the key forward to save money on to pay up in midfield.

MIDFIELDERS

Isco, ESP v. MRC ($9,200): Spain come in with the highest win odds and implied goal total, as they need a win to help secure the top spot in Group A. While forward Diego Costa ($10,000) has the highest goal scorer odds for Spain (and third-highest overall), Isco comes in with one of the best fantasy floors we've seen in the tournament, scoring 12.25 and 11.25 fantasy points in his first two games, respectively, all without a goal or assist. His 15 crosses are more than all but four players in the World Cup, and he's actually taken one more shot than Costa. Rostering Isco means you probably won't have enough money for two high-priced forwards, but there's little debate about who has the higher floor. You could try to make the argument that David Silva ($8,200) is worth consideration too because he's $1,000 cheaper than Isco, but I think that's a reasonable separation given their respective floors and ceilings.

Aleksandr Samedov, RUS v. URU ($5,100): The Russian set-piece situation has been quite fluid during the World Cup, with Yuri Zhirkov ($4,400, defender) and Aleksandr Golovin ($7,000) sharing corners in their opening match against Egypt (four to two, respectively) and then Samedov dominated those opportunities against Saudi Arabia, taking six of seven corners and finishing with 10 crosses. His open-play production is more valuable than what you'll get from Zhirkov, and the salary savings from Golovin makes him more attractive when comparing those two. The upside play continues to be Denis Cheryshev ($8,000), but he'll have to score a goal (he has three in two games, mind you) to pay off that salary because it likely takes you away from other goal scorers. The other side of this game has an important consideration as well, with Carlos Sanchez ($7,100) expected to start ahead of Giorgian de Arrascaeta ($6,500) and be over most, if not all, Uruguay corners. Sanchez's open-play crossing also works in his favor, but I am expecting this match to be really tight and I'm not sure I want to have a midfielder in this price range on the lowest favorite on the slate.

Salman Al Faraj, KSA v. EGY ($3,600): If it wasn't for Panama, we'd easily consider Saudi Arabia the worst team at the World Cup despite their decent defensive showing in a 1-0 loss to Uruguay, a match which was preceded by a 5-0 loss to Russia in the tournament opener. However, that doesn't mean they provide zero fantasy value, as we've seen Al Faraj score 4.75 fantasy points in both of the first two games. Sure, it's not a high total, but it's a decent return for his consistent sub-$4,000 salary, and he now faces an Egypt side that likely won't want a ton of possession, giving him more time on the ball to set up chances.

DEFENDERS

Gerard Pique, ESP v. MRC ($4,000): The Spanish fullbacks don't attack enough where I think it's worth paying up for them, which is why Pique becomes an interesting target given Spain's clean sheet chances. We've seen the good and the bad from Pique this tournament, as he had minus-0.5 points in the opener against Portugal but then 8.5 points, including a clean sheet, against Iran. Morocco are better than Iran, though they also have nothing to play for while Spain need a win. Paying down for both defender spots is a viable strategy if you don't believe in the Portuguese fullbacks and want to get as much attacking firepower as you can, and Pique at least gives us access to the biggest favorite. I should also note that there's a possibility Sergio Ramos ($4,500) could be Spain's penalty taker, if they draw one.

Jose Gimenez, URU v. RUS ($3,700): Paying up for Guillermo Varela ($4,700) doesn't seem worth it because he hasn't been a great attacking fullback, and I think you could make the same argument against Martin Caceres ($4,100). Even if the salary difference isn't much different to Gimenez or Diego Godin ($3,700), they're more likely to score on a set piece than Varela or Caceres picking up an assist on their few crosses. With this game likely to be a grind, I wouldn't rule out a clean sheet for either side, though we're targeting Gimenez or Godin for their defensive peripheral work and low price.

Editor's note: Gimenez was ruled out due to injury after this article was published.

Raphael Guerreiro, POR v. IRN ($5,600): The possibility of paying up at fullback has me considering Guerreiro or Cedric Soares ($5,700) because they have the most attacking upside at the position. They both have decent assist upside, but I tend to favor Guerreiro a bit more just because he can check more boxes on the game log. I'm not sure this is the slate to pay up at the position, though the mid-$5K midfielders don't offer as much as Guerreiro or Cedric, so they could get consideration for the utility spot as well.

GOALKEEPER

Igor Akinfeev, RUS v. URU ($4,600): If there was ever a day to simply say "pick the goalkeeper you don't have attackers against" this is it. With Portugal, Spain, Uruguay, Russia and Egypt all with legitimate goal-upside players you may be playing in cash, there are plenty of goalkeeper options who are reasonable plays. I keep thinking the Uruguay-Russia match will be really close -- and not necessarily high scoring -- and with reasonable options other than Luis Suarez and Edinson Cavani, particularly in cash games, I understand targeting Akinfeev at goalkeeper.