The rankings below are based on Major League Soccer's official fantasy game and cover all games in Week 4. While they can be used for DFS purposes, they are done with a focus on the league's season-long game.
If you have any questions or feedback, please feel free to leave a comment below, or hit up JD on Twitter @dfsMLS.
With Christian Ramirez called in to the USMNT, and Josh Perez with the U-23s, Bob Bradley looks like he will be forced to give us our Dio start! He has scored a lot of goals in a short amount of MLS minutes.
With international callups and injuries ever-present in the LAFC midfield, Blessing could once more be thrust into a midfield role that he excelled in last week.
Blessing is safer and cheaper but Rossi could pack a much bigger punch. He'll probably be the odd man out in many fantasy lineups this week, but should be in consideration.
For my sanity, I try to avoid entering the mind of Brad Friedel on a weekly basis, but I'm pretty sure Penilla should be playing more than 45 and 6 minutes in the previous two matches. With his talent, and the lackthereof elsewhere on the roster, Penilla needs to be a focal point each week. I'd like to think Friedel gets him going at home against the expansion side.
Sometimes he looks like he belongs among MLS forwards. Sometimes he puts the Bad in Badji. The motivation could be here against his former team, though.
With virtually zero other options, either Fafa or Accam will have to move in from the wing to the #9 spot (or technically in Accam's case, move from the bench to the #9).
The third forward spot is wide open for whatever catches your eye this week. If you want to leave it open for one of Teal/Agudelo/Caicedo against FCC, I'm cool with that.
You'd like to see more bonus points through three matches from a team's midfield focal point, but against FCC the Revs will have chances and Gil is the best bet to be involved. I wouldn't overthink this one unless you truly find his price to be prohibitive to the rest of your plans.
Rested (because he stepped on someone), at home, and playing a team missing their foundational defensive midfielder and goalkeeper. Fabian was already doing the heavy lifting for Philadelphia and will be tasked with even more this week.
It's uncertain whether he will be ready to play, but if he is, the matchup is tantalizing. RSL have a laundry list of absences at all levels of the field and LAFC will be happy to exact revenge on Mike Petke's side for last year's shocking playoff defeat.
Rza put in the work last week with an assist and two key passes, but just as importantly six tackles, seven interceptions, nine recoveries, and six crosses (only two accurate). The bonus point potential coupled with a nice fixture against visiting Orlando make Rza a great value this week. The only problem is figuring out which three Red Bulls to prioritize.
He's not the fantasy force he once was, but against a Union side missing a couple of pieces, Pipa could certainly turn up with a vintage performance. Visiting Philly has never seemed to affect him in the past.
Hustle per $ is off the charts with Muyl, but predicting when his production will come is pretty difficult. If you're cool with a handful of safe points and the price rise, go for it!
This may or may not be useful, but on the off chance Horta starts (10-25%?) this is where I'd rank him. Coming back from a quad injury and hasn't unlocked his potential in LA yet, but he showed some signs in the preseason and LAFC need some bodies in the midfield - especially if Lee Nguyen isn't ready.
It's important to note that these player rankings don't factor in price or opportunity cost. Realistically, using Atuesta in one of your 3 LAFC slots would be pretty foolish this week with attacking upside above him in the lineup and the best clean sheet chances of the weekend behind him.
Five bonus points in his only home match of the season. Medunjanin has been exposed on the defensive side of the ball lately, but he can still lasso a handful of fantasy points in the attack.
With Aaron Long on national team duty, Parker will pair up with former Orlando City Lion Amro Tarek. Red Bulls should have a good day, but it's no guarantee these CBs have instant chemistry and grab the clean sheet.
With a certain price rise and a recent penchant for goalscoring, you could do worse than Sauro. That said, we've got a team on the road missing some key pieces and another goal is unlikely so he's far from a lock.
With Murillo and Long both out for New York this week, we've got a pair of cheap defenders here. Assuming he is the fill-in Tarek will get you safer bonus points and...
Not a bad fallback if you haven't gotten your bench clean sheets by the week's final match, but New England haven't done much to suggest they can keep a clean sheet. Cincy are missing Adi, Mattocks, Cruz, and Waston though.
After starting his MLS career with some rough patches, Mensah has been a high-quality player for an entire year now. The bonus points don't come as frequently as you'd like, though, so it's hard to justify the cost when Sauro is less.
I trust the Columbus defense, even minus a few pieces, on the road over Philly at home. Bendik doesn't bring an ideal skill set but he's logged minutes in this league and has a shot at a cheap clean sheet.
While I ranked Royer higher in the standard midfield rankings, Gil pips him in the Captain rankings because I prefer his upside. If you're going to gamble and keep the armband away from Vela, you're chasing more than a solid Royer outing.
He's the first guy Philly look to when they have the ball, he's taking set pieces, ripping shots, and already has attempted two penalty kicks this season. He's got the upside you want in a captain.
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JD is a former RotoWire contributor. He was a finalist for the 2017 FSWA Soccer Writer of the Year award. JD had been writing for RotoWire since 2015. He is a proud Pittsburgh native, purveyor of fantasy sports, and likely the first Penn State Basketball fan you've ever met.
