This article is part of our The Armband series.
Double gameweeks continue to dominate MLS Fantasy, and that isn't changing in Week 22 with seven more teams having two matches. Last week showed that any team with two matches is usually better than those with one. Josef Martinez secured another hat trick, yet Christian Ramirez (25 fantasy points) and Darwin Quintero (23) were hands-down the best options of the week. Even Miguel Ibarra (16) and Rasmus Schuller (16) weren't far behind because they played 90 more minutes than everyone else.
And that's the only place to look for top captains this week even though teams like LAFC (v. LAG) and Toronto (v. CHI) are at home. Carlos Vela and Sebastian Giovinco are great, but they are not deserving of the armband when they play one fewer match.
There are two teams with two home matches, similar to last week; unfortunately, both of them sit at the bottom of their respective conferences. D.C. United (v. NYRB, v. COL) are in the slightly better situation only because they've played just once at their new stadium and get the Rapids. San Jose (v. SEA, v. RSL) haven't been any better at home compared to the road, scoring 15 and allowing 19 goals in eight matches. Sure, the Earthquakes have options, but there's no guarantee any of them reach double-digit fantasy points. Florian Jungwirth, Vako and Danny Hoesen may be good for four points each match, but banking on a goal or assist from any of them doesn't feel like a safe bet.
D.C. are in a similar situation to Minnesota last week: they are hard to trust but they've been much better at home, even if they've only played three matches. Yamil Asad should be the easiest to trust after scoring at least 12 fantasy points in three of his last five starts. Meanwhile, Zoltan Stieber has a goal or assist in his last five, while Paul Arriola can say that about eight of his last nine matches. The options are there, and you don't have to stretch for Wayne Rooney since it's unlikely he'll start both matches anyway. My pick from the group is Asad only because he's most likely to play a full 90 twice.
Nicolas Lodeiro also has to be in the conversation, even if the schedule doesn't look great (at SJ, v. NYC). However, the Earthquakes aren't good at home and NYC FC have a Thursday match in Orlando. Throw in Lodeiro's floor, which has often been around six fantasy points, and he's almost a guarantee to hit double-digits. Oh, and he had three goals and three assists in his last five starts. The only reason I wouldn't put Maximiliano Moralez on the same level is the travel for NYC FC (at ORL, at SEA). Moralez has hit double digits in six of his last nine matches, but it'll be hard to back him with two road matches in one week. Of course, he could get a goal and assist against Orlando and be set. As for David Villa, don't expect him to play close to a full 90 in these matches as he just returned from injury.
The Galaxy (at LAFC, v. ORL) are one of the hotter teams in the league and the biggest worry is that they were in Philly on Saturday, which means Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Romain Alessandrini may not start both matches. If anything, fantasy player would rather see them start the second match against an Orlando team that has allowed 27 goals in 10 road matches. If I had to pick one, I'd say Ibrahimovic because he could rest Thursday and then go for a brace against Orlando. Also, back in their Week 19 double, Ibrahimovic played 161 minutes while Alessandrini only hit 99.
Speaking of Orlando (v. NYC, at LAG), I'm staying away from them completely in terms of captaincy because they're too hard to trust and neither match is favorable. I'm not considering the Red Bulls (at DC, v. CLB), either, though they're slightly better. The problem is that Bradley Wright-Phillips has a two-point floor and Kaku will probably only see 60 minutes in one of the matches. My main issue with the Dynamo (v. PHI, at POR) is more about schedule, as they travel to Portland on a short week to face a team that has allowed seven goals in eight home matches. There's also the issue of picking one forward out of the bunch since any one of them could go for a brace against Philly.
There are too many options to count for the armband, but the ones that stand out either have two home matches or have a high floor. If you want to look elsewhere, that's fine, just know there's more risk involved.
