2018 Round 23 Captain’s conundrum

Round 23 in the MLS gets underway tonight, So I have taken a look at the best options to make your Fantasy captain this week. Picking the right captain this week , could see you claw back points on the leaders of your league , or even extend the gap at the top. Here’s my top four picks for this week.

Josef Martinez / Atlanta / $11.5 Million / vs Toronto (H)

The forward is running away with the golden boot in the MLS this year. Josef Martinez has netted 24 times for Atlanta, nine more than any other player in the league. Helping to fire Atlanta to the top of the Eastern Conference. 10 goals in six matches for the five stripes has seen Martinez’s side only lose one of their last 11 games in the league. This week the five stripes face Toronto, who’s performances so far, this season have been widely talked about for all the wrong reasons. From their league dominance last year to this year’s embarrassment, Toronto will surely have on eye on the end of the season already.

However, a recent upturn in form with back to back victory’s, should have lifted spirits around the BMO field. Though Atlanta will offer a tougher test than Chicago did last weekend. The Canadian side have only kept one clean sheet in eight games and the five stripes have scored in thirteen consecutive league games. So, Martinez should get plenty of chances to continue his good run.

Carlos Darwin Quintero / Minnesota / $11.5 Million / vs Seattle (H)

Carlos Darwin Quintero numbers have been exceptional in recent weeks. In his last four games the forward has managed to score three goals and has created six assists. Minnesota gung-ho attitude to football matches is refreshing, but naive at times. An excellent 5-1 win against LAFC was followed up by a 4-2 defeat to Vancouver, halted their momentum of three wins on the bounce.

This round Minnesota face Seattle in a very even game. The sounders have put in some impressive performances of late, a 1-1 draw with Atlanta and last week’s 3-1 victory over NYCFC will give them confidence heading to Minnesota. However, Quintero will be looking to use his pace and trickery against Seattle, who have struggled to deal with pacey players all year.

Miguel Almiron / Atlanta / $11.5 Million / vs Toronto (H)

The Paraguayan was officially the highest fantasy points scoring player this spring. Almiron earned fantasy owners 200 points in his 23 games so far, this year, an average of 8.7 points a game. However, for all of the midfielder’s qualities, the one thing which you can question is his goal scoring record, mainly his consistency. Only two goals in his last 15 games, and them two goals came in the same game against Orlando.

However, the midfielder is in form in terms of assists, half of his nine assists this season have come in his last five games. This round Almiron and Atlanta face a tough team on paper, whether Toronto play to their potential is another story. Though Toronto have won two league games on the bounce, all be it against the same side Chicago, it should still give them a boost. Statistically its tenth verses first and Atlanta should really be picking up all three points here.

Maximiliano Moralez / NYCFC / $11.5 Million / vs Vancouver (H)

Maximiliano Moralez and NYCFC were disappointing last round, in their 3-1 defeat to the Sounders. However, it’s a new week and if you are not too keen on backing Minnesota or Atlanta and their key players then you need another arm to place that captain’s armband on.

The midfielder did score and assist a goal two weeks ago against Orlando and this week NYCFC faces a defence which could rival Orlando for one of the worse defences in the league. NYCFC will be looking to get back to winning ways and to close the gap on Atlanta in the Eastern Conference. Plus, Vancouver have the first leg of the Canadian Championship in the week, so they may have one eye on Thursday’s game.