DiffeRANCHals: 2025 Round 14

 

 

 

 

Every week, we’ll go over our suggestions from last week, and determine if they were a good or bad pick based on position and points. To describe in detail the ranking system, here is the metric: bust = 3 or fewer points (or did not play), average = 4-5 points, good = 6-8 points, great = 9+ points. Double gameweeks (DGWs) are scored as follows: bust = 6 or fewer points (or not starting/on the bench), average = 7-9 points, good = 10-12 points and great = 13+ points. Players not available for selection are disregarded and not counted as either a positive or a negative in the article.

Week 13 Results: 

Matt:

• Ryan Hollingshead – Bust (4 points)
• Marco Pasalic – Good (11 points)
• Cedric Teuchert – Average (9 points)

Ranch:

• Mo Farsi – Bust (5 points)
• Cristian Roldan – Bust (5 points)
• Danny Musovski – Average (7 points)

Meg:

• Francis Westfield- Good (11 points)
• Onni Valakari – Bust (2 points)
• Giacomo Vrioni – Average (8 points)

Matt Results: 4 Great, 8 Good, 8 Average, 16 Busts

Ranch Results: 5 Great, 14 Good, 5 Average, 13 Busts

Meg Results: 1 Great, 3 Good, 2 Average, 3 Busts

2025 Full Season Results: 10 Great, 25 Good, 15 Average, 32 Busts (61%)

Welcome back to diffeRANCHals! We had a rough first DGW mostly because of midweek rotation, which even hurt some of the chalk picks. Midweek Open Cup games could provide some gems when lineups drop, but if you are looking for a way to make up lost ground after last week, check our the players below. Let’s get into it!

Ranch: Griffin Dorsey, $8.5m (Defender – Houston)

Why not point chase? I love a game where point chasing actually makes sense. This week, Griffin Dorsey and the Dynamo are traveling to San Jose. The Earthquakes just played 120 minutes midweek with primarily a full XI Lineup. The Dynamo are now on back to back cleansheets. Dorsey is a dangerous attacking potential. I can see him either notch an assist this weekend or Houston holding a clean sheet. Especially with the injury absence of Chicho Arango.

Matt: Aaron Herrera, $6.8m (Defender – DC United)

The New York Red Bulls have been consistently awful away from home and after getting crushed in the Hudson River Derby, this matchup against DCU is the perfect time to target them. I love this matchup for Aaron Herrera and even though he just went 120 minutes midweek in an Open Cup matchup, I think Herrera will go 90 this weekend after resting over the weekend. Not only does he consistently get involved in the attack, the struggling away form of NYRB could even mean Herrera could get a random clean sheet. 

Meg: Mamadou Fofana, $9.4m (Defender – New England)

This week the Revs travel to Sporting Kansas City. SKC has been inconsistent across all forms so yes, it is a gamble on an away player but it might just pay off. Fofana tends to generate attacking BPs through passes and clearances game to game and averages at least 40 passes and 3 clearances per game which in turn correlates to 2 BPs. Without a CS, Fofana can still bring in a decent floor and this week’s match gives you that plus a CS shout and if I couldn’t persuade you to take him with that info….he also sometimes takes shots at goal….maybe this is the week he scores? Who knows but you gotta risk it sometimes =] This is an early enough match that you could play him on the bench to preview his points before allowing the sub to happen. 

Ranch: Brian Gutierrez, $9.0m (Midfielder – Chicago)

There is a reason that we re-pick some players consistently in this article. It usually means that they are a player that we consider as a good differential week-to-week. One such player is Brian Gutierrez. He showed his true potential last week in Charlotte when he notched 2 goals and 1 assist. This week Chicago is going to be at Yankee Stadium playing against NYCFC. I still believe that Gutierrez is going to be able to contribute to some goals due to the weakness of NYCFC’s defense.

Meg: Theo Corbeanu, $7.1m (Midfielder – Toronto FC)

If you listened to the MLSFI podcast this week, you might have heard me mention Theo. If you did not…..here’s the logic. Everyone is talking about Bern and rightfully so as he has a solid floor at home against a shaky Nashville defense but Theo here also has a pretty solid floor, cheaper price tag…anddddd he just snagged a brace after subbing on in the second game of the DGW last week. He has proven that he should be involved in Toronto’s attack. I think this week is a solid chance to see what Theo can achieve for your FMLS team. 

Matt: Maxi Moralez, $7.3m (Midfielder – NYCFC)

One of the chalkier picks this week is Alonso Martinez, but if you think this NYC matchup is one you really want to target, Maxi Morales provides a great stacking partner. Chicago has yet to keep a clean sheet on the road and a finally clicking NYC attack could see Maxi get multiple goal involvements and a solid collection of KPs. My only concern with the Maxi play is a potential minutes risk with another DGW coming up after a Sunday game.

Meg: Tanitoluwa Oluwaseyi, $9.6m (Forward– Minnesota United FC)

Minnesota is at home this week against Austin. Austin has recently been a little leaky defensively and on the flipside Minnesota seems to have found a way to score. This match presents itself as a great one to run Minny attack. I like Tani’s chances to snag a goal or two this week. Tani is everywhere on the pitch and seems to always find a way to be involved. Last week he put up 11 points in the second game scoring a goal and an assist against St. Louis. Maybe he will repeat that outing vs Austin this week! 

Ranch: Luis Muriel, $10.9m (Forward – Orlando)

Similar to Brian Gutierrez, Muriel is a player who I have named as a differential at least 3 times this season. I truly think he is a differential every single week, as not many people tend to look at him as a viable option week in and week out. With the cross-country travel of Portland and 120 minutes under their belt, I fully expect Orlando to put in 3+ goals against them this weekend. Those goals likely will come from the 3 top players on Orlando: Ojeda, Muriel, and Pasalic. Pick your poison!

Matt: Ola Brynhildsen, $5.8m (Forward – Toronto)

Brynhildsen has been anything but good for Toronto. On that note, Toronto as a whole has been anything but good. But after a big win against rivals Montreal, this could be the turning point for TFC. Nashville isn’t the best matchup on paper, but after a tough midweek match in Orlando, Nashville, who have yet to keep a clean sheet on the road, could be a step behind their usual selves. If Brynhildsen starts again, I love his chances to get a few looks at goal.

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Contributors: 
Tyler Norman, @Ranchinator on Discord
Matt Nelson, @Tinkerman on Discord
Megan Lee Turner, @Meg on Discord