MLS Fantasy Review Round 21 (Part 1)

Real Salt Lake 2 vs. Sporting Kansas City 1

Highlights

The SKC lineup for this game sent many Feilhaber fantasy owners into panic. With Benny on the bench, many faced the decision of whether to keep him, bench him, or transfer him out. Those who kept him were rewarded as he came on at the half to make an immediate impact for SKC, however RSL were too strong on the night and a dominant performance from Javier Morales negated any impact Feilhaber was trying to have in the second half.

Fantasy Standouts

• Javier Morales ($11.8): 8, 15, 8 are Morales’ scores over the last 3 rounds. Jason makes a good point calling for him to be a must have and after this weekend I’d say he’s got just as good a case as others. I don’t know how long Plata is going to keep taking PKs, but I’d wager there was something up with that this weekend.
• Benny Feilhaber ($10.4): Apart from his only 2 point performance of the season 2 weeks ago, Benny has proven his worth. He came off the bench and provided the only offensive spark for SKC this weekend and does it every weekend, racking up an astounding 141 points so far. He is owned by about 28% of fantasy owners so he won’t help as a differential, but you might be sorry if you miss out on his consistency.

Fantasy Letdowns

• Nemeth ($8.6), Dwyer ($10.5): Nemeth and Dwyer have been inconsistent over the last 3 rounds and Dwyer especially has not merited a look on any fantasy teams for his price. Nemeth may still be worth a look given he’s averaged 4 points a game the past 3, but there are arguably better players out their for similar prices or must have forwards like Villa.

Columbus Crew 3 vs. Toronto FC 3

Highlights

The Crew came out and dominated the first ’45 in this game, however Toronto FC are a good team and they meant to show it in the second half. After 3 unanswered goals from Columbus, Toronto fired back with 3 of their own. Both teams’ stars were on display, with the only perplexing action of the night being Altidore’s PK (Giovinco owners were not happy). Altidore did need it though, considering he isn’t having any luck with the USMNT right now and didn’t do so hot in the All Star Game this week either.

Fantasy Standouts

• Sebastian Giovinco ($12.7): Giovinco is good and we all know it. Toronto’s defense may need work, but Giovinco will keep scoring with or without Altidore and don’t bet on Altidore taking another free kick from Giovinco.
• Ethan Finlay ($9.1), Kei Kamara ($9.5): They both scored and Finlay added to his assist total. Columbus Crew are the real deal and other teams should be worrying. The defense isn’t exactly rock solid, however the offense is in form and looks like it will outscore most opponents.

Fantasy Letdowns

• Defense: There are good defensive options for both teams, however the glue hasn’t settled. Toronto are bring in a new option at center back leaving the stability of Zavaleta and Perquis up in the air. These two teams are great teams, but defense isn’t the place to bet on them.

Montreal Impact 1 vs. Seattle Sounders 0

Highlights

Well as @SSFC_Rumors said “let July be known as the month of 1-0.” The Sounders haven’t score in awhile and it’s really really tough for us Sounders fans. However, with Oba and Dempsey coming back and a new signing on the way I’m not worried. That being said this game was not good from the Sounders. The defense was solid as usual, but once again was unable to deal with the lack of offensive pressure provided by the offense. On a separate note, the Impact signed Drogba soooo even though they couldn’t do much against a stagnant Sounders, Piatti and Drogba together sounds scary.

Fantasy Standouts

• Laurent Ciman ($7.9): With how cheap defenders are these days, Ciman is on the pricier side, but he proved this week he’s still worth it. He scored a goal, clean sheet and racked up 2 defensive bps. To make sure you don’t think his goal was a fluke, he managed to get on the end of 3 corners in total, meaning this isn’t the last we’ve seen of him. With the arrival of Drogba, Ciman could be leading an MLS contender’s backline.

Fantasy Letdowns

• Sounders: The defense isn’t horrible, but like I said before, it won’t get any better until the offense picks up the slack. The offense leads me to my next point: there is no offense. There have been some great, exciting budget options you could roll the dice on, but no returns. Stay away until it’s apparent they found their form again.

Chicago Fire 2  vs. New England Revolution 2

Highlights

Despite the 2-2 score line there really wasn’t a whole lot of offensive potential from both teams. The Fire looked more dangerous than they have previously with the return of Accam and Maloney proving critical. The Revolution got off to a strong start that saw Nguyen continue his return to last season’s form, however the Fire quickly doused Nguyen’s hot streak as they clawed back to a 2-1 lead, which would eventually be killed by a Kelyn Rowe super sub goal.

Fantasy Standouts

• Lee Nguyen ($11.1): His last 3 performances have been solid and seen Nguyen average 8 points a game. Even though he had a very poor first half of the season there’s every reason to believe the Revs are finding their groove, Nguyen especially. That being said, the rest of the offense is still as unpredictable as ever and would be a crapshoot to bet on.
• Shaun Maloney ($9.4): He returned with a bang, running the midfield and confidently putting away a PK. He may not be the flashiest player, but he looks like he will be the Fire’s most consistent, outside maybe Accam, if he stops acting like Fabian Castillo with his finishing and passing in the final third.

Fantasy Letdowns

• Eric Gehrig ($5.1): He’s owned by 15% of owners, which is far too many, especially if he’s your starter. He’s got a poor point average on an underperforming team.

That’s the breakdown for the first half of Round 10. What do you think? Did any players jump out at you who you think deserve to be highlighted? Mention them in the comments below, or send me or Tyler a Tweet and let us know. Also, don’t forget to get involved with the get community her at MLS Fantasy Boss and over at /r/FantasyMLS.