Fantasy Soccer Advice

MLS Fantasy & Gaming Round 9: Positional Rankings, Squad Pick & Parlay Predictor advice

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Your Matchday 9 fantasy and gaming advice roundup is here! Check out MLS Fantasy positional rankings as well as MLS Squad Pick and MLS Parlay Predictor recommendations below.

MLS Fantasy

MLS Fantasy

Another full weekend slate presents an enticing Round 9 of MLS Fantasy. With an MLS-heavy US menā€™s national team playing midweek, be sure to monitor starting lineups in case any of those players are given a rest after logging minutes on Wednesday vs. Mexico. Letā€™s jump right in and look at the top plays and values to target this week.

Get more advice on the _MLS Fantasy Insider Round 9 preview_ podcast

Teams on a BYE: VAN

Goalkeepers

Roman Celentano and FC Cincinnati will be looking to get back on track after St. Louis handed them their first loss of 2023 in last weekā€™s 5-1 beatdown. The visiting Portland Timbers are coming off a big win of their own after thumping Seattle 4-1, but have struggled on the road with just a draw and three losses to show for their efforts. Something has to give, and we predict Celentano comes away with his league-leading sixth clean sheet of the season.

Player
Team
Opponent
Price
1. Roman Celentano

CIN

vs. POR
$8.8
2. Djordje Petrovic
NE
vs. SKC
$9.6
3. Stefan Frei
SEA
vs. MIN
$8.1
4. Pedro Gallese
ORL
vs. DC

$7.2

5. Steve Clark
HOU
vs. MIA
$7.5
Value Goalkeepers
Player
Team
Opponent
Price
1. Andre Blake
PHI
vs. TOR
$6.3
2. Quentin Westberg
ATL
vs. CHI
$4.8
3. Luis Barraza
NYC

vs. DAL

$5.3

Defenders

Ɓlvaro Barreal sent in an eye-popping 15 crosses in last weekā€™s loss at St. Louis, showcasing his ability to get involved on the attacking end. Even if Luciano Acosta returns from injury, Barreal should gobble up his share of set pieces and be high on your fantasy radar as a defender with big attacking potential.

Player
Team
Opponent
Price
1. Ɓlvaro Barreal
CIN
vs. POR
$10.4
2. Brooks Lennon
ATL
vs. CHI
$9.1
3. DeJuan Jones
NE
vs. SKC
$9.2
4. Kai Wagner
PHI
vs. TOR
$7.8
5. Walker Zimmerman
NSH
vs. LAFC
$10.2
6. Yerson Mosquera
CIN
vs. POR
$9.5
7. Alex Roldan
SEA
vs. MIN
$8.5
8. Brandon Bye
NE
vs. SKC
$8.3
9. Jack Elliott
PHI
vs. TOR
$8.0
10. Teenage Hadebe
HOU
vs. MIA
$8.3
Value Defenders
Player
Team
Opponent
Price
1. Aaron Herrera
MTL
vs. RBNY
$5.0
2. Caleb Wiley
ATL
vs. CHI
$6.5
3. Rudy Camacho
MTL
vs. RBNY
$5.2

Midfielders

Carles Gil finished with six points in Round 8, the bulk of those coming from bonus points for his body of work across the board. Now, heā€™s back at Gillette Stadium where heā€™s scored or assisted in every home appearance in 2023. Averaging over 10 fantasy points per game at home, the Spanish maestro will look to keep his form rolling against a Sporting KC side currently dead last in MLS.

Player
Team
Opponent
Price
1. Carles Gil
NE
vs. SKC
$10.6
2. Thiago Almada
ATL
vs. CHI
$12.0
3. HĆ©ctor Herrera
HOU
vs. MIA
$10.5
4. DƔniel Gazdag
PHI
vs. TOR
$10.1
5. Cristian Espinoza
SJ
at RSL
$12.0
6. Hany Mukhtar
NSH
vs. LAFC
$10.8
7. Lucas ZelarayƔn
CLB
at CLT
$11.7
8. NicolƔs Lodeiro
SEA
vs. MIN
$9.8
9. Riqui Puig
LA
vs. ATX
$8.3
10. Luciano Acosta
CIN
vs. POR
$9.5
11. SebastiƔn Driussi
ATX
at LA

$8.6

12. MartĆ­n Ojeda
ORL
vs. DC
$7.5
13. Santiago RodrĆ­guez
NYC
vs. DAL
$7.7
14. Evander
POR
at CIN

$7.8

15. JoĆ£o Paulo
SEA
vs. MIN
$8.6
16. Eduard Lƶwen
STL
at COL
$9.3
17. Pablo Ruiz
RSL
vs. SJ
$8.3
18. GastĆ³n Brugman
LA
vs. ATX
$9.1
19. Connor Ronan
COL
vs. STL
$8.6
20. Mark Delgado
LA
vs. ATX
$8.0
Value Midfielders
Player
Team
Opponent
Price
1. Tyler Boyd
LA
vs. ATX
$5.7
2. Bryce Duke
MTL
vs. RBNY
$5.8
3. Maren Haile-Selassie
CHI
at ATL
$5.5

Forwards

Jefferson Savarino is rounding into form with a goal in back-to-back appearances. Heā€™s fired off 15 shots across his last three starts, and with a lack of attacking options in Salt Lake, we can expect the Venezuelan dangerman to maintain his role as RSLā€™s primary threat going forward.

Player
Team
Opponent
Price
1. Jefferson Savarino
RSL
vs. SJ
$8.6
2. Luiz AraĆŗjo
ATL
vs. CHI
$8.4
3. Chicharito
LA
vs. ATX
$8.1
4. JuliƔn Carranza
PHI
vs. TOR
$8.0
5. Brandon Vazquez
CIN
vs. POR
$7.6
6. Diego Rubio
COL
vs. STL
$7.9
7. DĆ©nis Bouanga
LAFC
at NSH
$10.4
8. Karol Swiderski
CLT
vs. CLB
$8.5
9. Carlos Vela
LAFC
at NSH
$9.3
10. HĆ©ber
SEA
vs. MIN
$7.6
Value Forwards
Player
Team
Opponent
Price
1. Giacomo Vrioni
NE
vs. SKC
$6.6
2. Duncan McGuire
ORL
vs. DC
$6.0
3. Miguel Berry
ATL
vs. CHI
$4.4
Captain
1. Carles Gil
NE
vs. SKC
$10.6
2. Thiago Almada
ATL
vs. CHI
$12.0
3. Jefferson Savarino
RSL
vs. SJ
$8.6
MLS Squad Pick

Playing MLS Squad Pick is quick and easy. Pick six players for your squad. If they all score in the same matchday, you could win a $160 MLSstore.com gift card!

Donā€™t forget, each round you play gives you one (1) entry into the end-of-season Grand Prize drawing for $10,000!

Expert advice:

Chicharito wasted no time earning a goal contribution in his first start of 2023, assisting Mark Delgado's second-half goal against LAFC and hammering out four shots of his own to keep the Galaxy within striking distance of their crosstown rivals. At home against a struggling Austin FC side, I think he gets off the mark in Round 9. Elsewhere, weā€™re targeting the cushy home matchups. JuliĆ”n Carranza, Brandon Vazquez and Luiz AraĆŗjo are all capable of turning up with a big goal haul, and weā€™ll look for Jefferson Savarino to extend his scoring streak to three straight games.

Check out my squad for Round 9:

Squad pick round 9
MLS Parlay Predictor

Playing MLS Parlay Predictor is simple. Pick the results of all six games correctly in a single matchday, and you could win a 2023 MLS Season Pass full-season subscription on Apple TV!

Each round you predict gives you one (1) entry into the end-of-season Grand Prize drawing for $10,000!

Expert advice:

Intrigue abounds in the Round 9 head-to-heads, with multiple matchups between teams in Audi MLS Cup Playoffs positions. Toronto and Nashville look primed for upset victories as Philadelphia and LAFC keep one eye on their CCL semifinal showdown next Wednesday. Up in New York, FC Dallas and NYCFC will have to make hard choices about how to, respectively, incorporate star players JesĆŗs Ferreira and James Sands. The two played heavy minutes in the USMNTā€™s friendly against Mexico on Wednesday.

Check out my predictions for Round 9:

MLS Parlay Predictor - My Predictions