everyone has a chance to win!
Our first report will be to let you know what to look for before the season even starts, and what to look for after the season begins. Here's what we do in preseason -- it's intense preparation, but it's worked well for us.
- Print out a copy of the MLS season schedule. For each week, mark what teams have byes and what teams play twice. You don't want players on your team who won't be playing that week, and players who play twice have a better chance of racking up the points.
- Read up on as many internet sites as you can. The best sites are MLSnet.com and Big Soccer. You can get a lot of useful information from these, such as who might be hurt, or who may be new in the starting lineup for that week. And watch as many games as possible! We subscribe to MLSLive (such a great value!), and MLS Direct Kick is another great way to catch the games, in addition to the ESPN2, Fox Soccer Channel and Telefutura weekly broadcasts.
- Plan ahead. With only three trades, you will need to plan out weeks in advance to get the most bang for your buck! If there are teams that will be playing more than one game in a few weeks, it might be 3-4 weeks in advance to start getting some of those players into your team now. It's not always best to have players that play twice that week, but most of the time it helps.
Now onto the real business at hand. Each week we will be giving you our thoughts on who the best 11 players will be for points that week, regardless of the salary cap, and then also give you who our teams will be for that week using the rules. Here are this week's Top XI for points:
Goalkeeper: Will Hesmer (CLB). The Crew play against a struggling offensive team (Toronto FC) this weekend at home. He should get win points and probably shutout points too.
Defender: Jonathan Bornstein (CHV). Bornstein has the ability to create points offensively, having been a forward previously. His opponents, FC Dallas, will be getting used to their new three-man backline, making him likely for offensive points.
Defender: Michael Harrington (KC). Last year's Fantasy MVP had three goals and four assists as a defender. His lethal left foot and speed is a threat at all times. He is an offensive force to be reckoned with out of the backline, no matter who he is playing.
Defender: Chad Marshall (CLB). This week he plays against the weakest offensive team from last season, Toronto FC, who we feel has not done enough to improve that situation in the offseason. Look for shutout points here. Marshall is always a threat to score in the air.
Midfielder: Christian Gomez (COL). In the last three years, Gomez has had 35 goals and 29 assists. This week he makes his Rapids debut against the Galaxy, a team weakened defensively with the trade of Joe Cannon in the offseason. Looks like points to us!
Midfielder: Sacha Kljestan (CHV). In just his second season in the MLS and at age 22, Kljestan had a breakout season with four goals and 13 assists. Again, Chivas plays FC Dallas this week, which is working out a new defensive system.
Midfielder: Cuauhtemoc Blanco (CHI). Blanco finished last season with four goals and seven assists in just 14 games. Expect Blanco to have an even better year for the Chicago Fire in 2008. He will play against RSL this week, a team not known for their defense, and who lost defensive stalwart in Eddie Pope due to retirement in the offseason.
Midfielder: David Beckham (LA). Even though Beckham only had two assists in five games last year, keep in mind that he was struggling with an ankle injury. If Beckham can stay healthy and not get hurt, he will have a great season.
Forward: Carlos Ruiz (LA). Ruiz joined the Los Angeles Galaxy during the offseason from FC Dallas. Ruiz will have Landon Donovan and David Beckham to creating chances for him. Ruiz has looked good in the preseason, even scoring a hat trick in one game. Although Colorado did well defensively last year at home, we don't think LA can be held down offensively in this game.
Forward: Kenny Cooper (DAL). Last season, Cooper was limited to only 14 games due to a broken leg. He started off the season on a hot streak with 4 goals and 2 assists. Since Carlos Ruiz is now gone, Cooper will now be the target for the FC Dallas offense and should be dangerous. He will be playing at home, where Dallas does well offensively.
Forward: Luciano Emilio (DC). Last year's Golden Boot Award winner with 20 goals comes into the season with more support in the midfield to feed him the ball. With the right service, he can do magical things. It doesn't matter what team he is playing against or if he is home or away, he will find a way to score.
We used a 3-4-3 because out of last season's top 20 point-scorers, there was only one defender and one goalkeeper, but there were nine forwards and nine midfielders. That, however, could change this season with the addition of a blocked shot category for the defenders and wins and saves points for the goalkeepers. We will keep an eye on this at the start of the season to see how this changes things. The great thing about the game this year is that it has a high salary cap number, so you should be able to play a good number of superstars each week.
Here are our official teams for Week 1:
Dave:
GK Will Hesmer; DF Chad Marshall; DF Chance Myers; DF Marc Burch; MF Sasha Kljestan; MF Arturo Alvarez; MF Eddie Gaven; MF David Beckham; FW Luciano Emilio; FW Kenny Cooper; FW Carlos Ruiz. Coach: Tom Soehn. Bench: John Busch, Carlos Marinelli, Kenny Mansally
Jimmy:
GK Will Hesmer; DF Tyson Wahl; DF Chance Myers; DF Marc Burch; MF Sasha Kljestan; MF Stuart Holden; MF Cuauhtemoc Blanco; MF David Beckham; FW Luciano Emilio; FW Landon Donovan; FW Carlos Ruiz. Coach: Ruud Gullit, Bench: John Busch, Devon McTavish, Dax McCarty
Next week's focus: We take a look at some of the sleeper picks from the first week's action.
The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the author's, and not necessarily those of Major League Soccer or MLSnet.com.
