Thursday's DraftKings soccer showdown is a single match, DIN @ SUN, with a $50,000 cap and a captain slot that scores 1.5x points at 1.5x salary. The slate locks Thu 11/5 at 3:00 p.m. ET (12:00 p.m. PT).
Dion Beljo of DIN tops our model's ranking at $10,400. His ceiling of 31.2 is nearly double any other player on the board, and his DraftKings average of 23.6 shows the number is not a fluke. He is also the most expensive FLEX option, and at $15,600 in the captain slot he takes a big bite of the cap. On the SUN side, Fofana ($9,400, ceiling 17.3) and Granit Xhaka ($9,600, ceiling 16.2) carry the highest ceilings after Beljo, with Jules Ahoka ($7,000, ceiling 16.5) close behind at a lower price.
The value case starts with Dominik Kotarski of DIN. At $4,200 he has a ceiling of 12.7 and a DraftKings average of 9.6, which is a lot of production for the price. Ahoka is the other efficient play: his $7,000 salary comes with a 16.5 ceiling, the second highest among the SUN options. Mislav Orsic of DIN at $8,000 and Wilson Isidor at $7,800 both show 14.8 and 15.0 ceilings, though their DraftKings averages of 5.0 and 2.7 suggest more volatility.
The crowd will be heavy on a few names. Enzo Le Fee is the most popular play at 42% projected ownership, followed by Tymur Tutierov at 40% and Beljo at 39%. Xhaka (35%), Fofana (34%) and Angulo (32%) also draw big shares. Kotarski sits at just 13%, so he offers a way to differ from the field at a bargain salary.
Our model's top lineup uses the full $50,000. It captains Beljo at $15,600 and fills the FLEX spots with Orsic ($8,000), Kotarski ($4,200), Nilson Angulo ($8,800), Ahoka ($7,000) and Thomas Meunier ($6,400). It leans on the Beljo ceiling and uses Kotarski's cheap salary to afford the rest.
Lock is Thu 11/5 at 3:00 p.m. ET.
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