MLS Fantasy Week 30: Final round, final double

We’ve come to the end, friends! It has been a fun year, and they are sure making us sweat a complicated week to close out the season. With this weekend an international break, there are only two games to pick from, so we get a two-weekend-long double-game-week to close the season. Pick the right DGW players and you should have a huge lead, though that will be tough given each team’s absences and situations. Good luck everyone! Here are some key links to get started:

October Window Call-ups
Disciplinary Summary
Player Status Report

Quick Rankings

GK - Hugo Lloris (DGW), Yohei Takaoka (DGW), Drake Callendar, Stefan Frei

DEF - Rudy Camacho/Malte Amundsen (DGW), Aaron Long/Ryan Hollingshead (DGW), Ranko Veselinovic (DGW), Jordi Alba, Dagur Thorhallsson, Jackson Ragen, Justen Glad

MID - Mateusz Bogusz (DGW), Albert Rusnak, Evander, Riqui Puig, Santiago Rodriguez, Facundo Torres, Hany Mukhtar, Luciano Acosta, Dylan Chambost (DGW)

FWD - Diego Rossi (DGW), Brian White (DGW), Christian Benteke, Gabriel Pec, Leo Messi, Alonso Martinez, Kelvin Yeboah

Double-Game Week Teams

Columbus - vs NER, at NYRB

Key absences: Call ups - Mo Farsi, Taha Habroune, Nicholas Hagen, Patrick Schulte, Cucho Hernandez. Injury - Evan Bush, Sean Zawadski, Steven Moreira.
Columbus is a tough team to crack for fantasy purposes. Cucho has been an all-star all season, Rossi had a white-hot streak for a time and on either end of it has been average, and the defenders have been great when they’ve played. This week is another where they present a puzzle box to solve. Last week, the only two defenders that started both matches were Mo Farsi and Malte Amundsen. Another potential issue is that Columbus is locked into the second seed in the East, the only thing they have left to play for is potential home-field-advantage in the MLS Cup Finals. I think Columbus goes for it in both matches, as they could potentially have home-field-advantage over the entire Western Conference for a potential Final game. So, how do we parse it out?
First off, we know Abraham Romero is set to start another match and that neither of Schulte or Hagen will go two matches. With Zawadski injured, we'll see if they actually pull in another keeper. That gives me some hesitation on loading up too much on Columbus defenders.
Rudy Camacho was red-carded against Miami and then suspended against Philadelphia. Malte Amundsen has been an every-week starter at LCB ever since Zawadski’s injury, so he is another reasonable play. I think they are likely to play both matches. It’s a risky as Yevhen Cheberko has rotated in frequently, but given the injuries I think both these guys start twice.
The only interesting midfielder for fantasy is Dylan Chambost. A Frenchman acquired by Columbus midseason, he has only started four matches. The first three starts were unremarkable, with Chambost playing as part of the band of three attackers. But against Philadelphia, he lined up deeper, next to Nagbe and behind Cucho, Ramirez and Rossi, and ended up having a stellar match. Two assists, 74 passes, 11 KPs and 4 crosses. If Chambost lines up there again against the Revs and succeeds, that may be his spot going forward, especially if Zawadski remains out.
Diego Rossi is the forward to own. He’s fallen off from his midseason hot streak, but he was the one stepping up when Cucho was absent for that midseason stretch. He will get minutes when Cristian Ramirez won’t, and he will take PKs in Cucho’s absence.

New England - at CLB, at MIA

Two road matches for one of the worst teams in the league? They could have been right in the mix for a playoff spot if they had won their matches last week, but lost both games 1-2 and have locked one of their worst point totals ever. We also learned that Carles Gil’s injury suffered on the weekend will take him out of these final meaningless matches. On top of that, they will be missing Bajraktarevic, Yusuf, Miller and Arreaga for the Columbus match on international duty. The only other mid with value, Polster, is on yellow card warning, to boot!
If you really want to try and high roll on a forward, I suppose you could go with Luca Langoni? I wouldn’t recommend it, especially with Gil out and New England on the road both matches, but there’s at least something to be said at getting two bites at the apple. Just keep in mind that Langoni’s 3.44 average is the highest of the group, and even doubled is worse than the top tier options like Messi, Benteke, Pec, Bouanga or Cucho, who all have single-game averages over 7 points.

Vancouver - vs LAFC, at RSL

Key Absences: Call-Ups - Sam Adekugbe, Ali Ahmed, Andres Cubas, Ryan Gauld, Fafa Picault, Pedro Vite.
Vancouver has had a rough go the past few matches. They had three home games in a row and have just one point to show for it, winless in five and just two wins in their past nine games. Health and availability have been issues, with Ryan Gauld and Brian White each missing time, but things just aren’t clicking as they once were. They are currently stuck in 8th place, set for the play-in match against Portland, but will have two bites at the apple to claw up the table, potentially as high as 5th. I am not very confident in them, but it is possible.
I am not particularly high on Vancouver’s defense, given their schedule this week, their absences (Cubas is pretty important to their defense) and their lapses lately. You could park Takaoka and/or Veselinovic on your bench and see what they do in their Sunday match, then decide if you want to roll the dice on them bettering their scores against RSL or go with a single-game option in their stead. Could be an interesting differential play, given almost everyone will be going with the LAFC defense, but a risky one.
Vancouver’s attack will be gutted against LAFC since they will be missing six of the 10 midfield/forward starters they used against Seattle and Minnesota in their last two matches. Remaining will be Brian White, Stuart Armstrong, Sebastian Berhalter, and Alessandro Schopf. You can put together a functional game plan with the depth, but it is a concern. I don’t think Armstrong has shown enough yet to be a consideration (only 114 minutes so far), Berhalter is averaging less than three points-per-game on the year and is not a lock to start both games, and Schopf has even worse points and minutes.
That just leaves Brian White as the main realistic option in Vancouver’s attack. He was bad this past DGW, just five points with his minutes points and a lone BP, but just before that he had a streak of three games with goals scored, coming off his concussion recovery. He’s got 15 goals on the year and is at 0.6 goals per 90. If anyone is going to score in these games for Vancouver, he’s the most likely. The matches are tough, but he’s a reasonable play this week.

Los Angeles FC - at VAN, vs SJE

Key Absences: Call Ups - Denis Bouanga, Omar Campos, Maxime Chanot, David Martinez, Cristian Olivera.
LAFC has some key players out, but they have good matchups and plenty of incentive to go for two more wins. If LAFC win both games and LAG loses their final match, and LAFC gains one net GD somewhere, LAFC would hold the Western Conference title. Even if LAFC doesn’t beat Vancouver, they will still want points against San Jose to try and keep the 2nd seed away from RSL or Seattle and to improve their hosting chances against Columbus or Cincinatti in a potential MLS Cup Final. Plenty on the line here.
LAFC’s defense will be popular for good reason. Recency bias will show their two shutouts in this past round, one on the road against a prolific SKC team (with nothing to play for, of course). We also see a gutted Vancouver attack on a team that’s been flailing at home and a bad San Jose team that has had the Wooden Spoon locked up for weeks. Hugo Lloris is the guy in goal (I'm not sure I even see another LAFC GK in the game?) while defender is a little more up in the air.
At defender, I think the first guy to consider is Aaron Long. He returned from injury against SKC and scored a goal to go with his clean sheet, a 14-point haul in a single match. That's his only goal of the year, mind you, so don't expect lightning to strike twice. He's typically a locked-in starter, even in double game weeks, and going 90 against SKC on the road is a good sign that he will be in there for both games. The other guy to most likely start both matches is Ryan Hollingshead. He's been playing all over the LAFC back line (starts at RB, RC, LWB, and LB lately, depending on whether they are in a 4-3-3 or 3-4-3), and the only time he came off the bench was against Cincy on the road after playing 120 minutes midweek for the USOC Finals. Chanot and Campos are out one game and Palencia and Segura have both been rotating lately. But it's anyone's guess.
With Martinez and Olivera missing against Vancouver, the primary midfielder to consider is Mateusz Bogusz. He's cooled since his blazing hot streak midseason–his 5-game average for starts is just 5.8 points compared to Weeks 12 to 20 where he was at 11.4 ppg (!)–but is still the most consistent contributor at the position. He's somewhat a risk, as he has not hit double-digit points since Week 20 and could easily be outscored by some single-week options that pop off, plus there is a possibility he sits again to give David Martinez another start. But of all the DGW midfield options, he's the one best poised to take advantage.
As far as LAFC's forwards go, Olivier Giroud should start both matches but has not been any good and probably shouldn't be on your squad. Seriously, he has only scored more than two points in a single league game (his goals came in the Leagues Cup Final and USOC Final). Denis Bouanga will most likely start against San Jose. Taking a DGW player for just a single match in the second set of games is risky, since you'll have to lock them into your lineup early and could get skunked if they sit Bouanga after his long travel for Gabon, but Bouanga has been fantastic since the Open Cup Final and going against San Jose is a plum matchup. I wouldn't trust Kei Kamara either. I'm staying away from LAFC forwards, but going for Giroud to finally click and get a couple of goals or Bouanga to torch San Jose could be a big move this week.

Best of the Rest

Single-Game Defenses

Miami - vs NER. This match could go a lot of different ways. Miami doesn’t have anything to play for besides the points record, and New England doesn’t have anything to play for other than pride. If Miami heavily rotate, this could get weird, but if they send out the starters then I could see things going very badly for New England. Drake Callendar and Jordi Alba are probably the guys to play if you want to go with Miami's defense, I think a very good choice if they are looking to finish the season strong, especially with New England missing their only truly dangerous attacker. Miami has not had a particularly good defense this year, but they have had six shutouts this season in league play.
Orlando - vs ATL. This one is dicey, given it is more or less a rivalry match, it is do-or-die for Atlanta (plus some help), and the field could be a mess if it has been damaged by Hurricane Milton. But they have a week to prepare and Atlanta have had a tendency to choke on the road lately. I am probably not willing to commit my GK slot to Gallese, but I am interested in Dagur Thorhallsson if he is healthy. He's been out, but with the bye week he may be back in action. He's the kind of defender who can make up for goals given up with his own attacking contributions.
Salt Lake - vs VAN. I know I recommended Brian White above, but RSL is still one of the better defensive teams in the league. After a handful of games with defensive miscues, they held two clean sheets last week against Minnesota and at San Jose. With Vancouver struggling to find any success in the attack lately, and no opportunity to find it with so many players missing this upcoming match, RSL should be in a strong position to enter the playoffs strong. If you want in, then Justen Glad is the guy to own.
Seattle - vs POR. I may be cursing myself a bit, but I am going against history in this rivalry and picking Seattle to win in a shutout. This is less about Portland's form (which never seems to matter for these games) and more about Seattle's strengths lately. With the emergence of Paul Rothrock on the left and the sustained dangerous play of Pedro de la Vega and Georgi Minoungou on the right, plus the partnership centrally of Vargas and Roldan, Seattle has finally been able to pin back defenses with their sustained possession and actually break down their opponents. Disciplined play from the back line and great saves from Frei have nullified any errors in the build-up for clean sheets in four of the past five matches. Portland will get chances, but have been unable to convert them lately. I don't currently have any Seattle defenders myself, given the crazy history of this rivalry, but I may find myself turning to Stefan Frei and Jackson Ragen if things go wonky with the rest of my team.

Single-Game Midfielders

Albert Rusnák - He has been massive lately. He was right back in form this past DGW with two goals, an assist, 18 KPs and 5 crosses between the two games. At home against Portland, with the chance to lock in a spot in next year’s CCC, plus Cascadia Cup on the line, I expect him to deliver.
Riqui Puig - Another player on a complete tear, he has double-digit points in every game going back to Week 22. He simply must be on your team if he starts, despite playing on the road. There is a possibility he sits if LAG remains clear of LAFC in the West regardless of their result and the Crew in the East, given their result earlier in the day, but he's a must-have player otherwise.
Evander - I know I just said I think Seattle will win in a shutout, but Evander just had two games in a row with 8 points without a goal contribution. Portland doesn't need to score for Evander to have an excellent game. I think he will have less of the ball and might be more around a 4-5 score without goal contributions, but if Portland score it is an easy bet he will be involved somehow.
Santiago Rodriguez - Another road player, NYCFC get the pleasure of traveling to Montreal to close out their season. NYCFC have three wins in a row, scoring three or more goals in each of them. Santi was in the thick of it, scoring three goals with an assist. He's scored at least seven points in each of his last five matches. Montreal does have an average home defense (bottom-two road defense), and Montreal is playing to keep a playoff spot, and Santi has been not nearly as good on the road, but this still sets up nicely for him.
Hany Mukhtar - Playing on the road in Chicago, this game is basically an exhibition, but Mukhtar is closing the season strong anyway. He put in some vintage shifts against DCU and NYCFC (2 goals, 1 assist and 32 KPs!!!), but they lost anyway, ending any possibility of the playoffs for Nashville. Assuming he plays, he could put on quite a show.
Facundo Torres - He is more goal dependent than other options here, as he is averaging just over one bonus point per game, but since midseason he has 12 goals in 16 games. Atlanta does have one of the best road defenses in the league (I know, I'm shocked too), but I would not be surprised to see this one become a crazy and desperate match as Atlanta tries to keep their season alive (and Orlando tries to stay ahead of NYCFC to host their playoff matchup).
Luciano Acosta - Lucho is a regular here, and he's right back to form. He's got a goal contribution in each of his last four games with 12 BPs in that span. Playing at Philly will be an interesting game, as Philly will be desperate for points given they, like Atlanta, need three points and some help to get into the playoffs. Cincy is stuck in third in the East, but they could move up or down compared to Western conference teams, potentially earning a CCC slot if they outperform Seattle or RSL. This should be an open game with plenty of attacking, opening the door for another standout Acosta performance. Gazdag is of course an option on the other side, but way too inconsistent lately for me.

Single-Game Forwards

Christian Benteke - He has almost certainly locked up the Golden Boot award already, he'll be looking to ensure DCU stay in the playoffs at home against Charlotte. This kind of desperation is where heroes are forged and Benteke has been heroic all year long and especially heroic lately.
Gabriel Pec - Pec has gotten better and better as the season goes on, and there's no sign he's stopping anytime soon. He earns a ton of bonus points and tacks on goals and assists on top. The caveat here is that this game might be relatively meaningless for LAG means he might not start or might not play his usual minutes. Plus, on the road to Houston is not the easiest road game.
Leo Messi - Obviously he has to be here. He puts on a show when he plays, simple as that. I am guessing he gets at least a half against New England to appease the crowds at home and on TV, and he'll probably score a brace anyway. Not a guarantee, but his brilliance has to factor into your calculations.
Alonso Martinez - To go along with Santi's brilliance, Martinez has also been putting away plenty of goals for NYCFC. I think he's slightly better positioned than the guy who will be on the other side of the field, Josef Martinez, who could be a high differential pick if this match goes Montreal's way.
Kelvin Yeboah - He did not have a good week this past DGW, with just one point against RSL and zero off the bench against Vancouver (a yellow card in each match!). This week Minnesota returns home to host St. Louis, a team with a bad defense and nothing really to play for. In the three home games Yeboah has played so far, he has five goals! I think STL is in danger of getting torched by Minnesota and Yeboah will likely be central in putting the goals away.

Captain Considerations

Mateusz Bogusz - Best-positioned attacker who should be starting two games. He's not been scoring (or playing) like he was for a few months, but he's got one of the highest ceilings of the round. It's possible he's no longer an automatic starter though, so buyer beware.
Diego Rossi - The other prime attacker who should start both games, Rossi's ceiling is just as high as Bogusz, but it seems he's often struggled to get there this year outside of his best few weeks.
Brian White - If you want someone who is not on LAFC or CLB but has a DGW for your captain, I think White is the best remaining option. Not sure he's a good option, as these could be rough games for the Whitecaps, but he's a good attacker who should be playing a lot of minutes over the two games.
Hugo Lloris - Hear me out. I'd almost never recommend captaining a defender/GK, since they are often so dependent on clean sheets, but Lloris has two very good clean sheet opportunities this week. Plus, given uncertainty around other options, it is a boon to know Lloris is pretty much guaranteed to start both matches. Something to think about.
Albert Rusnak - Huge rivalry match at home with big stakes on the line. I believe he will rise to the occasion and lead the line. A fun captain choice to close out the year.
Riqui Puig - If you want a solid, reliable player who is going to have a very high floor with a relatively high ceiling, a single game from Puig is likely to outdo the scores from almost all the DGW players.