MLS Fantasy top picks for Round 18 - Fantasy Football Community

With the new set of MLS fixtures approaching we take a look at the top picks for Round 18. Twitter is full of some of the best fantasy managers in the world so we bring in expert @dmpwright to reel off some of the best options for the big round ahead.

Looking at the top picks for Round 18 can be extremely useful to MLS Fantasy managers. Focusing on some of the best assets for the new week could help with some of the most important decisions in the game like transfers and captaincy.

Round 18

As sure as night follows day, one double gameweek is followed by another in MLS Fantasy – and this time, it’s a big one! New York Red Bulls, Austin FC, Colorado Rapids, LAFC and Portland Timbers all play twice at home, while NYCFC, Toronto, Nashville, Vancouver Whitecaps and Chicago Fire all play twice away.

FC Dallas (Wednesday night), Columbus Crew, DC United, New England Revolution, Inter Miami and Minnesota (all Saturday night) all play once, with the other teams having one home and one away match in the double gameweek.

Top targets – Claudio Bravo, Portland Timbers – Defender, $9.0m

The first of two Timbers picks this week: the offensive-minded Claudio Bravo comes into the double gameweek with one goal and two assists in his last seven starts. However, it is at the opposite end of the pitch that he and Portland have excelled of late, with Bravo contributing to three clean sheets in his last five matches and the Timbers fourth-best for xGA per home game (0.86). While Kai Wagner and Álvaro Barreal will be in most teams for Round 18, I’d argue that Bravo should also be considered a lock.

Sebastián Driussi, Austin FC – Midfielder, $9.0m

The likes of Thiago Almada, Hany Mukhtar and Lucho Acosta will feature heavily in teams this double gameweek. However, I’d argue Sebastián Driussi should also be one of the first names in your XI for this round. Although Austin have struggled badly for form this year, the rambunctious Argentine has posted decent xG+xA per 90 stats on the season (0.52) and comes into the double gameweek off the back of two goals in three games. Austin’s two home games are both Texas derbies and I expect Driussi to be in the mix for goals should things get spicy.

Evander, Portland Timbers – Midfielder, $10.1m

In recent weeks, Evander has started to show glimpses of why the Portland Timbers broke the bank to sign him from FC Midtjylland. His home form, in particular, has been stellar, scoring two goals and three assists in his last four starts at Providence Park, including back-to-back double-digit fantasy hauls in Rounds 11 and 12. With Portland playing twice at home in Round 18, you could do a lot worse than Evander.

Differentials – Diego Rubio, Colorado Rapids – Forward, $9.1m

The Colorado Rapids’ number 11 has been out for several weeks with an upper body injury (latest reports list him as questionable) and is therefore unlikely to be among the top forward picks for Round 18…but maybe he should be? Rubio typically plays as a number 10 for the Rapids, which is great for bonus point production, and faces the teams that allow the sixth (LA Galaxy) and seventh (Vancouver Whitecaps) most shots against per game away from home (15.89 and 15.57, respectively) in Round 18. Just the small matter of whether he starts now.