This article is part of our Sorare series.
Wilfred Nancy decided to rotate Yevgen Cheberko, nixing my favorite play at defender last gameweek. Miguel Almiron had a goal disallowed due to an offside, and Joe Willis couldn't keep a clean sheet against Real Salt Lake (46.80 SO5 score wasn't terrible). Carles Gil (95 SO5 score) was the lone bright spot after he converted a penalty, and the New England Revolution upset Atlanta United.
It's an interesting slate this week with the top five favorites all coming from the Western Conference. Teams like Real Salt Lake and Houston crack the top five in what should be a wide-open weekend.
Note: Player recommendations are not financial advice; I may or may not own these players in my Sorare gallery. I play under the username "SorareDeke" on Sorare.
Sorare GW 72 // MLS Week 9
Let's start this gameweek using the RotoWire Cheatsheets to see the best matchups with win odds and expected goals highlighted below. For access to the sheets, use promo code "ROTO15" for 15-percent off any RotoWire plan.
- Minnesota United 58.05% (1.94 xG) vs. FC Dallas
- Real Salt Lake 56.47% (1.86 xG) vs. Toronto FC
- Seattle Sounders FC 54.55% (1.70 xG) vs. Nashville SC
- Houston Dynamo 53.59% (1.77 xG) vs. Colorado Rapids
- Austin FC 51.93% (1.80 xG) vs. LA Galaxy
Note: Prices are for in-season limited cards as of Thursday, April 17. The scarcities are Limited (/1000), Rare (/100), Super Rare (/10), and Unique (1/1).
Optimal Plays
GOALKEEPERS
Rafael Cabral (RSL) $19.65 vs. Toronto FC
Cabral has quietly settled in at Real Salt Lake. After a rocky start, he's found his groove, scoring 50 or higher SO5 points in each of his last four starts. In his previous three matches, Cabral has made five saves twice.
Toronto ranks 24th in MLS in shots but fifth in shots on target percentage at 39.1%. While there might be a little less volume of shots, Cabral should still have several save opportunities in this match. Real Salt Lake has the second-highest clean sheet odds on the slate just above 35 percent, giving Cabral a chance at an upside performance.
Other Options: Brad Stuver (ATX) $38.40 vs. LA Galaxy; Kristijan Kahlina (CLT) $38.36 vs. San Diego; Roman Celentano (CIN) $34.71 at Chicago; James Pantemis (POR) $30.24 vs. LAFC; Carlos Coronel (RBNY) $28.85 vs. D.C.; Dayne St. Clair (MIN) $27.66 vs. Dallas; Matt Freese (NYC) $22.71 at New England; Zack Steffen (COL) $20.66 at Houston; Stefan Frei (SEA) $19.98 vs. Nashville; Jonathan Sirois (MTL) $18.46 vs. Orlando; Brad Guzan (ATL) $15.44 at Philadelphia
DEFENDERS
George Campbell (MTL) $22.98 vs. Orlando City
CF Montreal is finally back at Stade Saputo. They were unlucky to lose to Charlotte in the home opener, 1-0. They are home again as they host Orlando City, who haven't scored in two straight matches. Campbell is an underrated defender who quietly racks up excellent scores.
Campbell is a smasher who doesn't need a clean sheet to score 60 or more SO5 points. In his last eight home starts dating back to last season, he's averaging 70.7 SO5 points per game. He should have a nice score against an Orlando City side struggling on offense.
Other Options: Kai Wagner (PHI) $79.59 vs. Atlanta; Yeimar Gomez (SEA) $19.19 vs. Nashville; Nathan Harriel (PHI) $12.74 vs. Atlanta; Adilson Malanda (CLT) $11.60 vs. San Diego; Mamadou Fofana (NE) $8.08 vs. NYCFC; Edier Ocampo (VAN) $6.35 at St. Louis; Omar Valencia (RBNY) $4.48 vs. D.C.; Justen Glad (RSL) $3.49 vs. Toronto; Erik Sviatchenko (HOU) $2.54 vs. Colorado; Luca Petrasso (MTL) $2.07 vs. Orlando; Kim Kee-Hee (SEA) $0.97 vs. Nashville
MIDFIELDERS
Jack McGlynn (HOU) $41.42 vs. Colorado
In the last two matches, McGlynn has played in a right-midfield role in a more attacking position. This has allowed him to get the ball in space to pick out the next pass. McGlynn doesn't have much pace, so this adjustment makes sense for him to get more space and put his magical left foot to work. Since joining Houston, McGlynn has been a great SO5 scorer, outside of two errors that led to goals. He has an 81.4% set-piece share and always threatens with shots from outside the box, giving him upside with decisives (one goal and two assists in seven starts).
He gets a favorable matchup this weekend, as Houston is the fourth-largest favorite on the slate against Colorado. On a slate where the top teams mainly have difficult fixtures, McGlynn has to be your guy if you're looking for a Houston piece.
Other Options: Carles Gil (NE) $49.64 vs. NYCFC; Cristian Espinoza (SJ) $27.87 vs. Sporting KC; Sebastian Berhalter (VAN) $23.89 at St. Louis; Pep Biel (CLT) $21.75 vs. San Diego; Quinn Sullivan (PHI) $14.25 vs. Atlanta; Emil Forsberg (RBNY) $13.45 vs. D.C.; Joaquin Pereyra (MIN) $11.45 vs. Dallas; Diego Luna (RSL) $8.90 vs. Toronto; Owen Wolff (ATX) $7.62 vs. LA Galaxy; Jovan Lukic (PHI) $7.06 vs. Atlanta; Cristian Roldan (SEA) $6.83 vs. Nashville; Emeka Eneli (RSL) $4.62 vs. Toronto; Beau Leroux (SJ) $3.91 vs. Sporting KC; Diogo Goncalves (RSL) $3.02 vs. Toronto
FORWARDS
Kelvin Yeboah (MIN) $14.82 vs. Dallas
The options at forward are relatively poor this gameweek. There are a lot of challenging (or away) matchups, and the players in good spots are either in poor form or don't provide the all-around score needed for upside. I've gone to the Yeboah well before and he let me down. I'm holding my nose and going back to him this gameweek. Yeboah is in horrendous form over his last three matches.
Still, two matches were on the road, and the 2-0 win over Real Salt Lake was in a monsoon. The positive spin is that the goal-scoring opportunities are there for Yeboah. He's missed five big chances over his last three games for minus-25 SO5 points on BCMs alone. Those swings are brutal, and he's due for a goal, as he's shown to be a prolific scorer in MLS (11 goals in 17 appearances for Minnesota).
The matchup is favorable as Minnesota hosts FC Dallas. Minnesota United has the highest implied goal total (1.94) on the slate, and Yeboah has a great chance of scoring to break out of his slump.
Other Options: Lionel Messi (MIA) $152 at Columbus; Diego Rossi (CLB) $29.95 vs. Inter Miami; Santiago Moreno (POR) $14.90 vs. LAFC; Kelvin Yeboah (MIN) $14.81 vs. Dallas; Federico Bernardeschi (TOR) $12.58 at Real Salt Lake; Josef Martinez (SJ) $12.39 vs. Sporting KC; Cristian Arango (SJ) $11.95 vs. Sporting KC; Tani Oluwaseyi (MIN) $11.53 vs. Dallas; Alonso Martinez (NYC) $11.15 at New England; Hannes Wolf (NYC) $5.78 at New England; Cedric Teuchert (STL) $3.66 vs. Vancouver; Myrto Uzuni (ATX) $3.03 vs. LA Galaxy;
