Welcome back, MLS Fantasy managers!
Before building a roster, we need to examine how points are scored this season. There’s only one change from 2016, but it’s a significant one, so if you played MLS Fantasy in 2016, this will all look pretty familiar. If you’re new to the game, don’t worry – I’ve got you covered! Let’s get right down to the points:
Attacking Points |
|
|---|---|
Goal Scored by GK/DEF |
6 |
Goal Scored by MID/FWD |
5 |
Each assist/second assist |
3 |
Every penalty earned |
2 |
Every four shots taken |
1 |
Every four fouls suffered |
1 |
Each own goal assist |
1 |
Every three crosses |
1 |
Every three key passes |
1 |
Every big chance created |
1 |
Points from attacking play have remained the same from last year. The obvious advice is to pick up the players that score the most goals, but figuring out who will do that consistently won’t always be that easy. For the cumulative stats, such as crosses and key passes, there is no rounding up – for example, if a player has four successful crosses and two successful key passes, the player will get one bonus point for completing three crosses, but no points for the key passes.
For some sneaky points, look at players that take a lot of shots and are fouled a lot – they will get points regardless of whether they find the back of the net. Sebastian Giovinco and David Villa earned a total of 38 and 36 points last season solely from shots taken and fouls suffered, which is over one point per match… without even including the points for their goals!
Defending and Goalkeeping Points |
|
|---|---|
GK/DEF conceding no goals (60+ minutes) |
5 |
Every penalty save |
5 |
MID conceding no goals (60+ minutes) |
1 |
Every four clearances |
1 |
Every four interceptions |
1 |
Every four tackles |
1 |
Every two blocks |
1 |
Every six recovered balls |
1 |
Every three GK saves |
1 |
So, this is where it gets interesting. Defenders and goalkeepers earning a clean sheet will now earn a whopping five points, up from four points in past seasons. This will make defenders a more significant source of points, giving them the opportunity to earn more double-digit scores. All other point values have been carried over from the 2016 season, and the bonus points for cumulative stats work the same way as attacking bonus points.
Based on last season’s clean sheets, we can expect to see a 6-12 point increase in goalkeepers and defenders over the course of the 2017 season.
Miscellaneous Points and Deductions |
|
|---|---|
Playing 1-59 minutes in a game |
1 |
Playing 60+ minutes in a game |
1 additional point |
35+ passes and 85% success or more |
1 |
70+ passes and 85% success or more |
1 additional point |
Every two goals conceded by GK/DEF |
-1 |
Every error leading to a goal |
-1 |
Every yellow card |
-1 |
Every penalty miss |
-2 |
Each own goal |
-2 |
Every red card (includes yellow card points) |
-3 |
Players will receive at least one point if they appear in the match, even if it’s only for one minute. Accurate passing is also rewarded, giving ball distributors a chance to earn some additional bonuses.
There are a few different ways for players to lose points in MLS Fantasy, but there’s nothing worse as a fantasy manager than seeing one of your starters get a red card. Not only do you take an automatic $0.2 million deduction from your player’s value, but the player is penalized for goals conceded by his team, even after the player has been sent off. Ouch!
Any questions about how the points work? Let me know in the comments below! Good luck, fellow managers!
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