MLS Fantasy League: Week 10

(Remember, transfers are due tonight at 7:15, so get 'er done!)

So if you take MLS Fantasy League as seriously as I do and didn't do great last round, I wouldn't worry so much. A few upsets and some unpredictable individual performances affected the scores of most players.

A quick glance at the top of the rankings shows that no one particularly shined over the weekend. I only managed to pick up 37 points myself, my worst outing so far this season. Luckily, the next few weeks of action should provide plenty of opportunities to pick up points.

Your main focus for Week 10 should be on preparing for Week 11. With half the league playing twice next week, this is your chance to earn a massive amount of points. If you manage to use your transfers wisely, you can score maximum points this week as well as set yourself up for next week, so you can make a few bucks in the transfer market and avoid costly transfer penalties.

Below are the teams pulling double duty in Week 11:

D.C. United- Houston, at Dallas
New York Red Bulls- Montreal, at New England
New England Revolution- Real Salt Lake, New York
Sporting Kansas City- Seattle, at Houston
FC Dallas- Portland, D.C. United
San Jose Earthquakes- Toronto, at Seattle
Montreal Impact- at New York, Real Salt Lake
Seattle Sounders- at Sporting Kansas City, San Jose
Portland Timbers- at Dallas, Chivas USA
Houston Dynamo- at D.C. United, Sporting Kansas City
Real Salt Lake- at New England, at Montreal

Your best bet to score maximum points this round is to stock up on players from Portland and Sporting Kansas City. The Timbers have been on an absolute tear lately, winning 3 of their last 4 and thriving under Caleb Porter's possession oriented system. And while Sporting Kansas City has yet to really get their offense going, they remain one of the strongest teams in the league and are always a solid bet to shut out their opponents. Both teams play at home this week against lesser opposition, and have favorable schedules for Week 11.

Rodney Wallace ($5.0m) is an absolute must buy right now. Similar to Michel, another absolute must pick, Wallace is officially listed as a defender, but has started at forward the last four matches for statistically the most potent offense in the league. Two of the three next games are at home vs. the Revs and Chivas USA, teams that have struggled to score goals, so the Timbers should manage to keep at least one clean sheet. And if Wallace can contribute anything offensively, then that's just gravy. At just 5 million, he's a steal. Pick him up.

Will Johnson ($7.9m) and Michael Harrington ($4.8m) are also solid pickups. Ryan Johnson ($8.6m) has been hot lately if you can afford him, and Diego Valeri ($7.8m) is a good risk/reward pick.

Sporting Kansas City plays Chivas USA at home this week, so the potential for Peter Vermes' team to score goals and keep a shutout are both high. The usual suspects you should consider include Graham Zusi ($10.2m), Aurellin Collin ($6.8m), pretty much the entire back line.

(Also note that World Cup qualifying is around the corner and you don't wan't to overload your roster with internationals, so maybe you opt for a Chance Myers over a Matt Besler.)

FC Dallas is one of two teams playing both fixtures at home next week. Obviously you don't want to pick up any FCD players since they have a bye this week, but if you have any on your roster, hold onto them.

Finally, if you still have Robert Earnshaw ($8.5m) on your roster, now is the time to drop him. Initially the Welshman was off to a blazing start, but he also had the benefit of playing 4 of 5 games at home and the good fortune of finishing oppurtunustic strikes. Teams have been guarding him closer lately, and the bounces aren't going his way. He's worth considering in the future, but I'd wait until new DP signing Matias Laba and Danny Koevermans are back and acclimated into the squad.

Did I miss anything? Be sure to let me know. Good luck this week!

Team Name: Ben Fong-Torres FC (Almost Famous was on at the time)
Current rank: 1,252 (Down, a lot)