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FA Cup semifinalist Manchester United returns to English Premier League (EPL) action with a trip to Brighton on Tuesday. The Red Devils can close the gap on fourth-placed Chelsea to two points if they beat Brighton, who are six points clear of the relegation zone. Another win for Graham Potter’s side will move them to 36 points and closer to survival.
DraftKings is offering multiple ways for soccer fans to cash in on the game, including a Showdown contest with a $100,000 prize tool that pays out $25K to the winner. Set your lineups here: EPL Showdown $100K Counter Attack [$25K to 1st] (BHA vs MU).
Soccer fans can also get in on the action by downloading the DK Sportsbook app or heading over to the DraftKings Sportsbook website.
In this article, I will highlight the players that I think are worth picking in the DraftKings Showdown contest, as well as looking at some of the bets offered on DraftKings Sportsbook. For the full list of available bets, download the DraftKings Sportsbook app or check out the DraftKings Sportsbook website.
All odds provided by DraftKings Sportsbook and all odds subject to change.
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Manchester United to break visiting team’s jinx at Brighton
The last time the away side has won a game between these two sides was back in April 1982 when Manchester United won 1-0 at Brighton’s former ground – the Goldstone Ground. Since then, when these two sides meet, the road team has failed to win any of the last 13 meetings while the side playing at home has won the last eight encounters. With the talent in the United squad, this is a perfect opportunity for that sequence to be broken at Brighton’s new ground – the Amex Stadium. United won the first meeting this season 3-1 after racing into a 2-0 lead inside the opening 20 minutes.
Don’t be surprised if this game is tied at half-time (+117). United has not conceded a first half goal in their last seven EPL fixtures. In the last five EPL games Brighton has played, they have been level at the start of the second half. In addition, of the 25 EPL to be played since the restart, 15 (60%) have been without a goal at half-time.
Brighton should be the fresher of the two teams, and they come into this game with seven days between games, while United was taken to extra-time by Norwich in their FA Cup quarterfinal tie on Saturday. United won that game 2-1 thanks to their winning goal with just two minutes of extra-time remaining, and manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was forced to bring on his big name forwards to get the job done. Fatigue could be an issue in the first half of this game, which is why I think it will be level at half-time.
If United can get to the interval either level or in front, then they will expect to go on and win the game while winning the second half in the process (-107). Brighton has failed to score the first goal in their last eight EPL games and will be hoping to find their opponent’s net first in this clash (+205), while United has opened the scoring (-295) in four of their last six league encounters, but none of their last two away from Old Trafford. Brighton is also unbeaten in their last four home games against United.
Prediction: Tie at half-time (+117)
Brighton players to consider for DraftKings DFS
Brighton will feel they did enough to beat Leicester on Tuesday when the game finished in a goalless draw. Neal Maupay ($8,400) missed a first half penalty that would have secured all three points for the Seagulls. It would have taken Maupay to 10 league goals for the campaign, and if Brighton is awarded a penalty in this fixture, I would not expect Maupay, who still earned 6.8 DFS points against the Foxes, to take it. The miss seemed to affect the forward’s confidence, which would have been high after scoring in the 2-1 win over Arsenal the previous week.
One player who did stand out for Brighton even though he did not find the net was fellow forward Aaron Connolly ($3,800), whose powerful run at the heart of Leicester’s defense earned his side the spot kick. Connolly hasn’t started many games for Brighton, but he did score twice when Brighton beat Tottenham 3-0 in October. He will relish another chance to play against United’s defense.
Brighton keeper Mat Ryan ($4,600) was beaten three times at Old Trafford in the reverse fixture and will want to make amends for his disappointment that day and with two clean sheets in his last three matches, he is worth considering. Defender Lewis Dunk ($4,200) scored the winning goal against Arsenal in Brighton’s last home game and with his powerful presence at corners and set pieces, it’s easy to see why he has three goals and three assists already this season. Dunk, whose goal in the first meeting against United made the score 2-1 in the 64th minute, might have his hands full containing United’s forwards and a 10th yellow card of the season wouldn’t be a surprise. As well as scoring against United at Old Trafford, he was also shown a yellow card by referee Jonathon Moss.
Prediction: Dunk to be booked (+300)
Manchester United players to consider for DraftKings DFS
United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer would not have wanted to call on the big name players he rested for their FA Cup quarterfinal at Norwich, but he had no choice but to introduce Anthony Martial ($11,200), Paul Pogba ($6,000) and Marcus Rashford ($10,600) to get the job done. One of the players to sit out the tie completely was goalkeeper David De Gea ($7,800), who will be looking for back-to-back shutouts after keeping Sheffield United goalless in his last league outing. It earned him 12.3 DFS points, but he will face a tougher challenge at Brighton than he did at home to the Blades. Rashford and Martial will expect to lead United’s attack, which will be unfair on Odion Ighalo ($9,000), who opened the scoring in the cup win at Norwich. Ighalo will think he has done enough to start this game. After all, by scoring against Norwich, he became the first United player in 95 years to score in his first four competitive starts for the club. However, with a Champions League spot still within their grasp, Ighalo, on loan from Chinese side Shanghai Greenland Shenhua, might have to drop to the bench for this one. Martial is this game’s most expensive player, but having scored a hat-trick in his last league game, his value is justified.
Defender Aaron Wan-Bissaka ($6,600) could be a big scorer in this game. He loves getting forward and his crosses have led to three goals this season. Two of those have come in his last six league games. If he can keep a clean sheet and be creative at the opposite end of the pitch, then he will be worth drafting.
Prediction: Martial to score the first goal (+350)
Set your lineups here: EPL Showdown $100K Counter Attack [$25K to 1st] (BHA vs MU)
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I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (my username is CharliePMullan) and may sometimes play on my personal account in the games that I offer advice on. Although I have expressed my personal view on the games and strategies above, they do not necessarily reflect the view(s) of DraftKings and I may also deploy different players and strategies than what I recommend above. I am not an employee of DraftKings and do not have access to any non-public information.
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