By AVI CREDITOR

The World Cup has opened up some Major League Soccer opportunities for those who aren't in the South Africa picture.

While it was a lock that Landon Donovan would be gone for the tournament (and maybe beyond?), Edson Buddle and Robbie Findley each were surprise inclusions on the final roster.

Who benefits the most? Tristan Bowen, Mike Magee, Alvaro Saborio and Fabian Espindola.

Both the Los Angeles Galaxy (home vs. Houston) and Real Salt Lake (at D.C.) have good matchups this week. LA is the league's most consistent team, and the winning formula hasn't changed even with new pieces in place. RSL has charged into second place in the West behind LA, and its strikers have both been in top form lately, not having to worry about splitting minutes with the speedy national team forward.

Just because some of the league's best players will be out of MLS action for the foreseeable future doesn't mean that there aren't points out there to be scored. Here are this week's player rankings by position:

FANTASY MLS WEEK 11 PLAYER RANKINGS

GOALKEEPERS

1. Donovan Ricketts, LA – Can't bet against the Galaxy defense at this point
2. Nick Rimando, RSL – United is playing better, but RSL is a different beast than Chivas
3. Bouna Coundoul, NY – Home matches against Houston and Chivas provide opportunity for Good Bouna to show up
4. Will Hesmer, CLB – Two road matches will be a challenge, but Crew defense is a very able unit
5. Andrew Dykstra, CHI – Philly's feeling good after stealing road points at Houston, but expansion side will be hard-pressed to repeat feat again
6. Joe Cannon, SJ – Was last week's slip-up for Quakes' defense a fluke? We'll find out after two matches this week, one of which comes against offensively challenged FC Dallas
7. Stefan Frei, TOR – Second-year breakout is officially on
8. Kasey Keller, SEA – Sounders in need of a convincing performance at home
9. Kevin Hartman, DAL – Decent home matchup against a San Jose team playing its second match of the week
10. Pat Onstad, HOU – Two road matches at New York and at Los Angeles; Not great but Dynamo defense must fight for pride after being shown up by Union at home

DEFENDERS

1. Sean Franklin, LA – Starts in the midfield but is listed as a defender; Earns clean sheet points while contributing offensively
2. Todd Dunivant, LA – MFLS' top-scoring defender plays for a unit that's given up just two goals all season
3. Omar Gonzalez, LA – Two goals…in 11 games! Gregg Berhalter and A.J. DeLaGarza are viable options too
4. Jamison Olave, RSL – United attackers will have a hard time dealing with Salt Lake's beast of a centerback…
5. Robbie Russell, RSL – …and Russell and Tony Beltran should be able to lock down the flanks against improved, but flawed, United
6. Chad Marshall, CLB – Centerback can focus on domestic play for Eastern Conference's stingiest defense
7. Wilman Conde, CHI – If Fire can avoid late-game Danny Mwanga heroics, then Conde and his backline mates should be nice fantasy contributors this week
8. Roy Miller, NY – Perhaps undervalued, left back has been steady contributor and has the chance to come up with a nice fantasy week if Red Bulls can get back on track at home
9. Adrian Cann, TOR – Don't look now, but TFC is second in the East and has yielded just two goals in its last four matches
10. James Riley, SEA – Each Sounder defender needs to dig a bit deeper with Jhon Kennedy Hurtado out for the long haul, and Riley could come up big against his former squad

MIDFIELDERS

1. Javier Morales, RSL – Matchup with D.C. suits RSL playmaker quite nicely
2. Dwayne De Rosario, TOR – On pace for perhaps finest season yet, and he's been at his best at BMO
3. Guillermo Barros Schelotto, CLB – Likely won't play both games this week, but he's a good bet to contribute regardless
4. Michael Stephens, LA – Rookie needed to pick up offensive slack, and he did so with his first-career goal last week
5. Brad Davis, HOU – Two matches for Top-3 fantasy midfielder, but both provide challenges to Dom Kinnear's squad
6. Will Johnson, RSL – Great matchup for Canadian international, who should see plenty of minutes  with Kyle Beckerman (out) and Andy Williams (doubtful) both potentially out of the lineup.
7. Eddie Gaven, CLB – Has been a solid, Top-8 fantasy contributor, last week's clunker against LA not withstanding
8. Shalrie Joseph, NE – It's no surprise that the Revs put up three goals against NY with Joseph back in the lineup; Not an easy matchup at Seattle this week, though
9. Chris Wondolowski, SJ – Two matches this week to continue surprising early-season run
10. Bobby Convey, SJ – Six assists tied for tops among midfielders with Houston's Davis
11. Joel Lindpere, NY – Was strong in defeat after one-game absence; Has a couple of matches to build on initial MLS campaign
12. Marco Pappa, CHI – Consistency isn't there for Pappa or the Fire, but it's hard to dislike their chances this week at home against Union
13. Sebastien Le Toux, PHI – Has proven to be a handful when fit and comes off a nice goal-and-assist performance against Dynamo
14. Steve Zakuani, SEA – Tied for third among midfielders in non-PK goals (3)
15. David Ferreira, DAL – Colombian netted first goal a week ago and meets a San Jose team playing its second match in four days

FORWARDS

1. Alvaro Saborio, RSL – Costa Rican is game's top striker with Galaxy duo in South Africa
2. Juan Pablo Angel, NY – Two home games, decent matchups for Red Bulls' ace
3. Patrick Nyarko, CHI – Attacking the Union back line should be nothing after showing up Ronaldinho in last week's friendly
4. Fredy Montero, SEA – How will the Revs cope after Burpo's gruesome injury? Montero will test third-string keeper Bobby Shuttleworth
5. Brian Ching, HOU – Didn't take long for Dynamo great to bounce back from World Cup disappointment; More likely to score against Red Bulls than Galaxy
6. Fabian Espindola, RSL – Goals in two straight for "other" Salt Lake threat
7. Brian McBride, CHI – Great home matchup with Philadelphia
8. Tristan Bowen, LA – Academy product looks like the real deal now
   that he's got the chance to play
9. Chad Barrett, TOR – He's been producing, and Wizards certainly haven't been defending all that well
10. Mike Magee, LA – Bowen-Magee combo is proving to be more than just a fill-in for Galaxy

COACHES

1. Hans Backe, NY
2. Robert Warzycha, CLB
3. Jason Kreis, RSL
4. Bruce Arena, LA
5. Carlos de los Cobos, CHI
6. Frank Yallop, SJ
7. Preki, TOR
8. Sigi Schmid, SEA
9. Dom Kinnear, HOU
10. Schellas Hyndman, DAL

Soccer By Ives League Standings (Top 10)
1. Timbers4Ever……………………………..310 points
2. Yankee Racers…………………………….301
3. ShaggyReAL………………………………..298
4. DCShooter…………………………………..297
4. Rainbow Chickens……………………….297
6. Cpt. Pancakes and Lt. Waffles……….295
7. The Woolly Mammoths…………………..290
7. Campione……………………………………..290
9. Skillz………………………………………………287
10. Miles Davis FC……………………………..285

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Who do you think is in for the biggest week? What's your lineup looking like?

Share your thoughts below.