Champions League Fantasy Football: Goalkeepers

As we head into the knockout phase on Champions League Fantasy Football, presented by Playstation, UEFA.com looks back at the best-performing goalkeepers from the group stage and considers how they might perform on Matchday 7 and beyond.

Benfica's Odisseas Vlachodimos (€5.2m) leads the way when it comes to #UCLfantasy goalkeepers, the Greek international having accumulated more points (34) than any other player in his position. Only Bayern managed to breach Vlachodimos' goal in Group E, with his four clean sheets vital in helping the Portuguese outfit qualify for the round of 16 ahead of Barcelona. Vlachodimos topped up his Fantasy total with an impressive 22 saves, with no other goalkeeper remaining in the competition having made more across the group stage. He may well be needed to increase that tally against free-scoring Ajax in the round of 16, but at a relatively low price he will tempt many #UCLfantasy managers.

Manuel Neuer (€6.3m) – who likewise has four clean sheets under his belt – is close behind on 32 Fantasy points. The Bayern star is, not surprisingly given his past record and team, a premium price but has been a reliable source of points for #UCLfantasy managers and the German international even gave his owners an unexpected bonus with an assist during Bayern's 5-2 victory at home to Benfica on Matchday 4 – a rare feat for a goalkeeper. The Bundesliga champions face Salzburg on Matchday 7 and Neuer features in almot 20% of all #UCLfantasy teams at the time of writing.

Neuer is not the highest-owned goalkeeper on #UCLfantasy though, with that accolade belonging to Chelsea's Edouard Mendy (€6.4m). The Senegal international, who features in 34% of teams at present, came to prominence in 2020/21 and was just as dependable in this season's group stage, conceding just once across his five appearances.

Mendy has therefore continued his form from last season's competition, when he kept nine clean sheets during Chelsea's run to the title, a feat achieved by only two other goalkeepers in UEFA Champions League history. The defending champions are at home to LOSC Lille in the first leg of their round of 16 tie, and Mendy looks set to remain the most popular choice among #UCLfantasy managers.

In order to retain funds for use in other positions, many #UCLfantasy managers will be on the lookout for a budget-friendly second goalkeeper to slot into their side. To that end, LOSC's Ivo Grbić (€5.0m), Remko Pasveer (€5.1m) of Ajax and Villarreal's Gerónimo Rulli (€5.0m) fit the bill, with Grbić leading the way after accruing 24 Fantasy points in the group stage.

However, Salzburg's Philipp Köhn (€4.5m) is shaping up to be cheapest first-choice keeper across the last 16. The Swiss stopper will likely be kept extremely busy over the next couple of matchdays with his side facing Bayern, so save points rather than clean sheets might be a more realistic route to points, but he could still provide useful value for money for thrifty investors.