Who should be my Champions League Fantasy Football captain for Matchday 17?
Sunday, May 25, 2025
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Paris Saint-Germain pair Nuno Mendes and Ousmane Dembélé and Denzel Dumfries and Lautaro Martínez of Inter are among the main contenders for the Fantasy captaincy in the UEFA Champions League final.
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With Paris Saint-German and Inter vying for final glory, UEFA.com discusses the merits of four captaincy options ahead of the conclusion of the 2024/25 UEFA Champions League.
Nuno Mendes, Ousmane Dembélé, Denzel Dumfries and Lautaro Martínez could all play major roles in the final for managers on #UCLfantasy, presented by Playstation.
PARIS SAINT-GERMAIN
Ousmane Dembélé (€8.7m)
Despite an injury issue restricting him to a bench role against Arsenal in the semi-final second leg, Dembélé still made a significant contribution by providing the assist for Achraf Hakimi's goal in the second half, making it a goal involvement in each of his last five Champions League outings. In all competitions, Dembele has scored 33 club goals at the time of writing, 25 of those coming in 2025 alone, and features in a third of Fantasy teams as it stands.
Nuno Mendes (€6.1m)
A consistent Fantasy performer throughout Paris' Champions League campaign, Mendes has been particularly productive in the knockout stage, registering four clean sheets, three goals and an assist. He has scored four goals overall in Europe this season, more than any other defender set to feature in the final, and is the fourth player to reach 100 Fantasy points in the 2024/25 Champions League thanks to his points potential in both attack and defence.
Other options: Willian Pacho (€5.0m), Achraf Hakimi (€5.8m), Khvicha Kvaratskhelia (€7.6m)
INTER
Lautaro Martínez (€9.4m)
There was some doubt surrounding Martínez's involvement in the semi-final second leg with Barcelona, but the Argentinian recovered from injury to start and underlined his importance by both scoring and winning a penalty in Inter's remarkable 4-3 victory. Martínez has either scored or laid on an assist in six of his last seven Champions League appearances and has nine goals overall in Europe this campaign in addition to four Player of the Match awards, more than any other player from either finalist.
Denzel Dumfries (€5.6m)
One of the standout Fantasy performers across the semi-finals, Dumfries followed up his two goals and assist in the first leg against Barcelona with a further two assists in Milan, taking his total across both matches to 27 points. Somewhat surprisingly, the Dutchman had not previously registered a goal or assist in the 2024/25 Champions League but those who kept faith with Inter's attacking defender were handsomely rewarded. Dumfries also scored against Lazio in Serie A on 18 May to make it ten club goals this season – a new career best.
Other options: Federico Dimarco (€5.4m), Hakan Çalhanoğlu (€7.0m), Marcus Thuram (€7.6m)