Champions League Fantasy popular picks and potential differentials
Wednesday, March 4, 2020
Article summary
Ahead of Matchday 8, UEFA.com looks at some obvious #UCLfantasy selections and those who could cause a surprise.
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Article body
UEFA.com gears up for the round of 16 second legs by considering who the majority of #UCLfantasy managers have gone for, and who's still slipping under the radar.
GOALKEEPERS
Popular pick
Manuel Neuer (€6.0m) vs Chelsea (H)
The German is currently the second highest scoring goalkeeper in #UCLfantasy after keeping a clean sheet away from home on Matchday 7 in Bayern's 0-3 win at Chelsea, accruing seven Fantasy points in the process. Neuer has since kept two further clean sheets in all competitions for the German champions. With Bayern welcoming Chelsea to Munich on Matchday 8, the signs are good for another commanding Neuer performance and another clean sheet.
Selected by: 25%
Potential differential
Péter Gulácsi (€4.4m) vs Tottenham (H)
Like Neuer, Leipzig goalkeeper Gulácsi kept a clean sheet away against an English side on Matchday 7. A 1-0 victory for Julian Nagelsmann's side at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium gives Leipzig a slender advantage heading into Matchday 8. Spurs have suffered from injuries to key attacking players such as Harry Kane and Heung-Min Son and knowing that a clean sheet guarantees Leipzig a passage into the quarter finals, Gulácsi represents great value for money from a #UCLfantasy standpoint.
Selected by: 3%
DEFENDERS
Popular pick
Trent Alexander-Arnold (€6.8m) vs Atlético (H)
Despite being narrowly beaten 1-0 at Atlético, the reigning European champions will still be confident of progressing with the second leg at Anfield. Right-back Alexander-Arnold is set to play a key role as part of a Liverpool defence who have kept ten clean sheets in their last 13 Premier League games. Having registered two assists in his last domestic appearance at Anfield and a key figure at all Liverpool set-pieces, Alexander-Arnold will be afforded license to roam down the flanks and owners could well pick up both defensive and attacking returns on Matchday 8.
Selected by: 22%
Potential differential
Robin Gosens (€4.4m) vs Valencia (A)
Free-scoring Atalanta blew Valencia away with a 4-1 first-leg win in Italy, their third successive UEFA Champions League victory. Defender Gosens has accumulated 26 #UCLfantasy points over those three matches, keeping two clean sheets, scoring once and registering a mammoth 21 ball recoveries. Atalanta continue to score heavily on the domestic front, beating Lecce 7-2 in their most recent Serie A fixture, and with Gosens playing in an advanced left wing-back role, he could prove a shrewd Matchday 8 differential pick.
Selected by: 2%
MIDFIELDERS
Popular pick
Serge Gnabry (€8.2m) vs Chelsea (H)
Two goals for the Bayern midfielder on Matchday 7 made him the highest scoring midfielder in #UCLfantasy this season with 50 points. Gnabry has scored six goals over the course of Bayern's UEFA Champions League campaign, all of them against English opposition. With star striker Robert Lewandowski set to miss the second leg through injury, Gnabry could be the man to provide the goals in his absence against a Chelsea side who have failed to keep a clean sheet in their last six Premier League matches and who shipped three goals at home to the Bavarians on Matchday 7.
Selected by: 19%
Potential differential
Josip Iličić (€6.1m) vs Valencia (A)
The Atalanta midfielder is in superb form both domestically and in the UEFA Champions League. The Croatian, who played as a right-sided forward scored inthe 4-1 home win against Valencia on Matchday 7, was the most advanced player on the pitch for the Italian debutants and most recently provided a goal and two assists in his team's 7-2 league win against Lecce in Serie A. Atalanta have now scored nine goals in their last three UEFA Champions League fixtures and Iličić remains a very attractive prospect for Matchday 8, playing against a Valencia side likely to leave gaps in their back line as they push to try and overturn a three-goal deficit.
Selected by: 3%
FORWARDS
Popular pick
Cristiano Ronaldo (€11.5m) vs Lyon (H)
With Juventus trailing by a single goal to Lyon going into their round of 16 second leg, much of the onus will be on Ronaldo to overturn the deficit and help the Italian champions into the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals. At this stage of the competition last year, Ronaldo scored a magnificent hat-trick to overturn a 2-0 first-leg deficit and send Juventus through at the expense of Atlético. The Portuguese superstar is in great form, having scored 13 goals in his last ten Juve appearances in all competitions, and usually thrives on the sort of pressure both him and his side will be under on Matchday 8.
Selected by: 37%
Potential differential
Dries Mertens (€8.5m) vs Barcelona (A)
Napoli travel to the Camp Nou all square in their round of 16 tie with Barcelona after the first leg finished 1-1, Mertens opening the scoring in Naples. Whilst the home side may be favourites to progress, Napoli have cause to be confident with Mertens at their disposal, providing he recovers from an ankle injury sustained in the first leg. The Belgian has managed six goals in this season's UEFA Champions League, finding the net in Napoli's last three fixtures in the competition. He is the third highest scoring #UCLfantasy forward so far this season and could prove a smart acquisition with the Partenopei needing to score to stand a chance of qualification.
Selected by: 5%