UCL Fantasy Football: Matchday 6 lessons

With the group stage coming to a close, UEFA.com reflects on the key Matchday 6 talking points from a #UCLfantasy perspective.

Top of the pile on Matchday 6 was Neymar, who helped fire Paris Saint-Germain to a 5-1 victory at home to İstanbul Başakşehir. The Brazilian scored a hat-trick – with two of those strikes coming from outside the box – and also earned a penalty in a display which rewarded owners with 18 points, while those who captained him were almost guaranteed a green arrow. Elsewhere in Group H, Leipzig's Angeliño and Amadou Haidara were the stars of the show with a goal and an assist apiece against Manchester United, earning scores of 12 and 11 points respectively. Both could prove smart signings for Fantasy managers going into the knockout phase, with Angeliño in particular having performed consistently throughout the group stage.

Cristian Romero once more proved what an essential #UCLfantasy asset he is by returning ten points in Atalanta's decisive 1-0 win away at Ajax. The Argentinian is the undisputed king of ball recoveries and he will surely see his ownership rise significantly ahead of the round of 16. Also in Group D, Mohamed Salah became Liverpool's all-time highest scorer in the UEFA Champions League when he notched after just 55 seconds against Midtjylland and he is bound to be a popular Fantasy choice when the competition returns in February.

In the highly anticipated Matchday 6 battle between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, it was the latter who came out on top. The Portuguese superstar converted two penalties as Juventus beat Barcelona 3-0 at the Camp Nou to leapfrog their opponents to the top of Group G. Those two goals brought Ronaldo 12 #UCLfantasy points, the most of any forward on Tuesday night, and will likely see his ownership rise sharply as a result.

Another forward expected to prove popular in the next round of the competition is Lazio's Ciro Immobile. The Italian frontman has shone throughout the group stage and got on the scoresheet again on Matchday 6, converting a penalty in a 2-2 draw with Club Brugge that secured progress. Despite playing just four of Lazio's six group games, Immobile managed five goals and an impressive 37 #UCLfantasy points.

In Group F, Dortmund came from behind to overcome Zenit 2-1 in Russia, enough to see Lucien Favre’s side finish top. Jadon Sancho came off the bench to provide the assist for Axel Witsel's winning goal, taking his total attacking returns for Dortmund over the course of the group stage to two goals and two assists. In Group E, the star of the show was Sevilla forward Youssef En-Nesyri who scored twice in the Spanish side's 3-1 victory at Rennes, acquiring nine #UCLfantasy points in the process. Priced at just €7.4m and with a current ownership of 0%, En-Nesyri could prove a shrewd differential heading into the knockout stage.

Manchester City assets will come under scrutiny when the UEFA Champions League resumes and one player who surely has to be considered is Ferran Torres, who is enjoying an excellent first campaign at the club. The Spaniard scored in four of his five group stage appearances and has been one of the most consistent midfielders in #UCLfantasy this season.

The round of 16 will feature four of the five highest goalscorers in UEFA Champions League history. Ronaldo and Messi will be joined by Bayern's Robert Lewandowski and Real Madrid's Karim Benzema. With Neymar, Erling Braut Haaland and Kylian Mbappé among the players also vying for attention, #UCLfantasy managers will need every bit of the extra €5m budget they have been granted after the group stage

Don't forget! All #UCLfantasy managers have unlimited transfers for use before Matchday 7.