UCL Fantasy Football: Defenders

UEFA.com looks ahead to the first legs of the quarter-finals and assesses the best defensive options for #UCLfantasy managers.

Only two defenders came out of Matchday 8 with a #UCLfantasy score of ten points or more, with the highest score coming from Real Madrid's Sergio Ramos (€6.5m). The Spaniard – aided by his role as the club's main penalty taker – has proven himself as one of the most reliable #UCLfantasy defenders for a number of years now and that is reflected in his 16% ownership, who will be hoping for more returns on Matchday 9 as the 13-time winners host Liverpool.

Potentially set to feature in the same encounter is Liverpool central defender Nathaniel Phillips (€4.5m) off the back of a ten-point haul against Leipzig in his first ever UEFA Champions League start. With 12 completed ball recoveries to go with his clean sheet, Phillips has more than one string to his bow. While his place in the starting line-up is not certain in such a crucial game, at that bargain price he could well be worth including in your Matchday 9 squad.

It would be remiss to not mention Trent Alexander-Arnold (€6.7m) when on the topic of Liverpool defenders, with the flying full-back currently the joint highest scoring defender in #UCLfantasy this season with 50 points to his name. Five clean sheets, two assists and 44 ball recoveries in six UEFA Champions League starts emphasise the fact that Alexander-Arnold can gain Fantasy points from numerous outlets. Tied with Alexander-Arnold on 50 points is Porto's Zaidu Sanusi (€5.3m), who turned out to be one the stars of the group stage from a Fantasy perspective, accruing five clean sheets to go with a goal and 37 completed ball recoveries. Sanusi has shown his capability at gaining #UCLfantasy points from defence and with an ownership of just 5% may prove a smart differential selection on Matchday 9, as Porto face off against Thomas Tuchel's Chelsea.

Since Tuchel became manager of the 2011/12 UEFA Champions League winners, the Blues have undergone a dramatic improvement defensively and are currently on a run of seven successive clean sheets in all competitions, including twice shutting out round of 16 opponents Atlético. The mainstays of Tuchel's defensive revolution include club captain César Azpilicueta (€5.0m). The Spaniard has established himself as a key part of Tuchel's defence and has acquired the highest number of #UCLfantasy points among the Chelsea defenders this season, with 36 points to his name. Trailing a point behind him on 35 is fellow centre-back Antonio Rüdiger (€4.6m) who, like Azpilicueta, started in both Chelsea's round of 16 fixtures. With Tuchel prone to rotating his full-backs, these two stand out as the best #UCLfantasy options among the London club's back line for Matchday 9 against Porto.