Champions League Fantasy Football: What the numbers say

Ahead of Matchday 4, UEFA.com crunches the numbers to find out which players are predicted for big points hauls.

Predicting which Fantasy players are going to perform on any given matchday is a difficult task. Through crunching the numbers, a projected points total for each player has been calculated based on the player's historical performance in the UEFA Champions League. Goals, assists, clean sheets and the likelihood of playing are the major parameters used in our projections on #UCLfantasy, presented by Playstation.

The top projected players for each position for Matchday 4 are given below. As ever, check latest team news and possible line-ups before making your final selection.

GOALKEEPERS

Manuel Neuer leads the way when it comes to projected scores among goalkeepers on Matchday 4, with the Bayern No1 boasting still to concede in the 2022/23 UEFA Champions League. Club Brugge's Simon Mignolet has achieved the same feat having recorded three straight shut-outs.

Premier League pair Ederson and Hugo Lloris will aim for second successive clean sheets against Copenhagen and Eintracht Frankfurt respectively, while Alisson Becker once again faces a Rangers side who have yet to score in the group stage.

DEFENDERS

There was frustration for João Cancelo owners on Matchday 3 with the Portuguese full-back having been deprived of clean sheet points against Copenhagen due to his early withdrawal, but he still managed an assist – his fourth of the UEFA Champions League campaign. Fellow Manchester City full-back Sergio Gómez, meanwhile, doubled Cancelo's score on Matchday 3 and looks excellent value at €4.1m ahead of the return fixture.

Matchday 3 goals for Giovanni Di Lorenzo, Raphaël Guerreiro, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Reece James – who also registered an assist – ensured their spots in the projections, and #UCLfantasy managers will be clamouring to fit as many attack-minded defenders as possible into their Matchday 4 squads.

None of these can boast more #UCLfantasy points than Abakar Sylla though, who still looks incredible value despite successive price rises, while Club Brugge team-mate Bjorn Meijer has also racked up the points and is even more budget-friendly.

MIDFIELDERS

There is no change at the top of the midfield projections as Leroy Sané retains top spot after another excellent performance yielded 12 Fantasy points on Matchday 3. Up to second place is Jude Bellingham, who has bagged four attacking returns in Dortmund's first three Group G encounters.

Elsewhere in the premium bracket, Vinícius Júnior kept up his record of either scoring or assisting in every game, Sadio Mané delivered a 15-point performance for Bayern and former Liverpool team-mate Mohamed Salah found the net for the second consecutive UEFA Champions League game, adding the Player of the Match award in the process. With the same opponents on Matchday 4, the projections giving them every chance of repeat success.

The algorithm also selects some lesser-owned assets. Noah Okafor has scored in all three of Salzburg's games, matching his tally from last season's group stage, while André-Frank Zambo Anguissa has quietly recorded a goal, three assists and 14 ball recoveries.

FORWARDS

Erling Haaland, of course, is projected to score well on Matchday 4 as he looks to add to the two goals he has already scored against Copenhagen, while a blank on Matchday 3 is not enough to deter the algorithm from backing Kylian Mbappé in Paris's home fixture against Benfica, with Lionel Messi and Neymar equally worthy of consideration.

Those star names fall short of Ferran Jutglà's #UCLfantasy total though, with the in-form Club Brugge striker's 28 points inclusive of two goals, two assists and two Player of the Match awards. The Spaniard has logged successive double-figure point hauls, and his ownership is growing rapidly as a result.

Leipzig's André Silva and Dušan Vlahović of Juventus were both on the scoresheet on Matchday 3 while Harry Kane's inclusion is due to his domestic form, the Tottenham striker having scored seven goals in his first eight Premier League games.