Champions League Fantasy Football: Midfielders for every budget

UEFA.com highlights a number of attractive midfield selections available across all price ranges on #UCLfantasy, presented by Playstation.

PREMIUM OPTIONS

Following a significant rise, Lamine Yamal (€10.0m) is now among the top-priced Fantasy players available in 2025/26. The teenager recorded five goals and three assists in last season's competition and already has two goals and two assists in three La Liga games. Barcelona team-mate Raphinha (€9.5m) made history in the 2024/25 UEFA Champions League, registering 22 goal involvements to beat Cristiano Ronaldo's record of 21 from 2013/14. This earned the Brazilian 137 Fantasy points, by far the most of any player.

Mohamed Salah (€10.5m) recorded 34 goals in 52 appearances across all competitions last season. The Egyptian has already opened his domestic account for the new campaign, as has Real Madrid's Vinícius Júnior (€9.5m), who has been repositioned as a Fantasy midfielder this season.

New Liverpool signing Florian Wirtz (€9.0m) scored six goals and won five Player of the Match awards for Bayer Leverkusen in last season's competition, earning 76 points, while fellow Premier League pair Bukayo Saka (€9.5m) and Cole Palmer (€9.5m) are viable options should they recover from injury in time for Matchday 1.

MID-PRICED OPTIONS

Managers are spoiled for choice when searching for mid-priced midfielders ahead of Matchday 1, but Vitinha (€7.0m) stands out. He was a key part of the Paris Saint-Germain side who won the Champions League last season, registering four goal involvements, 66 ball recoveries, three Player of the Match awards and 80 Fantasy points. Michael Olise (€8.0m) scored five times in Europe during 2024/25 and has found the net in all three of Bayern München's Bundesliga games in the current campaign.

Napoli midfielders are worthy of consideration with Scott McTominay (€7.0m) one option having been named Serie A Most Valuable Player in the title-winning campaign in 2024/25, when he hit 12 league goals. Both McTominay and new team-mate Kevin De Bruyne (€8.0m) have already scored in the new campaign.

Declan Rice (€7.0m), Joshua Kimmich (€6.5m) and Hakan Çalhanoğlu (€7.0m) are all capable of accumulating Fantasy points through multiple avenues, while Malik Tillman (€6.5m) is looking to fill the attacking midfield role left by Wirtz at Leverkusen having joined from PSV Eindhoven.

BUDGET OPTIONS

After a hat-trick against Toulouse in Ligue 1, plenty of eyes will be upon João Neves (€6.0m) as Fantasy managers hunt for budget-friendly performers. Two of Neves' three goals for Paris in last season's Champions League came from outside the box, while 87 ball recoveries and three Player of the Match awards boosted his overall score to 73 points.

Igor Paixão (€6.0m) could be a key player for Marseille after scoring 55 Fantasy points for Feyenoord last season, although it remains to be seen if the Brazilian recovers from injury in time for Matchday 1. Hans Vanaken (€5.0m) scored twice for Club Brugge in qualifying, while Francisco Trincão (€6.0m) has three goals and an assist in four league appearances for Sporting CP.

The ball-recovery skills of Marten de Roon (€5.5m) make the Atalanta midfielder one to consider. Maghnes Akliouche (€5.0m) also picked up over 40 Fantasy points last season, scoring two goals in three Ligue 1 matches for Monaco to start the new campaign. Fantasy bosses needing cheaper choices could look at Akliouche's team-mate Lamine Camara (€4.5m) or Club Brugge's Joaquin Seys (€4.5m).