#UCLfantasy Matchday 3: What the numbers say
Monday, October 21, 2019
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UEFA.com crunches the numbers to find out which players are predicted for big Matchday 3 totals.
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Predicting which Fantasy players are going to perform on a 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.
The top projected players for each position for Matchday 3 are given below. As ever, check team news before making your final selections.
GOALKEEPERS
Player | Price | Club | Opponents | Home/Away | Gameday | Projected |
Marc-André ter Stegen | 6.0 | Barcelona | Slavia Praha | A | Wednesday | 7.0 |
Jan Oblak | 6.0 | Atlético | Leverkusen | H | Tuesday | 6.5 |
Wojciech Szczęsny | 5.5 | Juventus | Lokomotiv | H | Tuesday | 6.2 |
Ederson | 6.0 | Man City | Atalanta | H | Tuesday | 6.0 |
Alisson Becker | 6.0 | Liverpool | Genk | A | Wednesday | 6.0 |
Premium options lead the way for Matchday 3's projected top goalkeepers with four of them costing €6.0m – the current highest price for any keeper. Manchester City are still yet to concede a goal in this season's UEFA Champions league and throughout those two matches, Ederson (€6.0m) has had remarkably little to do, making just two saves so far. Despite offering excellent clean sheet potential, the Brazilian offers little prospect of receiving points through saves.
Unlike Ederson, Marc-André ter Stegen (€6.0m) does present save potential along with the chance of a clean sheet. The Barcelona shot-stopper has already saved six shots and a penalty this season and kept a clean sheet in Barcelona's away match at Dortmund on Matchday 1.
DEFENDERS
Player | Price | Club | Opponents | Home/Away | Gameday | Projected |
Nicolás Tagliafico | 5.0 | Ajax | Chelsea | H | Wednesday | 8.1 |
Thomas Meunier | 5.5 | Paris | Club Brugge | A | Tuesday | 8.0 |
Juan Bernat | 5.5 | Paris | Club Brugge | A | Tuesday | 8.0 |
Matthijs de Ligt | 6.5 | Juventus | Lokomotiv | H | Tuesday | 8.0 |
Nicolás Otamendi | 5.5 | Man City | Atalanta | H | Tuesday | 8.0 |
Renan Lodi | 4.0 | Atlético | Leverkusen | H | Tuesday | 7.5 |
Alex Sandro | 5.5 | Juventus | Lokomotiv | H | Tuesday | 7.3 |
José María Giménez | 6.0 | Atlético | Leverkusen | H | Tuesday | 7.2 |
Andrew Robertson | 7.0 | Liverpool | Genk | A | Wednesday | 7.0 |
Achraf Hakimi | 5.5 | Dortmund | Internazionale | A | Wednesday | 6.8 |
Nicolás Tagliafico (€5.0m) notched another eight #UCLfantasy points on Matchday 2 to go with the 18 he had brought in in the first round of matches. The Ajax full-back is currently the top-scoring defender in #UCLfantasy and has proven over the last two seasons how impressive he is at both ends of the field.
Another full-back who impressed last season was Achraf Hakimi (€5.5m) and on Matchday 2, the Dortmund man reminded all #UCLfantasy managers of his attacking prowess with two goals against Slavia Praha. Operating on the left side of midfield, Hakimi offers significant out-of-position potential.
The introduction of ball recovery points this season have added an extra dimension to the game. This is particularly notable for the likes of Thomas Meunier (€6.0m) and Nicolás Otamendi (€5.5m), who have recovered 16 and 13 balls respectively.
MIDFIELDERS
Player | Price | Club | Opponents | Home/Away | Gameday | Projected |
Sadio Mané | 10.5 | Liverpool | Genk | A | Wednesday | 8.3 |
Serge Gnabry | 8.0 | Bayern | Olympiacos | A | Tuesday | 8.1 |
Riyad Mahrez | 8.5 | Man City | Atalanta | H | Tuesday | 7.9 |
Mislav Oršić | 6.0 | Dinamo | Shakhtar | A | Tuesday | 7.6 |
Mohamed Salah | 11.0 | Liverpool | Genk | A | Wednesday | 7.5 |
İlkay Gündoğan | 6.0 | Man City | Atalanta | H | Tuesday | 7.0 |
Ángel Di María | 8.5 | Paris | Club Brugge | A | Tuesday | 7.0 |
Raheem Sterling | 11.0 | Man City | Atalanta | H | Tuesday | 6.9 |
Thiago Alcántara | 7.0 | Bayern | Olympiacos | A | Tuesday | 6.7 |
Quincy Promes | 7.0 | Ajax | Chelsea | H | Wednesday | 6.5 |
On Matchday 2 Serge Gnabry (€8.0m) became only the 13th player in UEFA Champions League history to score four or more goals in a single match, bringing in a bumper 22 points.
Gnabry aside, no player has scored more goals from midfield than Dinamo Zagreb's Mislav Oršić (€6.0m). His hat-trick against Atalanta on Matchday 1 was followed up by a three-point performance two weeks later in a tough fixture away to Manchester City. The Croatian will be looking to get back amongst the goals this coming week against a Shakhtar team that has not kept a clean sheet in their last 18 UEFA Champions League matches, qualifying included.
After their defeat by Napoli on the opening night, Liverpool played out an entering victory against Salzburg on Matchday 2 with the English club on the right side of a 4-3 result. Key to the win were the performances of Sadio Mané (€10.5m) and Mohamed Salah (€11.0m), who shared three goals between them.
FORWARDS
Player | Price | Club | Opponents | Home/Away | Gameday | Projected |
Robert Lewandowski | 10.5 | Bayern | Olympiacos | A | Tuesday | 8.1 |
Lionel Messi | 11.5 | Barcelona | Slavia | A | Wednesday | 7.9 |
Hee-Chan Wang | 6.0 | Salzburg | Napoli | H | Wednesday | 7.4 |
Erling Braut Haaland | 4.5 | Salzburg | Napoli | H | Wednesday | 7.2 |
Takumi Minamino | 7.0 | Salzburg | Napoli | H | Wednesday | 7.1 |
Cristiano Ronaldo | 11.5 | Juventus | Lokomotiv | H | Tuesday | 6.8 |
Sergio Agüero | 10.5 | Man City | Atalanta | H | Tuesday | 6.6 |
Memphis Depay | 8.0 | Lyon | Benfica | A | Wednesday | 6.5 |
Harry Kane | 11.0 | Tottenham | Crvena zvezda | H | Tuesday | 6.3 |
Roberto Firmino | 9.5 | Liverpool | Genk | A | Wednesday | 6.0 |
No team has scored more goals or had more shots in the UEFA Champions League this season than Bayern, who have ten goals and average 27.5 shots per match after the opening two matchdays. This attacking approach has benefitted no one more than Robert Lewandowski (£10.5m), who has found the net three times so far.
Another side currently lighting up the top end of the field are Austrian champions Salzburg. Their three forwards – Hee-Chan Hwang (€6.0m), Erling Braut Haaland (€4.5m) and Takumi Minamino (€7.0m) – are currently the top three forwards in #UCLfantasy. Between them, they have seven goals, six assists and 60 points in total.
Cristiano Ronaldo (£11.5m) recently scored his 700th career goals for club and country and, after drawing a blank on Matchday 1, opened his 2019/20 UEFA Champions League account with a well-taken goal on Matchday 2 against Leverkusen.