EURO 2020 Fantasy Football Matchday 4: What the numbers say

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. Goals, assists, clean sheets and the likelihood of playing are the main parameters used in our projections. Ahead of Matchday 4, UEFA.com breaks down the numbers to find out which players are predicted to deliver.

GOALKEEPERS

Gianluigi Donnarumma has been as reliable as it gets for Fantasy owners so far after having kept three consecutive clean sheets in the group stage, so the Italian naturally features prominently in the projections for Matchday 4. His perfect record is shared only by Jordan Pickford, who is tipped to perform well again despite a tough test against Germany.

Elsewhere, Maarten Stekelenburg looks a viable choice given that the Netherlands have not conceded a goal since Matchday 1, while Sweden's Robin Olsen has flown under the radar somewhat with a mere 5% ownership, but his two clean sheets and 11 saves to date make him a tempting proposition. Unai Simón – with just one goal shipped till now – rounds off the top projected goalkeepers with Spain facing Croatia in the last 16.

DEFENDERS

Denzel Dumfries has been one of the most eye-catching Fantasy assets of the tournament, with the Netherlands full-back frequently to be found in dangerous attacking areas. Indeed, with two goals to his name in addition to winning a penalty, the PSV Eindhoven flier looks like an essential inclusion in any Fantasy squad. Although Leonardo Spinazzola has just one assist in comparison, the Italian promises similar attacking potential and is likely to be reinstated to the Azzurri starting XI after being rested for the Matchday 3 win against Wales.

Both Aymeric Laporte and Jordi Alba logged attacking returns for Spain on Matchday 3 – a goal and an assist respectively – and the algorithm reckons they have a good chance of registering a strong Fantasy score in the round of 16, while Robin Gosens' stunning 14-point haul against Portugal on Matchday 2 has not been forgotten and he remains an affordable and potentially devastating option.

Although Denmark defender Simon Kjær has proven more popular in terms of ownership, his team-mate Joakim Mæhle is the one who figures in the projections ahead of Matchday 4, with the left-back getting on the scoresheet against Russia last time out. At just €4.5m, Mæhle represents excellent value for money and should be a strong consideration for your Matchday 4 squads.

MIDFIELDERS

Georginio Wijnaldum came into EURO 2020 with a growing reputation as an attacking force at international level and he has certainly not disappointed in that respect having found the net three times so far. The Dutchman tops the projected midfielders list for Matchday 4, closely followed by Italy's Lorenzo Insigne, who scored on Matchday 1 and is expected to return to the side for Saturday's meeting with Austria.

Emil Forsberg and Andriy Yarmolenko will face off against each other when Sweden and Ukraine meet in the last game of the round of 16 and both are tempting Fantasy propositions in light of their group stage showings. The pair have each been directly involved in three goals so far and will court a great deal of interest from Fantasy managers.

No surprise to see Kevin De Bruyne make an appearance in the projections, with the Belgian having supplied telling contributions in both his appearances to date, while his Manchester City team-mate Raheem Sterling has scored both of England's goals at EURO 2020 and is becoming an increasingly attractive Fantasy selection.

FORWARDS

Cristiano Ronaldo continues to rewrite the history books at EURO 2020 and the competition's all-time leading scorer again finds himself at the head of the projected forwards list for Matchday 4. Given that he scored in all three group games – including against Germany and France – it would be no surprise to see the Portugal forward carry on in the same manner against Belgium.

Fantasy managers are increasingly being drawn to Memphis Depay, who has steadily grown into the tournament, as have the Netherlands team as a whole, and their main protagonist will aim to add to the two goals and two assists he has claimed so far when Frank de Boer's men meet Czech Republic. Alternatively, Ciro Immobile is available at the same price and will be a popular captaincy choice on the opening day of Matchday 4.

For those wanting to spend a little less on their forward line, the algorithm likes the chances of Ukraine's Roman Yaremchuk and Czech Republic striker Patrik Schick. The former has been directly involved in three goals till now, while the latter’s 21 Fantasy points is second only to Ronaldo among forwards.