Champions League Fantasy Football: What the numbers say – UEFA.com

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.

The top projected players for each position for Matchday 2 are given below. As ever, check the latest team news and possible line-ups before making your final choice.

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GOALKEEPERS

Player	Price	Club	Opponents	Home/Away	Gameday	Projected points
Manuel Neuer	€6.0m	Bayern	Dynamo Kyiv	Home	Wednesday	6.3
Koen Casteels	€5.0m	Wolfsburg	Sevilla	Home	Wednesday	6.1
Edouard Mendy	€6.0m	Chelsea	Juventus	Away	Wednesday	6.1
Jan Oblak	€6.5m	Atlético	AC Milan	Away	Tuesday	6.1
Thibaut Courtois	€6.0m	Real Madrid	Sheriff	Home	Tuesday	6.1

Great saves from Matchday 1

At the time of writing, Bayern have kept four clean sheets in their last five games in all competitions – including their 3-0 win at Barcelona on Matchday 1 – so Manuel Neuer is the strongest #UCLfantasy goalkeeper for Matchday 2, according to the projections.

Edouard Mendy helped Chelsea keep a clean sheet against Zenit and should line up on Matchday 2 providing he recovers from a rib injury, while the budget-conscious might want to consider Wolfsburg’s Koen Casteels. The German outfit – who face Sevilla – have the joint best defensive record in the Bundesliga at present and kept Group G opponents LOSC Lille at bay in their opening fixture.

DEFENDERS

Player	Price	Club	Opponents	Home/Away	Gameday	Projected points
Joshua Kimmich	€6.5m	Bayern	Dynamo Kyiv	Home	Wednesday	7.3
Dayot Upamecano	€5.5m	Bayern	Dynamo Kyiv	Home	Wednesday	7.0
Trent Alexander-Arnold	€6.5m	Liverpool	Porto	Away	Tuesday	6.9
Antonio Rüdiger	€5.5m	Chelsea	Juventus	Away	Wednesday	6.7
Thomas Meunier	€5.0m	Dortmund	Sporting CP	Home	Tuesday	6.5
Raphaël Guerreiro	€6.0m	Dortmund	Sporting CP	Home	Tuesday	6.5
Robin Gosens	€5.5m	Atalanta	Young Boys	Home	Wednesday	6.4
Noussair Mazraoui	€4.5m	Ajax	Beşiktaş	Home	Tuesday	6.4
Achraf Hakimi	€6.5m	Paris	Man City	Home	Tuesday	6.4
César Azpilicueta	€5.0m	Chelsea	Juventus	Away	Wednesday	6.3

In the Zone: Ajax analysis

Joshua Kimmich recorded a modest five #UCLfantasy points on Matchday 1 but, with the algorithm factoring in past European performances as well as domestic form, the Bayern man is projected to perform even better against Dynamo Kyiv. Kimmich scored twice in a recent Bundesliga fixture, illustrating his considerable attacking threat, and owners will be banking on him translating that form into the UEFA Champions League.

Fellow Bundesliga side Dortmund boast two attractive #UCLfantasy defensive assets in Thomas Meunier and Raphaël Guerreiro, with both making attacking contributions against Union Berlin in the league match that followed the Matchday 1 victory at Beşiktaş.

Paris full-back Achraf Hakimi is another option famed for his attacking potential and has recorded three goals and two assists in all competitions for his new club this season, including a match-winning double against Metz on 22 September. At €2.0m cheaper though, compatriot Noussair Mazraoui could be the one to opt for. After provided an assist on Matchday 1, the full-back went on to score in successive Eredivisie games and could deliver further returns in an attack-minded Ajax side.

MIDFIELDERS

Player	Price	Club	Opponents	Home/Away	Gameday	Projected points
Jude Bellingham	€7.0m	Dortmund	Sporting CP	Home	Tuesday	8.2
Mohamed Salah	€10.5m	Liverpool	Porto	Away	Tuesday	7.3
Serge Gnabry	€10.0m	Bayern	Dynamo Kyiv	Home	Wednesday	7.1
Bruno Fernandes	€10.5m	Man Utd	Villarreal	Home	Wednesday	7.1
Christopher Nkunku	€7.5m	Leipzig	Club Brugge	Home	Tuesday	7.1
Jorginho	€6.0m	Chelsea	Juventus	Away	Wednesday	6.7
Marco Reus	€8.0m	Dortmung	Sporting CP	Home	Tuesday	6.6
Sadio Mané	€10.0m	Liverpool	Porto	Away	Tuesday	6.5
Kevin De Bruyne	€11.0m	Man City	Paris	Away	Tuesday	6.4
Marco Asensio	€7.5m	Real Madrid	Sheriff	Home	Tuesday	6.3

Assists of the Week: Matchday 1

Jude Bellingham played a starring role for Dortmund on Matchday 1, a goal and an assist contributing to him being named Player of the Match to bring in an additional three #UCLfantasy points. The Englishman tops the projections for Matchday 2 as a result although the top-scoring midfielder so far is Christopher Nkunku, who on Matchday 1 became the first Leipzig player to score a UEFA Champions League hat-trick, although he was also only the fourth player in the competition’s history to score three goals in a losing cause.

The three most expensive midfielders in #UCLfantasy – all Premier League players – feature in the projections. Mohamed Salah, Bruno Fernandes and Kevin De Bruyne each gained a slightly underwhelming five points last time out but their consistency keeps them in the reckoning for Matchday 2. Owners of the cheapest midfielder on this list, Jorginho, will be hoping a penalty comes Chelsea’s way at Juventus.

FORWARDS

Player	Price	Club	Opponents	Home/Away	Gameday	Projected points
Robert Lewandowski	€11.5m	Bayern	Dynamo Kyiv	Home	Wednesday	8.7
Erling Haaland	€11.0m	Dortmund	Sporting CP	Home	Tuesday	8.6
Cristiano Ronaldo	€11.0m	Man Utd	Villarreal	Home	Wednesday	7.9
Sébastien Haller	€8.5m	Ajax	Beşiktaş	Home	Tuesday	7.8
Karim Benzema	€10.0m	Real Madrid	Sheriff	Home	Tuesday	7.6
Kylian Mbappé	€10.5m	Paris	Man City	Home	Tuesday	7.5
Lautaro Martínez	€10.0m	Inter	Shakhtar Donetsk	Away	Tuesday	7.4
Dušan Tadić	€8.5m	Ajax	Beşiktaş	Home	Tuesday	7.2
Duván Zapata	€9.5m	Atalanta	Young Boys	Home	Wednesday	7.1
Karim Adeyemi	€7.0m	Salzburg	LOSC Lille	Home	Wednesday	7.0

In the Zone: Chelsea analysis

It’s largely a list of familiar faces when it comes to the top projected forwards, with many of Europe’s leading strikers finding the net in their respective club’s openers. Robert Lewandowski, Erling Haaland and Cristiano Ronaldo are up and running already and have home fixtures on Matchday 2.

Sébastien Haller is a new name in the list following his sensational performance against Sporting CP that earned the Ajax striker a matchday-high of 21 points. Team-mate Dušan Tadić, meanwhile, will be looking to get off the mark in the competition after being amongst the goals in the Eredivisie recently.

Karim Adeyemi had an eventful Matchday 1 having earned three penalties in Salzburg’s 1-1 draw with Sevilla. Despite missing the one spot kick he took himself, his overall performance earned him the Player of the Match award and he represents excellent value ahead of the Austrian side’s Matchday 2 meeting with LOSC Lille.

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