FanDuel Fantasy Soccer: Tuesday UCL Targets

MATCHES (EDT)

• 3:00 p.m: Ajax v. Lille
• 3:00 p.m: Benfica v. RB Leipzig
• 3:00 p.m: Borussia Dortmund v. Barcelona
• 3:00 p.m: Chelsea v. Valencia
• 3:00 p.m: Napoli v. Liverpool
• 3:00 p.m: Red Bull Salzburg v. Genk

FORWARDS/MIDFIELDERS

It's easy to look at the Barcelona and Liverpool guys, but while they are the most expensive options, they probably aren't worth the price. Both clubs are away and barely favored to win. Antoine Griezmann ($25) is best left for GPP because he's done nothing away from home in league play and a trip to Germany won't help those issues. Lionel Messi ($24) will get attention if he starts, but he hasn't played in more than a month. Of the top teams, I'd trust Sadio Mane ($22) above the others, even before teammate Mohamed Salah ($22). Mane is in form with four goals in his last four league starts and Napoli's back line hasn't been great, allowing seven goals in their first two league matches. Some will look to the friendly in July (3-0 Napoli win), but I wouldn't put too much into that, even if a lot of regulars started.

Given the odds, the two teams to back are Salzburg and Ajax. If you played DFS UCL last season, you'll likely be drawn to both Dusan Tadic ($20) and Hakim Ziyech ($19) for good reason. The two have a combined for nine league goals and were two of the more consistent players in the Champions League last season. In fact, Ziyech never had fewer than 15 fantasy points in a match, which is why his price is intriguing. If you're spending money elsewhere, you can get Donny van de Beek ($15) and Quincy Promes ($14) at decent rates. It's a little less certain for Salzburg because they've never played Genk in the Champions League. Going off league play, Erling Haland ($17) already has 11 goals in seven matches and should be the most popular option, assuming everyone else uses basic stats and odds. Otherwise, Salzburg's entire roster is cheap considering they are one of the bigger favorites with the highest expected goal total. When Salzburg were knocked out by Napoli in thr Europa League last season, the top corner takers outside of defenders were Zlatko Junuzovic ($11) and Dominik Szoboszlai ($10). If either start, they'd be a great value play because of corners alone. Otherwise, the top goalscorers are Hwang Hee-Chan ($15), Takumi Minamino ($14) and Patson Daka ($13).

If you prefer taking more well known options, Chelsea are at home and coming off an impressive five-goal effort against Wolves. While Valencia are normally stout defensively, they gave up five goals against Barcelona last outing after letting go of their manager. Tammy Abraham ($20) will be popular because he's scored at least a brace in each of his last three starts, though it's a wonder if he'll be rested. The same goes for Mason Mount ($18), and if those two are benched, Olivier Giroud ($14) and Ross Barkley ($10) could come into play. It may seem like a GPP move to go with Dortmund, but Barcelona have allowed two goals in each of their last three league matches and Paco Alcacer ($18) is cheap considering he already has five league goals. Jadon Sancho ($16) has assisted in all of those matches, but Thorgan Hazard ($13) may be the sneaky play after he came off the bench over the weekend. Sancho and Hazard have split set pieces in the early season. 

Leipzig and Benfica aren't projected to have many goals, but they both have players who could make a mark. Pizzi ($18) is the logical choice as Benfica's penalty taker, though Haris Seferovic ($16) had his moments last season. Leipzig's players are slightly more popular coming out of the Bundesliga, with Timo Werner ($18) the guy to own, already with five goals from 10 shots on target in four league matches. After he managed six shots against Bayern Munich last match, he should get his opportunities up front against Benfica. In terms of set pieces, Marcel Sabitzer ($14) and Marcel Halstenberg ($14) split duties.

DEFENDERS

Andreas Ulmer ($14) is my favorite defender as a possible corner taker for one of the bigger favorites. The same goes for Alejandro Grimaldo ($16), who will probably be more popular after he took over fantasy circles last season with two goals, numerous chances created and tons of defensive stats. A lot of the public will turn to the Barcelona and Liverpool guys, but most of them only hit value if they make the scoresheet and I'm not betting on that away from home.

Similar to the Premier League, it's best to avoid those expensive options because you want to spend on the attacking players who have the potential to score multiple goals or rack up corners and create chances. You could hope Napoli and Dortmund defenders like Kalidou Koulibaly ($10) and Lukasz Piszczek ($10) rack up defensive stats or bank on attacking defenders from the favorites. That points to Joel Veltman ($12) and Ulmer, who would be a nice duo if you're going heavy on Ajax and Salzburg. Of course, it's the first match of the group stage and there could be a lot of different faces in starting positions. That includes Joel Matip ($10) and Joe Gomez ($9), as well as the possible debut start for Junior Firpo ($8) at Barcelona. He's played just nine minutes in league play but racked up three goals and four assists in 24 appearances for Betis last season.

GOALKEEPER

I'd be surprised if Andre Onana ($12) wasn't the most popular goalkeeper as the biggest favorite and name recognition from last season. He had two home clean sheets in the group stage last year and had at least 10 fantasy points in five of those six matches. Cican Stankovic ($10) will also be a top choice as a home favorite, though not as many people know him. The biggest worry is that Salzburg have no competition in their league and they were knocked out of the Champions League qualification last season after giving up two goals at home to Crvena Zvezda. There's little reason to spend up, especially since Marc-Andre ter Stegen ($16) is giving up multiple goals in La Liga. If you don't believe in Salzburg, Genk goalkeeper Gaetan Coucke ($9) is a value option, and if Messi doesn't start and you're fading Barcelona, Roman Burki ($11) could be a viable GPP play.