This article is part of our FanDuel Fantasy Soccer series.
MATCHES (ET)
- 3:00 pm: Benfica vs. Maccabi Haifa
- 3:00 pm: Celtic vs. Real Madrid
- 3:00 pm: Paris Saint-Germain vs. Juventus
- 3:00 pm: RB Leipzig vs. FC Shakhtar Donetsk
- 3:00 pm: Red Bull Salzburg vs. AC Milan
- 3:00 pm: Sevilla vs. Manchester City
For detailed stats and odds, check out the
The Champions League is back! The first slate of the year is always fun and provides the most edge, in my opinion. Most players will not fully dig into domestic leagues to research recent form for these players. The more work you put in, the more you should get out of a slate like this.
FORWARDS/MIDFIELDERS
David Neres, BEN v. MHI ($18): Neres and Benfica have one of the best matchups on the slate being the second biggest favorite against Maccabi. He is the starting point for a team stack that makes a ton of sense. Being one of the more attacking players on this team, he has upside for multiple goals. After Neres I have interest in a cheaper Enzo Fernandez ($12). Fernandez gives some excellent value for lineups at a cheaper price with big upside as one of many attacking pieces for this team.
Neymar, PSG v. JUV ($19): PSG will likely be one of the more popular spots on the slate, for good reason. Everyone knows their attackers and you really can't go wrong with any of them, but I will side with Neymar as my top option.
MATCHES (ET)
- 3:00 pm: Benfica vs. Maccabi Haifa
- 3:00 pm: Celtic vs. Real Madrid
- 3:00 pm: Paris Saint-Germain vs. Juventus
- 3:00 pm: RB Leipzig vs. FC Shakhtar Donetsk
- 3:00 pm: Red Bull Salzburg vs. AC Milan
- 3:00 pm: Sevilla vs. Manchester City
For detailed stats and odds, check out the
The Champions League is back! The first slate of the year is always fun and provides the most edge, in my opinion. Most players will not fully dig into domestic leagues to research recent form for these players. The more work you put in, the more you should get out of a slate like this.
FORWARDS/MIDFIELDERS
David Neres, BEN v. MHI ($18): Neres and Benfica have one of the best matchups on the slate being the second biggest favorite against Maccabi. He is the starting point for a team stack that makes a ton of sense. Being one of the more attacking players on this team, he has upside for multiple goals. After Neres I have interest in a cheaper Enzo Fernandez ($12). Fernandez gives some excellent value for lineups at a cheaper price with big upside as one of many attacking pieces for this team.
Neymar, PSG v. JUV ($19): PSG will likely be one of the more popular spots on the slate, for good reason. Everyone knows their attackers and you really can't go wrong with any of them, but I will side with Neymar as my top option. Compared to others around him, $19 is more than fair for a man in fine form. He has seven goals and six assists in five Ligue 1 matches this season. You can certainly pair him with Lionel Messi ($20) or Kylian Mbappe ($20) for a full stack of PSG. With the massive upside that this team possesses from a goalscoring standpoint, you will want exposure to them no matter the contest type.
Dominik Szoboszlai, LEI v. SHK ($16): Szoboszlai has been in and out of the lineup during Bundesliga play. He is projected in here and we know what his upside can be no matter the matchup. In this case, Leipzig are the biggest favorite on the slate at -435. He could have a ceiling game in this spot and at only $16, Szoboszlai makes for a great mid-range option. The other pieces for Leipzig are expensive but have some appeal in game stack situations. Christopher Nkunku ($22) has four goals in five league matches this season and Timo Werner ($19) has been getting reacclimated well with Leipzig after a two-year stint with Chelsea.
Matt O'Riley, CEL v. MAD ($8): For value in the midfield, I am looking at O'Riley. Celtic are sizable dogs here, but I see them as a very interesting look in GPP contests. They possess a lot of talent up and down the lineup, while O'Riley has five assists in six league games this season. The only problem with this team from a stacking standpoint is that the rest of the top plays are a bit higher priced than I would like. Jota ($15) and Liel Abada ($14) have been great in league play combining for 10 goals and five assists. Abada has given this impact having only started two matches.
DEFENDERS
David Raum, LEI v. SHK ($14): Raum pairs well with Szoboszlai or another Leipzig piece as the primary set taker for them. This provides a good amount of upside for him to be involved in a goal in this matchup. Raum is not cheap, but there are solid value options at defender and also in the midfield to make this play work. Leipzig have the second-highest clean sheet odds on the slate, as well, which gives Raum some additional upside.
Bremer, JUV v. PSG ($9): This play is all about the value he provides going up against an attack-minded PSG squad. Of the two projected Juventus center backs, Bremer is three bucks cheaper than Danilo ($12) and the cheaper the better with this type of play. Leonardo Bonucci ($10) is also in this range if he starts. The Juve center-backs should be busy all evening long and they allow much needed value to fit in the high-upside plays at forward/midfielder. If you really want value, Antonio Silva ($5) is a young center-back who has some recent starts for Benfica.
GOALKEEPER
Peter Gulacsi, LEI v. SHK ($13): Going with the theme above on Leipzig, I have a good amount of interest in Gulacsi against Shakhtar Donetsk and he is a correlation play with Raum for GPP contests. Ederson ($13) also makes some appeal at the same price, with Manchester City having the highest clean-sheet odds on the slate. The ultimate GPP option at goalie is Joe Hart ($8). I like this as a sneaky spot at home for Celtic and the price discount allows us to do a lot of interesting things with lineups. Hart has even more upside than the two mentioned before, because he has a bit more save potential with Real Madrid likely to get more chances than both Shakhtar and Sevilla.
