Fantasy Champions League: Wednesday Cheat Sheet

MATCHES (EDT)

2:45 p.m: Bayer Leverkusen v. CSKA Moscow
2:45 p.m: Tottenham v. Monaco
2:45 p.m: Real Madrid v. Sporting CP
2:45 p.m: Legia Warsaw v. Borussia Dortmund
2:45 p.m: Lyon v. Dinamo Zagreb
2:45 p.m: Juventus v. Sevilla
2:45 p.m: Club Brugge v. Leicester City
2:45 p.m: FC Porto v. FC Copenhagen

ODDS REPORT

EXPECTED CORNER TAKERS

Bayer Leverkusen: Hakan Calhanoglu
CSKA Moscow: Alan Dzagoev, Zoran Tosic
Tottenham: Erik Lamela, Christian Eriksen
Monaco: Bernardo Silva, Joao Moutinho, Thomas Lemar
Real Madrid: Toni Kroos
Sporting Lisbon: Bruno Cesar
Legia Warszawa: Thibault Moulin
Borussia Dortmund: Ousmane Dembele
Lyon: Rachid Ghezzal
Dinamo Zagreb: Ante Coric
Juventus: Paulo Dybala
Sevilla: Samir Nasri, Pablo Sarabia
Club Bruges: Hans Vanaken
Leicester: Marc Albrighton, Riyad Mahrez
FC Porto: Miguel Layun, Alex Telles
FC Copenhagen: Ludwig Augustinsson

PLAYER RECOMMENDATIONS

GOALKEEPER

Bernd Leno, BAY vs. MOS: Leno has been a fixture for Leverkusen now for five seasons, taking the starting job at just 19 years old in 2011. He also has two international caps for Germany, where he, of course, sits behind Manuel Neuer in the pecking order. Leverkusen not only finished third in the Bundesliga behind Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund, but they also allowed the third-fewest goals behind those two powerhouse clubs.

DEFENDER

Miguel Layun, POR vs. COP: The Mexican international is among the more attack minded fullbacks in the world, and he's already picked up two assists this season domestically. Sitting on corners in addition to his open-play effectiveness, Lauyn has averaged 11.7 crosses per 90 minutes this term. That's beyond expectations long-term, but it showcases his attacking utility regardless. Porto are also considerable favorites.

Alex Sandro, JUV vs. SEV: Playing with three centerbacks, Sandro's roll as a wingback becomes all the more important to provide width. In his most recent domestic match, Sandro parlayed nine crosses into 14 fantasy points.

Ludwig Augustinsson, COP at POR: Augustinsson isn't in a good matchup, but his corner-taking duty and open-play crosses merit some consideration. He had 18 crosses in the two legs of the Champions League playoff against APOEL.

MIDFIELDER

Rachid Ghezzal, :LYO vs. DIN: Due to a number of injuries (Nabil Fekir, Mathieu Valbuena and Alexandre Lacazette are all out), Ghezzal will be thrust into an attacking role on the right wing and will also stand over corners. In limited playing time, Ghezzal provided eight goals and eight assists last season. He picked up an assist in 125 short minutes in the Champions League last season, and Lyon are heavily favored at home.

Toni Kroos, RMD vs. SPO: Real Madrid are the defending champs and find themselves as the heaviest favorites on the card. The attacking line of Cristiano Ronaldo, Alvaro Morata and Gareth Bale understandably gets all the headlines, but the German midfielder takes corners and has reached double-digit fantasy points in all three of his La Liga performances this season, scoring 12, 19 and 23, respectively, including a goal and two assists. Kroos' primary role is as a provider (he picked up 10 assists in La Liga last season), which pairs really well with whichever Real Madrid goal scorer you choose.

Kwadwo Asamoah, JUV vs. SEV: Asamoah has spent a lot of time on the sidelines over the past couple of seasons, but when he is healthy, he plays a role not too different from what we've seen from Nordin Amrabat of Watford this season. If you've paid attention to Amrabat, you'll notice that means a healthy dose of peripheral stats, and both are very cheaply priced.

FORWARD

Ousmane Dembele, DOR at LEG: The 19-year-old Frenchman comes off a very good season for Rennes, where he tallied 12 goals and five assists. It appears Dembele will be taking corners, which, in addition to the other peripheral stats he picks up from the right wing, gives him a very nice floor. He hasn't yet contributed to a goal for Dortmund, but he will. The biggest concern with Dembele is that he could be subbed off in the second half, but Dortmund are the second-heaviest favorites on the slate, which means he could produce plenty before leaving.

Cristiano Ronaldo, RMD vs. SPO: A Lionel Messi hat trick on Tuesday could very well be reciprocated by Ronaldo on Wednesday, as the two best players in the world continue to demonstrate their dominance. Ronaldo has only played 66 minutes since his busy summer at the Euros with Portugal, but he did score a goal last weekend. Across La Liga and Champions League over the last two years, Ronaldo has an incredible 109 goals and 34 assists.

Aldo Kalulu, LYO vs. DIN: Just as Ghezzal has benefited from the litany of injuries Lyon faces, Kalulu enters as possibly the top goal-scoring threat for the side. The 20-year-old doesn't have a lot of experience at the top level, but he does have three goals in 248 Ligue 1 minutes over the last couple of seasons. It's a bit of a punt given the lack of experience, but Kalulu could certainly net a cheap goal.