Fantasy Europa League: Thursday Picks

GOALKEEPER

Andriy Pyatov, SHK vs. GNT: With the lack of sky-high priced big names to pay up for in attack, there is absolutely nothing wrong with grabbing the most expensive goalkeeper to build a cash game around. Shakhtar are the only runaway favorites to win, and this is the oddsmakers' favorite to get a win and a clean sheet. If you are looking to save some money and go low-owned in a GPP, Stanislav Kritsyuk is my favorite tournament dart. Krasnodar might not win the game, but they are very stingy at home and a low-scoring draw with a lot of saves is certainly a possibility.

DEFENDER

Ismaily, SHK vs. GNT: As mentioned above, Shakhtar are the easiest team to look to for production and Ismaily is a good way to get a piece of that at a relatively discounted price for his ceiling. He doesn't need to do anything offensively to pick up points given the ability to keep clean sheets, but he has been taking more and more crosses and looks to feature heavily in the attack, which raises his floor significantly.

Hugo Mallo, CEL vs. AJA: Don't tell anyone, but I actually have some interest in Celta Vigo at home in this matchup with Ajax. I was really excited to roster Mallo in La Liga play the last few weeks due to what I thought was an increasing role in the attack, as he had been stealing some crossing thunder from Jonny, but that has reduced recently and his price has begun to fall again. I think this is a good time to buy low, as he featured prominently taking crosses in Celta Vigo's last UEL match, and their attack has greatly improved in recent weeks.

Dayotchanculle Upamecano, RBS vs. NIC: This is projecting to be the lowest-scoring game of the slate, and while I certainly think both teams could be in the running for a clean sheet, I am giving Salzburg the edge at home. Unfortunately, that's all we can do in this game is clean sheet chase, and Upamecano offers up a good enough mix of salary and decent floor to take that chance. He isn't going to do anything in the attack, but he wins enough tackles to make him worth rostering (as long as he stays out of foul trouble).

MIDFIELDER

Marlos, SHK vs. GNT: Money really isn't an issue on this slate, so stacking up Shakhtar will be a chalky proposition, but in cash game it's imperative to have a piece of this attack and Marlos is the key for me. He's ultra crafty and has an attack-first mindset, which lends itself well to fantasy production. I think he may go under-owned due to a lack of fantasy production in UEL game logs, but the role he plays for Shakhtar cannot be understated, and if he can tack a goal onto those drawn fouls and crosses, he will pay for himself twice over.

Valon Berisha, RBS vs. NIC: As much as I love Salzburg against Nice, the thing I can't understand is how all of Salzburg's roster can be unreliable and spotty fantasy producers. There is almost nobody you can count on week after week that comes at a decent price, but I am more than happy to take a flier on Berisha after the international break where he debuted for Kosovo. The added international experience is only going to help, and he has been a key player in Salzburg's UEL campaign, playing every minute. He didn't impress in the last match, but here's hoping he can return to his multi-shot, double-digit crossing form.

Kenny Saief, GNT at SHK: Gent is overmatched in every aspect of this matchup, but that doesn't make Saief any less appealing as a fantasy play. I actually love these situations for high-crossing midfielders as they tend to up their volume in games when they are behind early. Oddsmakers are predicting Shakhtar to hold an early lead and never relinquish, so that puts heavy pressure on someone like Saief to send in as many balls as possible. At this salary, you can pretty much play any combination of three high-priced players that you like.

FORWARD

Antonio Candreva, INT vs. SOU: My inability to figure out Inter in fantasy soccer has reached a new low, but I do have to blame some (most) of it on their recent run of purely disgusting form. Candreva, however, is playing a spectacularly selfish as ever and has the me-first attitude that fantasy soccer players look for. Of course, his last poor game was the time we rostered him in the last UEL round, but he has cranked out some impressive performances since, most recently sending in 17 crosses in his last Serie A match. With Mauro Icardi being his naturally charming self, that might take one more attacker out of the lineup and give Candreva more looks at the net.

Ari, KRA vs. S04: If I say that I like Krasnodar (and I'm saying that I do), it would be pretty hard to fade the player that did all their damage in the previous match against Nice. Ari isn't really a household name due to spending the last six years in the Russian Premier League (where goal scorers go to die), but once upon a time he was the leading scorer in the Allsvenskan and definitely can play the role of crafty attacker. This is a high-ceiling, low-floor play, though, so proceed with caution in cash games.

Shane Long, SOU at INT: Have I mentioned I hate Inter? Because I really, really hate Inter. There's really nothing we can do at this point other than full on attack them, and Southampton have been all about the attack lately. Actually, they've been all about the defense (keeping six consecutive clean sheets until conceding to Burnley) and have a good chance to cement themselves as group favorites. Charlie Austin has been brilliant and productive, but Long has been the go-to guy in UEL play and seems to be healed up nicely from his hamstring issues.