Daily Fantasy Soccer Picks for the UEFA Champions League - DraftKings 4/5/16

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The first leg of the Champions League quarter finals get underway in midweek and there are some excellent games taking place. Spanish sides, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid meet up at the Nou Camp on Tuesday, whilst Bayern Munich have the easiest fixture of the week against Benfica. On Wednesday, the only English side remaining in the competition, Manchester City face PSG and Wolfsburg are the underdogs against Zinedine Zidane’s Real Madrid.

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Goalkeepers

Marc-Andre ter Stegen – DK $4,200
Opponent – Atletico Madrid
The way scoring works, it is crucial to have a good goalkeeper and Marc-Andre ter Stegen gives us that at a fair price. Goalkeepers receive five points if their side wins and another five if they keep a clean sheet. Furthermore, they lose two points every time they concede a goal, therefore it is crucial to select a goalkeeper whose side is likely to win the match and preferably keep a clean sheet. Ter Stegen’s faces Atletico Madrid on Tuesday and there’s over a 65% chance that Barcelona win the match. It should also be noted that Atletico Madrid are a poor side going forward, particularly for a team that’s challenging for the title.

Kevin Trapp – DK $4,000
Opponent – Manchester City
PSG goalkeeper, Kevin Trapp is a slightly cheaper alternative to ter Stegen, but nevertheless he’s another good option, mainly for the reasons I’ve mentioned above. PSG are expected to beat Manchester City at the Parc des Princes. They’ve got a 57.8% chance of winning the match and this would earn Trapp an extra 5 points. Moreover, Manchester City have struggled for goals in recent weeks, they went three Premier League games without a goal before thrashing Bournemouth at the weekend.

 

Defenders

Marquinhos – DK 3,000
Opponent – Manchester City
Marquinhos is the best value defender available in this slate in my opinion. The PSG defender will play at right back in the absence of Sergio Aurier and thus making him an attractive proposition. Full backs are usually a better option than centre backs because players are awarded points for crosses and full backs get down the wing regularly to deliver crosses. Finally, Marquinhos faces Manchester City and as I’ve already alluded to above, a clean sheet is a possibility and defenders receive three points if their side keeps a clean sheet.

Gael Clichy – DK 3,100
Opponent – PSG
Gael Clichy has been a favourite of mine on DraftKings and I’m happy to keep selecting the Frenchman for as long as he keeps being undervalued. A word of warning before I continue first because Clichy is not a guaranteed starting at left back, therefore I’d wait for team news before fielding him. Admittedly, Clichy faces tough opposition in the form of PSG, but this doesn’t put me off because he’s proved on numerous occasions that he can score well against top quality opponents. This season, Clichy has averaged 7.1 points per game but he’s often come onto the pitch with 10 minutes to play, therefore when starting his average is actually much closer to 10.

 

Midfielders

Toni Kroos – DK 4,300
Opponent – Wolfsburg
It’s not very often you’ll find me select a defensive(ish) midfielder, however Kroos offers good value at $4,100. Firstly, Real Madrid have a favourable fixture against Wolfsburg and this should allow Kroos to get forward slightly more than usual. Kroos notably takes corner kicks for Real Madrid which are worth one point each and he’s more likely to take corners against average to poor opponents. Finally, Kroos has averaged 8.6 points per game this campaign which is very respectable for a player at his price bracket.

Kevin De Bruyne – DK 6,000
Opponent – PSG
Kevin De Bruyne returned from injury to face Bournemouth at the weekend and he produced an excellent performance. He was instrumental in Manchester City’s 4-0 victory and I have no doubt that he’ll play an important role in this fixture. He’s scored 13 goals and assisted nine since joining Manchester City in the summer, despite missing the last couple of months due to injury, this immediately indicates that he’s a top point-scorer. De Bruyne has averaged 16.1 points per game this campaign, which is only bettered by a couple of players available in this slate, thus making the Belgian international look a bargain at $6,000.

 

Forwards

Robert Lewandowski – DK 8,100
Opponent – Benfica
The likes of Messi and Ronaldo were a little expensive for my liking and Lewandowski is a much more appealing option at $8,100. The Bayern Munich forward has scored 38 goals in 41 appearances this season and there’s a great chance that he’ll score at least one on Tuesday. Bayern Munich and Lewandowski face the worst side remaining in the competition at home and as a result, Lewandowski is more likely to score a goal than he is not. He’s already averaging 17.4 points per game this season, however I think he can outscore that average with relative ease when playing at home.

Gareth Bale – DK 6,700
Opponent – Wolfsburg
With a nice fixture against Wolfsburg, Gareth Bale is another good forward option. He often gets overlooked because of the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema but at a considerably cheaper price, he’s worth fielding. The Welshman scored 17 points at the weekend versus Barcelona and the game before he scored 31 when playing Sevilla. In the La Liga this season, he’s scored 15 goals and claimed 10 assists whilst only making 17 appearances, which shows what a steal Bale actually is at $6,700.

 

Utilities

Philipp Lahm – DK 3,600
Opponent – Benfica
Onto the utility options and we’ve got to keep the cost down after splashing out on some pricey forwards. First of all, I’ve opted to go with Philipp Lahm of Bayern Munich, who I must warn you is not the most exciting addition to your line ups. He’s averaged 5.5 points per game this campaign, although he should out-score this given he has an easy fixture. As a defender, he’ll receive three points if Bayern Munich keep a clean sheet, and there’s a good chance of that happening.

David Alaba – DK 4,500
Opponent – Benfica
My final recommendation for this week’s Champions League slate is another Bayern Munich defender, David Alaba. There are very few defenders who have scored at a better rate than Alaba available in this slate. He’s averaged 8.6 points per game in the Champions League and the Swiss international will inevitably improve on that average when playing Benfica on Tuesday. Players are awarded one point each time they cross the ball and Alaba will have numerous chances to get forward against weak opposition.

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