DraftKings Fantasy Soccer: Wed. Champions League Values

This article is part of our DraftKings Fantasy Soccer series.

The following games are included: 



Odds from PaddyPower.com as of 12:00am EST, Dec. 9

Step one in building a good lineup: make sure your players are starting. There is a bit of guesswork in projecting lineups until they are actually announced, and all recommendations and projections are subject to change based on this. All said, be sure to check out our lineups page approximately one hour prior to kickoff.

Goalkeepers:

Oleksandr Shovkovskiy, DYK v. MTA ($4,200): Not working very hard to come to this selection, Shovkovskiy's Dynamo Kyiv are 1/7 favorites. Do you understand how steep 1/7 is? For you fantasy Premier League players, at least since my following of the league, there has never been and likely will never be a favorite this sharp. Okay, I think you get it now, but there's more: Shovkovskiy isn't even the most expensive keeper. If you're playing in cash games it's difficult to justify another selection.

Roberto, OLY v. ARS ($3,200): Since starting league play back in August, Olympiakos has won every game but two, both of which came against Bayern Munich. They have some history on their side as well, as just last year they went 3-0 at home in the group stage including wins over European giants Atletico Madrid and Juventus (Champions League runner-ups), in 2013/2014 they beat European powers Benfica and Manchester United at home, and just to make the circle whole, they beat Arsenal on Matchday 6 of the 2012/2013 UCL season at home. Olympiakos is good at home in these games, they've already beat Arsenal this season and are more than capable of doing it again.

Other goalkeepers to consider: Wojciech Szczesny, RMA v. BBV ($4,400); Jaume, VAL v. LYN ($4,100)

Defenders:

Joao Cancelo, VAL v. LYN ($3,900): Cancelo is the leading crosser among defenders. Valencia are firmly favorited and should find themselves with the majority of possession, furthering Cancelo's crossing opportunities. His crossing production is a bit skewed with a monstrous 15 deliveries against Zenit in September, but he still managed 12 fantasy points in the reverse fixture at Lyon despite delivering just two.

Danilo Silva, DYK v. MTA ($3,300): Averaging double-digit fantasy points and playing for the heaviest favorites on the card, Silva is the chalk defender. He crosses the ball and picks up all defensive stats.

Lucas Digne, RMA v. BBV ($3,500): Digne delivered seven crosses and an assist in the reverse away fixture and things are just as good, if not better in the return match. Roma's favoritism figures to come to fruition and Digne's two assists already this season showcase his ability to contribute offensively.

Other defenders to consider: Miguel Layun, PTO at CHE ($3,900); Adriano, BCN at B04 ($2,700); David Alaba, FCB at DZG ($4,000); Shkodran Mustafi, VAL v. LYN ($2,800); Rafael, LYN at VAL ($3,100); Baba Rahman, CHE v. PTO ($2,700); Jeremy Morel, LYN at VAL ($2,400)

Midfielders:

Danijel Milicevic, KAA v. ZNT ($3,700): Milicevic has been very good this Champions League season. He does it all for Gent and is coming off a spectacular one-goal, one-assist display last time out. Of players to play in every Champions League match, Milicevic leads them all in accurate crosses per 90 minutes, and he's averaged 11.3 crosses per match over the last three.

Mathieu Valbuena, LYN at VAL ($5,400): Not far behind Milicevic in accurate crosses, Valbuena actually leads the Champions League in the overall crossing statistic. His Lyon side hasn't been especially good during this Champions League season and the trip to Valencia is a challenging one, but Valbuena's individual performance has not suffered, with his lowest point total of 16 fantasy points and average closer to 20.

Miralem Pjanic, RMA v. BBV ($5,000): Pjanic has a facile matchup in the lowly BATE Borisov and comes packaged as a corner-taking, crossing high-floored plauer. He posses a nice ceiling, with two goals and an assist in four Champions League matches.

Konstantinos Fortounis, OLY v. ARS ($3,200): I can't say Olympiakos has a chance to win without recommending any of their players. Fortounis took Arsenal for 21 fantasy points, including an assist, in their first matchup back in September. Against clubs not named Bayern Munich, he's averaging nearly 19 fantasy points per game.

Other midfielders to consider: Franck Ribery, FCB at DZG ($6,200); Willian, CHE v. PTO ($6,100); Enzo Perez, VAL v. LYN ($3,200); Mesut Ozil, ARS at OLY ($6,300); Hakan Calhanoglu, B04 v. BCN ($4,400); Ruben Neves, PTO at CHE ($3,200); Karimm Bellarabi B04 v. BCN ($5,400); Sofiane Feghouli, VAL v. LYN ($4,500); Thomas Foket, KAA v. ZNT ($3,000); Brecht Dejaegere, KAA v. ZNT ($2,500); Maxime Gonalons, LYN at VAL ($2,900); Evgeni Yablonski, BBV at RMA ($2,600)

Forwards:

Andriy Yarmolenko, DYK v. MTA ($4,800): Well, if Dynamo Kyiv is going to live up to that 1/7 favoritism they'll need to score goals. Yarmolenko can do that; he's done so in two of his four Champions League performances including the reverse away fixture. Yarmolenko also accumulates big peripheral stats too, so his floor without scoring is extremely high and the goal-scoring upside makes him a must use across all formats.

Lionel Messi, BCN at B04 ($10,200): Doesn't it seem like whenever Cristiano Ronaldo goes off, Messi follows suit or vice versa? Ronaldo owns the most goals in Champions League history, but Messi owns the best goals per appearance while being just nine goals behind Ronaldo (after his Tuesday explosion) in the total goals stat despite 20 fewer appearances. Messi may not go for four goals playing an opponent much greater than Malmo, but expect him to return the favor to Ronaldo nonetheless.

Kingsley Coman, FCB at DZG ($5,000): The 19-year-old Frenchman is often overlooked on Bayern Munich. With players like Robert Lewandowski, Thomas Muller, Franck Ribery and Arjen Robben, I tend to understand. However, Coman plays from a wide position and has been extremely productive this Champions League season, providing a goal and four assists across his four appearances. He shots, scores, crosses and draws fouls. He may offer the highest floor on Bayern, which is not a statement to be taken lightly.

Other forwards to consider: Luis Suarez, BCN at B04 ($9,000); Munir El Haddadi, BCN at B04 ($4,500); Artem Dzyuba, ZNT at KAA ($5,900); Yacine Brahimi, PTO at CHE ($6,400); Vincent Aboubakar, PTO at CHE ($6,300); Robert Lewandowski, BCN at B04 ($8,800); Thomas Muller, BCN at B04 ($7,700); Younes Belhanda, DYK v. MTA ($2,800); Douglas Costa, FCB at B04 ($7,100)