With just a few hours until this evening’s deadline, we cast an eye over UEFA’s official Champions League game once again. As always, we give a nod to the top five in the Scout League and take a look at the transfer market before rolling out our picks for the upcoming Matchday:
Scout League Standings
Russ Kitson has climbed to the top of the Scout League, having racked up 57 points last time round. He doubled up on Juventus defensive duo Arturo Vidal and Leonardo Bonucci away to Celtic, while Dortmund pair Mats Hummels and Mario Gotze chipped in with a goal and assist respectively away to Shakhtar Donetsk. Philipp Lahm, Cristiano Ronaldo and Burak Yilmaz all picked up attacking returns, somewhat compensating for Lionel Messi’s four point armband haul. Russ sits on 479 points so far – 41st in the overall standings.
In second spot sits Melonfresh, who slips down from his previous position at the summit after producing 47 points in the first leg. Vidal, Lahm and Ronaldo were boosted by Toni Kroos and Porto defender Eliaquim Mangala – again, Messi’s captaincy haul was a disappointment. Melonfresh sits on 474 points, enough to earn him 71st spot overall.
Sitting in third spot in the Scout League is Yogiswarasatrio. He picked up 67 points and was rewarded for his decision to keep the armband on Vidal after day 1 with a 14 point return. Gianluigi Buffon, Porto’s Danilo and Galatasaray’s Selcuk Inan chipped in with 22 points between them at the back in a solid defensive showing, while Kroos, Ronaldo and Yilmaz all helped Yogiswarasatrio climb to 118 in the overall standing, with 468 points accrued.
JDB slips to fourth after a 49 point haul. He also doubled up on the Juventus backline, while Porto pair Alex Sandro and Joao Moutinho combined for 19 points – Ronaldo helped his tally with a goal against United but JDB was one of the unfortunate managers stuck with a minus two point captaincy haul from Zlatan Ibrahimovic after the PSG star was dismissed in the first of the four days. JDB still sits in 156th place overall, though, having picked up 464 points.
Finally, Tricky2006 completes our top five. His 53 point haul came courtesy of contributions from Vidal, Sandro and Ronaldo, while Javier Pastore produced 11 points, thanks to a goal and assist in PSG’s trip to Valencia. Tricky2006 is on 464 points, 156th overall.
Market Trends
Faith in Juventus’ main assets is understandably high after their 3-0 first leg win at Parkhead. Buffon and Vidal are top for transfers in for keeper and defenders respectively ahead of this evening’s deadline, with the Italian side already having one foot in the next round, while Andrea Pirlo and Claudio Marchisio have also been snapped up as midfield options. PSG’s win in Valencia has earned keeper Salvatore Sirigu and three of the back-four over 1,000 new owners ahead of tomorrow night’s return match. Pastore and Ezequiel Lavezzi have also been acquired by plenty, in light of Ibrahimovic’s suspension.
German pair Dortmund and Bayern are also on Fantasy radars after strong showings in the first leg. Dortmund’s 2-2 draw at Shakhtar puts them in pole position, with Hummels, Gotze, Marco Reus and Robert Lewandowski all seeing substantial new investment. The latter, in particular, has proved a popular pick – over 6,400 have snapped him up, double the tally of any other forward. With a 3-1 away win over Arsenal in their first match, Bayern’s main assets have been on Fantasy radars, with Manuel Neuer, Philipp Lahm, Toni Kroos and Thomas Mueller persuading plenty to take a punt.
Ones to Watch
Similar to our picks from the first leg, we’re balancing out our selections due to the “stick or twist” captaincy dilemma across the four evenings. As Ibrahimovic’s dismissal showed last time out, though, even the best-laid plans can come undone by a split-second’s petulance – we’re hoping this lot are on their best behaviour:
Cristiano Ronaldo is one of two options we’re keeping faith in from our first leg selections as Real Madrid head to Old Trafford. The tie is evenly balanced after a 1-1 draw at the Bernabeu and the stage seems almost set for the Portuguese star to return to haunt his former side – with back-to-back wins over Barcelona, the visitors look in the mood right now.
Having opted for Arturo Vidal first time round, we’re moving our sights further up the pitch and given Mirko Vucinic the nod as Juventus entertain Celtic. The 8.5 priced forward is selected by under 2% of Champions League managers and, having notched in the 3-0 win at Parkhead, looks a real differential for tomorrow night’s fixture.
Four goals in his last three Champions League games sums up the form of Ezequiel Lavezzi. With Ibrahimovic unavailable, the Argentine’s contribution will be more crucial than ever as big-spenders PSG take a 2-1 advantage into tomorrow’s home clash with Valencia. Selected by just over 2% of managers, he’s another who offers a strong differential option as Carlo Ancelotti’s side look to clinch a place in the last eight.
We’re choosing to overlook Barcelona’s attempt to claw back a two-goal deficit at home to Milan – the visitors’ strong form could well prove problematic for Lionel Messi and co. Instead, we turn our attentions to next Tuesday’s other match, as Schalke play host to Galatasaray. Once again, we’re keeping faith in Burak Yilmaz after he justified our selection last time round with a goal in the 1-1 draw – an incredible run of consistency has seen him score in each of his last five, racking up a total of seven goals so far. If the Turkish side are to progress, Yilmaz could be set to fill his boots yet again.
We’ve opted for the consistency of Thomas Muller as Bayern look to put Arsenal out of their misery at the Allianz Arena in the final evening of the Matchday. Muller has just 4% ownership yet has proven a key figure in his side’s attacking forays, scoring in four of the last five, with an assist also thrown in at the Emirates – at 9.0, he’s another appealing option for those shopping around for an Ibrahimovic replacement up top.
Isco looks key to Malaga’s chances of progressing as they play host to Porto. One goal down from the first leg, the Spanish side will be hoping home comforts can help their cause – with a couple of goals and pair of assists to his name over five games, the 7.0 priced midfielder looks another armband contender a week on Wednesday.
