Now with the second legs of the Round of 16 fixtures knocking at the door, it is indeed important for the trailing sides to look for redemption, the leading sides to maintain their form, and tied sides to go for a final thrust. For fantasy managers, now there are 3 free transfers available in the game. Managers who still possess the Wildcard and Limitless chip, do not use either this week. Instead, wisely use those 3 free transfers to modify and upgrade your teams. This UCL Fantasy Matchday 8 Watchlist 2021/22 would suggest 5 players (most of whom are differentials) managers may consider while utilizing the 3 free transfers. Do read till the end.
UCL Fantasy Matchday 8 Watchlist 2021/22
The first leg fixtures saw English sides Manchester City and Liverpool to be the only ones with away wins. 4 fixtures were a tie, including the surprising 1-1 result between Bayern and Salzburg. PSG and Chelsea go their home wins and would want to do so too away from home.
1. Andre Onana (Goalkeeper) – 4.5 Million
With the injury to Remko Pasveer, as well as the long-term absence of Stekelenburg, Onana is expected to make an appearance against Benfica in Amsterdam. Ajax’s round of 16 tie with Benfica is currently tied at 2-2. Given Benfica failed to score in two of their three away fixtures in the group stage, those managers looking for a cheap goalkeeper with significant points potential may consider Onana, given that he is owned by 4% of managers and might turn out to be a great differential choice.
Defensively, Ajax has just conceded 7 goals in 24 Eredivise games and 5 goals in the UCL group stage. Onana can prove to be a good investment from the bench if the goalie from the 8th and 9th March games fails to deliver. Ajax host Benfica on 15th March.
2. Virgil Van Dijk (Defender) – 6.1 Million
Liverpool plays their second leg of the round of 16 fixture against Inter Milan at their home fortress Anfield. And speaking of playing at Anfield, there is a player from Liverpool who has lost just once at Anfield that too while playing for Southampton against Liverpool.
He is none other than the Dutch center-back Virgil Van Dijk, who is priced at 6.1 million in the UCL fantasy game. The 6 feet 4-inch center back will once again fancy his chances against the Nerazzuris much like what he did at San Siro, grasping the man of the match title with a clean sheet intact.
Not just the clean sheet, he also recovered 8 balls last match with a total of 21 in 4 games in the UCL, and even assisted for a goal! He is selected by 18% of total teams in the game, but considering it is the knockout phases now that figure gets nullified as being a very high TSB%. It is safe to say that Liverpool will be the favorites to win the tie against Inter Milan and for them to win they will require Virgil van Dijk to give another classic Virgil Van Dijk performance.
3. Reece James (Defender) – 5.6 Million
With the injury of Azpilicueta, it is almost a confirmed start for Reece James in the clash against Lille. Defensively solid Chelsea beat Lille 2-0 back at the Stamford Bridge in the revere fixture. James has 5 goals and 6 assists so far in the PL besides a single goal in the group stage. With 24 points so far and 0.47 xG+xA per 90, James is undoubtedly a decent choice for the team’s defense. He has 3.88 shot-creating actions per game across all competitions this season for Chelsea.
No doubt the Chelsea wingback plays an important role in every match he plays. He even scored and assisted 1 each in the tough Burnley away fixture this weekend. However, we do know that Chelsea’s fixture is in the next week and things might change by then, but since fantasy managers have to make transfers this week itself, do consider this Chelsea prospect.
4. Bernardo Silva (Midfielder) – 7.4 Million
After scoring a hat-trick in the first leg Bernardo Silva is once again one of the most promising stars to look up to in the second leg of the Round of 16 in the UEFA champions league. Bernardo Silva accumulated a stellar 19 points tally against sporting Lisbon as he assisted one goal and also got rewarded with the clean sheet point in the UCL fantasy game.
In Manchester city’s UEFA champions league campaign so far, Bernardo Silva has been awarded the man of the match in two of the games and has accumulated a total tally of 36 points in the fantasy league itself playing more than 400 minutes. His incredible statistic of 219 passes completed with more than 90% pass accuracy gives him absolute authority over the central midfield department.
The Portuguese international absolutely justify his 7.4 million price tag in the game with incredible number figures like 16 key passes, 18 passes into attacking third and 295 times possession won back. Manchester City has almost confirmed their berth in the next round of UCL unless a miracle happens at Etihad stadium and it is safe to say that Pep and his team will go once again all guns blazing against sporting Lisbon at their home.
5. Dusan Vlahovic (Forward) – 9.5 Million
Another differential in our list is the Serbian forward who took only 33 seconds in his debut UCL match to score. Yet another tied fixture, the score between Juventus and Villareal is locked at 1-1 after Parejo equalized Vlahovic’s early goal back in Spain. The ‘Vecchia Signora’ hosts Villareal in Turin for the second leg, and Vlahovic is expected to deliver.
The player with a 3% ownership has 20 goals and 2 assists so far in the Serie A for Fiorentina and Juve combined. Besides providing 0.9 key passes per game, he has a 0.56 xG+xA per 90 for Juventus, which was 0.71 for Fiorentina. Currently, he takes around 4.2 shots per 90, keeping 2.62 on target, and can indeed be a contender for a potential differential choice for many.
So what are you waiting for? Setup your squads and join our very own UCL Fantasy 2021/22 Classic League through this invitation code 38IHUP5L10 or join from this link and win exciting cash rewards for absolutely free!
Did you find our analysis and overview on the UCL Fantasy Round of 16 2021/22 (Matchday 8) guide useful? Drop your comments in the comment section below!
For more Mobile Gaming news and updates, join our WhatsApp group, Telegram Group, or Discord server. Also, follow us on Google News, Instagram, and Twitter for quick updates.
