DraftKings Soccer: Champions League DFS Helper for Wednesday 9/15/21

We’ve got another six-game Champions League slate on Wednesday. Let’s look at the games we have, with odds provided by Soccer odd:

Forwards to Target

Lionel Messi ($11,000): It’s a tough choice between which one of the three PSG forwards to play all season long. With Messi, Kylian Mbappé ($10,200), and Neymar ($10,000) all expected to start, it’s going to be difficult to fit in more than one in a lineup considering the salary.

Messi might just have a slight edge over the other two. He has the best anytime goal scoring odds of anyone on the slate. He also tends to get more shots than either Neymar or Mbappé. In this matchup against Club Brugge, really all three are great plays, which could keep the popularity of each individual one down. If that’s the case, let’s go with the best one and use Messi.

Dušan Tadić ($8,900): Tadić has been a dual-threat since joining Ajax in 2018. In each of the three seasons he’s played in Amsterdam, he’s had double-digit goals and assists, including the 2019-20 season that was cut short due to COVID.

Tadić has been good in the Champions League with Ajax, as well. He was instrumental in their run to the semifinal in 2019. He has a good chance to play well in this game, too, as Ajax are away favorites against Sporting Lisbon.

Tadić is a set piece taker, so he has a nice floor to go with his upside from goals and assists. He might be the only goal and assist threat with set pieces on the slate outside of one of the PSG forwards, so it makes him worth the $8,900 salary.

Luis Suárez ($6,800): Suárez proved he wasn't over the hill last season. He scored 21 goals en route to Atlético Madrid winning La Liga. That's why it's a bit puzzling to see his salary this low.

Atlético are decent home favorites against Porto on Wednesday. Suárez is even money to score in this game, odds that are much shorter than forwards with higher salaries. The fact that he is only $6,800 makes him usable in all formats.

Others to consider: Kylian Mbappé ($10,200), Neymar ($10,000), Raheem Sterling ($6,500), Vinicius Junior ($5,700)

Midfielders to Target

Kevin De Bruyne ($9,200): De Bruyne has yet to make a start this season, but he could make his first in this game. We're usually interested KDB whenever takes the pitch, and this slate is no different. This is because he provides a huge floor, with over three shots, three chances created, and six crosses per 90 minutes last season, according to Rotowire. He should be prepared for a big game on Wednesday.

Manchester City will face RB Leipzig at home and are big favorites. Leipzig have built up a reputation over the past few seasons of being a good team, but they are in a bit of disarray at the moment. They lost their manager and a few important players and have slumped to three defeats in their opening four Bundesliga matches. This means that Man City should be able to control the game, and De Bruyne should be able to accumulate points in his normal fashion.

Luka Modrić ($5,300): Modrić should take over the corner kick duties for Real Madrid with Toni Kroos missing this match. We know the role Kroos plays is valuable for fantasy, as his salary is $7,100 for this game. If Modrić can produce like Kroos, he's a clear value. We know that the Croatian is no stranger to scoring a goal from outside the box as well, giving him some decent goal upside for his salary.

Thomas Lemar ($4,900): Lemar has been kicking around at Atlético Madrid without really cementing a role, but this season appears to be different. He's always oozed talent, good enough to make a loaded France squad for the previous World Cup and Euros. Now, he has some fantasy value through taking corner kicks. In this game that Atlético should control, getting a corner taker for them for just $4,900 is a bargain we shouldn't pass up.

Nuno Santos ($3,300): Sporting Lisbon have a few value plays on their squad, and Nuno Santos is one of them. He's a wide player who also takes set pieces, so he should be able to rack up at least a few crosses. Sporting are underdogs in this match but not to the extent that makes their players unplayable. For $3,300, he's the best punt play at midfield.

Others to consider: Hakan Çalhanoğlu ($8,100), Eden Hazard ($6,000), Ryan Gravenberch ($5,400)

Andrew Robertson ($5,800): Robertson has a way lower salary than teammate Trent Alexander-Arnold's astronomical $8,000 salary. We can save the $2,200 and feel good about it because Robertson also gets a share of corner kicks. It hasn't been as many as TAA of late, but it's not worth the extra salary to go all the way up to the highest-salaried defender.

Liverpool are sizable favorites at home against AC Milan, and they should be able to employ their normal game plan of attacking through their full backs. That means that Robertson should get a good amount of crosses and he could contribute to a goal in this matchup.

Abdou Diallo ($3,600): Diallo has been a center back for most of his career but now is playing left back for PSG. He has taken to the role better than expected, showing a willingness to cross and even picked up an assist in a league game this season. With PSG expected to dominate and score a bunch of goals, getting exposure to them for this low salary is worth considering.

Miguel Gutiérrez ($3,100): Gutiérrez will fill in at left back for Real Madrid with Marcelo and Ferland Mendy not on the squad list. Miguel has two starts in La Liga this season, and he recorded 7.1 and 15.6 DraftKings points in those starts, respectively. That's enough to put him in consideration for just $3,100.

Others to consider: Kieran Trippier ($6,400), Oleksandr Zinchenko ($4,600), Ruben Vinagre ($3,100)

Goalkeepers to Target

Gianluigi Donnarumma ($5,800): Donnarumma was named the best player at the Euros this summer, which prompted PSG to want to buy him. In this game, he's the biggest favorite on the slate and has clean sheet odds of -104. With how well PSG should play in this match, Donnarumma is clearly the safest keeper option.

Thibaut Courtois ($4,700): Courtois is an underdog keeper on the road but one that isn't a bad option. He doesn't face the same Inter squad that won Serie A last season. They've lost significant players, including the goal scoring of Romelu Lukaku. They don't offer as much of a threat up front with 35-year-old Edin Dzeko as their main center forward. Real Madrid could easily win this game, which would make Courtois a good value.

Nicholas Vazquez is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Nicholas Vazquez also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username hbyanksman. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his/her personal views, he/she may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his/her personal account. The views expressed in his/her articles are the author’s alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.