In this article, we will look at the best defenders to pick for your Fantasy Champions League team in Matchday 10 – Quarterfinals 2nd Leg.
This article is part of the series: Fantasy Champions League Matchday 10: Tips, Best Picks & Captain
We look at each price bracket: budget defenders, mid-priced picks, and premium options.
Budget defenders for Quarterfinals 2nd Leg – Matchday 10 (2023/24)
Pau Cubarsi (4m, Barcelona) – 6/10
- 17 years old youngster cemented starting spot in the Barcelona backline recently
- could be solid at balls recovered (although we have just one matchday of data for him) – he recovered 7 balls per game in his 2 starts
- excellent budget enabler if you are looking for 4.0m defender for your UCL Fantasy team
- but rougher fixture against PSG with lower chance of a clean sheet
- But there is always a risk that he could become rotation risk
Dier (4.5m, Bayern) – 7/10
- is not a certain starter
- seems that he is preferred now for Bayern
- could be good budget enabler
- Unfortunately he is not doing very well in balls recovered, so your are likely looking at 1-2 pointer when Bayer wont keep a clean sheet
Lucas Beraldo (4.6m, PSG) – 4/10
- seems he cemented a starting spot since his transfer to PSG
- another good budget enabler if you need to move funds from defence to midfield or attack
- solid at balls recovered – 7.6 balls recovered per match in his 3 starts
- However, he could lose his spot now when Škriniar is back from injury
Ryerson (4.6m, Dortmund) – 5/10
- cheap route into solid Dortmund defense
- offer attacking threat, 4G + 1A this season in Bundesliga
- similarly Maatsen at 4.5m could be a solid budget enabler
Mid-Priced Defenders for QF 2nd Leg – MD10
Hummels (5.1m, Dortmund) – 9.5/10
- Dortmund delivered 3 clean sheets in 6 tough games in the group stage
- 90 balls recovered this season so far, the most of all players
- 10 balls recovered per game on average – you are looking at approximately at extra 3 points from balls recovered on average in each game
Mazraoui (5.3m, Bayern) – 4/10
- with Alphonso Davies suspended, he should start against Arsenal on MD10
- attacking threat, proven fantasy asset from previous season
- he is not as good at balls recovered, so you would have to rely on points from clean sheets and attacking returns
- one week differential, he will be rotation risk if Bayern qualify to semifinals
Lucas Hernandez (5.0 m, PSG) – 4/10
- a cheap route into PSG defense if you cannot afford Hakimi
- but he is not playing in an advanced position, so do not expect attacking returns
- you will have to rely on clean sheets
Jules Koundé (5.0m, Barcelona) – 4/10
- A cheaper route into Barcelona’s defense,
- While playing for Sevilla, he was very good at balls recovered in the 2021/22 season, when he was averaging 9.2 balls recovered per game (but he is not recovering so many balls this season, only 6.7 per match
Carvajal (5.2m, Real Madrid) – 2/10
- exciting price drop to 5.2m
- attacking threat, 4G + 2A in La Liga this season
- cheaper route into Real Madrid defence, but tough fixture for clean shet
Ben White (5.4m, Arsenal) – 6.5/10
- an overlooked option among Arsenal defenders
- offers attacking threat 2G + 5A this season in Premierl League, and similarly 2G + 5A last PL season
- differential defender
Saliba (5.5m, Arsenal) – 5/10
- Arsenal was second for clean sheets in the Premier League in the previous season
- Saliba is top for balls recovered (46) among Arsenal players
Ruben Dias (5.5m, Manchester City) – 8/10
- one of the few reliable Manchester City defenders and expected starters,
- Solid at balls recovered
- MOTM candidate when City do well defensively
- City with a high probability of keeping a Clean Sheet in any match
Premium Defenders for Matchday 10 – Quarterfinals 1st Leg
Schlotterback (5.6m, Dortmund) – 9/10
- we think double up on Dortmund defense with their balls recovering heroes Hummels + Schlotterback could be a good strategy in MD10
- very good at balls recovered (although not as good as Hummels), but still 54 balls recovered in 8 games – you are looking at approximately 7 balls recovered per game, which is extra 2 points
Cancelo (6.1m, Barcelona) – 8/10
- with 2 goals and 1 assist in Champions League, and 2G + 3A in La Liga this season
- offers points for balls recovered as well
- A tougher fixture but there could be goals at both ends
Nauel Molina (6.0m, Atletico) – 5/10
- attacking wing back, already with 2G and 3A for Atletico this season in La Liga and 3 assists in Champions League
- In the last 3 years, he was averaging 4.33 goals and 3 assists per season for Atletico and Udinese in La Liga and Seria A
Hakimi (6.1m, PSG) – 6/10
- Back from suspension
- Offer solid attacking threat
- 3G + 4A for PSG this season
Picking the best defenders in UCL Fantasy 2023/24
When selecting a defender for your UCL Fantasy team you consider:
- Whether a defender that you pick has a good chance of a clean sheet. Our Champions League Clean Sheet Odds will help you with that. This is the most important criterion you should consider, as clean sheets are the most important source of fantasy points for defenders.
- Whether a defender has attacking potential: Can he score goals after free kicks and corners? Does he play in an advanced position so he could register a few assists?
- Balls recovered potential. Centre-backs usually recover more balls than full-backs which makes them more appealing from this point of view. You can check, which players are best at bells recovered in our article: Best players at balls recovered.
If you find a defender that offers all three above, you find gold and should pick him into your team. However, that is rare. So make sure that the defenders you pick satisfy at least 2 of those 3 criteria.
