Fantasy UEFA Champions League Round Of 16 commences on February 23rd as Arsenal host Spanish Champions Barcelona, and Bayern Munich make the trip to play a Juventus side who are unbeaten in 14 matches (W13, D1).
The small slate means less variance amongst daily fantasy teams, which subsequently increases the importance of calling the clean sheets, goalscorers and differentials.
Just as well @NaturalFootyFan is available to provide tips ahead of the Mondogoal and FantasyBet contests.
As usual, we've taken a look at what the bookies are predicting to give a rough indication of what's expected from these fixtures. The table below displays the bookies odds converted into an implied chance percentage:
Barcelona, as we've come to expect, are the firm favourites offensively and with perhaps the best front-three of all time, it's hard to say otherwise. Nevertheless, when searching for clean sheet potential, you have a variety of routes to go down - with three clubs neck and neck according to the bookies odds.
The first is Barcelona, but delving into their backline for a player is a very expensive proposition. However, their cheapest defender who is guaranteed to start is Gerard Pique. Being an experienced Spanish International he is comfortable with the ball at his feet and as we expect the away side to dominate possession. On FantasyBet you will have to rely on his goal-scoring and bonus point gathering credentials, but having found the net an average of five times in his last two seasons, he offers a decent output in these areas.
Next up is Bayern Munich, who have a 38% implied chance for a clean sheet. They face a well organised Juventus outfit, whose chief target will be to not concede an away goal. This allows Pep Guardiola's men some room to breathe and we are expecting them to play on the front foot throughout. With this in mind, Juan Bernat who looks set to start at left-back with David Alaba shuffling over to centre-back, offers unlimited attacking qualities.
The last side, and a slightly more risky option in our opinion is Juventus. They lead Serie A and boast an incredible nine clean sheets on the bounce in all competitions… can they make it 10 versus Bayern Munich? The simple answer is no. Their opposition scored an average of 3.2 goals per game in the Champions League group stage and have found the back of the net 9 times in their last three matches. If you feel like taking a gamble Stephan Lichtsteiner is our recommendation from Juventus - averaging 9 points on Mondogoal over his last three fixtures.
Gerard Pique: Mondogoal (£9.5m), FantasyBet (£7.0m)
Juan Bernat: Mondogoal (£9.5m), FantasyBet (£6.0m)
Stephan Lichtsteiner: Mondogoal (£8.7m), FantasyBet (£6.0m)
The table below highlights two key-players from each side who have impressed during the group stage and have the skillset to be influential in their side's quest for progression:
Barcelona have come out on top in each of their three previous Champions League home & away knockout encounters with Arsenal: 2006 final (2-1), 2009/10 quarter-final (6-3 on agg.) and 2010/11 Last 16 (4-3 on agg.) As you can see they scored plenty of goals in the process, which is why you should channel your thoughts towards their frontline.
Lionel Messi has scored six goals in four Champions League games against Arsenal, but is yet to get on the scoresheet at the Emirates. The little Argentine will be out to put things straight and dampen The Gunners' hope of European silverware in the first leg.
The thought of Neymar running towards Mertesacker is enough to bring tears to eyes of Arsenal fans and is a reason in itself to consider the Brazilian. Throughout the busy November and December Champions League period alone, the trickster scored 13 times and contributed with 8 assists. The fact that Neymar won the Man of the Match award in 80% of his matches in this period goes to show what he's capable of.
Last but not least is Luis Suarez. The ex-Liverpool forward has been clinical in-front of goal this season and is leading the chase for the Golden Boot with 25 goals in La Liga. In his last ten matches, he has scored 15 goals and assisted 8 - this form is almost beyond belief and he will be looking to add to it against Arsenal.
If you are in need of a differential, they don't come much better than Olivier Giroud. The Frenchman had the best mins-to-goal ratio of any player in the group stage, scoring every 51.6 minutes. While Alexis Sanchez will be out to prove something against his former club, after a poor season so far by his standards.
Elsewhere, the usual suspects in Thomas Muller and Robert Lewandowski are the obvious selections in the encounter between Juventus and Bayern Munich. The former scored a fantastic bicycle kick at the weekend and will be high on confidence, while the latter is one of the most consistent performers on the big stage as highlighted with his 7 goals thus far in the tournament.
The best bargain buy striker in this slate is Alvaro Morata. He has proved his worth in the Champions League this season and comes in at half the price of the majority of players in this section. It's a difficult task to take down the German Champions, but Morata is no stranger to notching important goals - sending Juventus to the 2014/15 Champions League final after scoring at the Bernabeu to haunt his former club.
Lionel Messi: Mondogoal (£21.7m), FantasyBet (£16.0m)
Luis Suarez: Mondogoal (£20.8m), FantasyBet (£13.5m)
Neymar: Mondogoal (£17.3m), FantasyBet (£13.0m)
Olivier Giroud: Mondogoal (£11.2m), FantasyBet (£9.0m)
Thomas Muller: Mondogoal (£15.9m), FantasyBet (£13.0m)
Robert Lewandowski: Mondogoal (£19.2m), FantasyBet (£13.5m)
Alvaro Morata: Mondogoal (£5.9m), FantasyBet (£8.5m)
As usual, we've taken a look at what the bookies are predicting to give a rough indication of what's expected from these fixtures. The table below displays the bookies odds converted into an implied chance percentage:
| Team | To Win | 2+ Goals | Clean Sheet |
| Arsenal | 20.83% | 32.36% | 16.67% |
| Barcelona | 59.88% | 65.36% | 38.46% |
| Juventus | 34.48% | 33.33% | 33.33% |
| Bayern Munich | 40.00% | 36.36% | 38.17% |
The table below highlights two key-players from each side who have impressed during the group stage and have the skillset to be influential in their side's quest for progression:
| Player | Mins | Goals | Assists |
| Giroud | 258 | 5 | 0 |
| Sanchez | 442 | 3 | 4 |
| Messi | 270 | 3 | 1 |
| Rakitic | 406 | 2 | 2 |
| Morata | 446 | 2 | 0 |
| Pogba | 540 | 0 | 2 |
| Lewandowski | 456 | 7 | 0 |
| Muller | 437 | 5 | 1 |
| Contest | Entry | Prize Pool |
| Mondogoal - Tue 3k GPP | £10 | £3,000 |
| Mondogoal - Team-Signed Barcelona Shirt | £1 | N/A |
| FantasyBet - Tues/Wed GTD | £5.50 | £200 |
