UCL Fantasy Matchday 3 team reveal: Kane out, Retegui in?

The 2024/25 UEFA Champions League (UCL) campaign returns today – and so does the competition’s official Fantasy game.

Here, our resident European football expert Louis/FPL Reactions – who co-hosts the official UCL Fantasy podcast – gives us his Matchday 3 team reveal.

The Matchday ahead is going to be an awkward one for many different reasons. The fixtures look prime for using the Limitless chip, and whilst trying to stay quite open in terms of chip strategy, I remain confident using it in Matchday 8.

It’s worth mentioning that I think using the Limitless this week could be brilliant. Targeting fixtures like Milan v Club Brugge, Atalanta v Celtic and Arsenal v Shakhtar Donetsk feels like a very good play. However, I’m still of the opinion that being able to build a perfect XI in Matchday 8 without hits could be very powerful.

CURRENT TEAM

This is my current squad going into Matchday 3.

In goal, I’m hoping Janis Blaswich (€4.5m) finally keeps a clean sheet after two miserable rounds. The suspension to Juventus’s Michele Di Gregorio (€4.5m) is irritating but I think he is still a great option long term; I just need to get through this week without him.

I’m reasonably happy with my defence. Manchester City’s Rico Lewis (€4.6m), Leverkusen’s Alejandro Grimaldo (€5.6m) and Dortmund’s Emre Can (€5.1m) are all excellent assets for the longer term. The latter faces Real Madrid this week but I wouldn’t rule him out scoring a penalty. Barcelona’s Pau Cubarsi (€4.5m) doesn’t look great on paper against Bayern but he has great fixtures after this week.

The only major concern I have in defence going into Matchday 3 is Mohammed Salisu (€4.0m). He may have scored a heroic goal for me in the recent round but he also pulled a muscle during the international break. Fortunately, I have access to the Monaco line-ups to make a decision. I’ll discuss what I may do with him shortly.

The midfield is full of some great options including Leverkusen’s Florian Wirtz (€7.5m) and Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah (€10.0m), two players I want long term. Salzburg’s Oscar Gloukh (€6.0m) has genuinely been very unlucky not to return, and I think a match against GNK Dinamo this week could change that.

Usually going into a match with two Barcelona midfielders and a fixture against Bayern would give me cause for concern. But, Bayern evidently and consistently ship goals, so selling one feels a bit risky, the fixtures after Bayern also look plum. If forced to decide between keeping Lamine Yamal (€7.5m) or Raphinha (€7.5m), I would keep the latter.

Up front is Manchester City’s Erling Haaland (€11.0m) who will be a permanent fixture from now until the end. Victor Gyökeres (€7.5m) has a very good fixture this week but then Arsenal and Manchester City immediately after that. So, this week could be his last in my team and I already have eyes on replacements for Matchday 4. One player who may exit my team before him is Harry Kane (€10.6m).

Transfer Plan

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