DraftKings Champions League DFS: UCL Picks for Wednesday, April 12

Real Madrid are the biggest favorite for Wednesday's two-game slate against a hapless Chelsea side that just lost 1-0 in league play away to Wolves. They have re-appointed the previously unsuccessful Frank Lampard as interim manager, so I think the public will be against them. The more interesting matchup features AC Milan hosting Napoli. These two sides met April 2 in Naples, where Milan pulled off a 4-0 upset victory against a Napoli side without Victor Osimhen. Napoli may be the overwhelming favorites to win the scudetto, but I expect their visit to Milan will be difficult.

MATCHES (ET)

• 3:00 pm: AC Milan vs. Napoli
• 3:00 pm: Real Madrid vs. Chelsea

For detailed stats and odds, check out the

DraftKings Fantasy Soccer: Wednesday UCL Cheat Sheet

FORWARDS

Karim Benzema and Vinicius Junior (RMA vs. CHE, $9,500/$9,700): The forward position lacks any players who reliably accrue floor points and take set pieces, so I expect Vinicius and Benzema to both be popular in all formats. Vinicius probably has the better floor compared to Benzema, but Benzema's goalscoring odds of -110 lead the rest of the field by a significant margin. There are cash-game constructions where you can play both, but you are forced to punt at least one lineup spot. Given the weakness of the forward position, that's probably a worthy tradeoff.

Hirving Lozano (ACM vs. NAP, $6,600):  If you don't spend up twice at forward, you are likely looking to spend as little as possible in the second forward position. Lozano is a near-lock to be substituted early, but he has taken three shots in each of his past two appearances. If he starts, I'd prefer Matteo Politano ($6,300), who is also an early sub risk. He would at least have a chance to take a few corners.

Khvicha Kvaratskhelia ($8,500) is certainly a viable option in cash, but I think I'd prefer to find the extra $1,000 to get up to Vinicius or Benzema with the better matchup at home. His talent is undeniable and I'll certainly be targeting him in GPPs. With the exception of Joao Felix ($7,000), who does not take corners for Chelsea anymore, most of the other forward options are goal dependent and early-substitute risks. If you opt to not play both Benzema and Vinicius, you can play whoever you want. Out of the remaining options, Rafael Leao stands out the most to me. He is talented and possesses goal and assist upside, while his price of $7,800 should keep his rostership relatively low in most tournament formats.

MIDFIELDERS

Toni Kroos (RMA vs. CHE, $6,400): Even if Kroos gets subbed off in the 75th minute, he'll be the majority set-piece taker at home for Madrid. Normally, there is a lot of opportunity cost in Champions League when rostering Kroos, but with only two games and low implied totals, he is one of the first names in cash games and more viable than usual in GPPs. Normally, I'd be more enthusiastic to recommend Piotr Zielinski ($7,200), but he is not necessarily a monopoly set-piece taker and has been subbed off early in his recent starts. On the other hand, some of those early substitutions were in games that were not close, and he was also rested this weekend. My willingness to roster him will depend a lot on Napoli's starting XI.

Sandro Tonali (ACM vs. NAP, $5,400): Tonali and Ismael Bennacer ($4,300) have split set pieces for AC Milan the past three fixtures. Tonali plays a more defensive role and profiles more as a cash-game option, and I think he is a good value at his price despite lacking upside. Bennacer has played as a central attacking midfielder recently and his major downside is that he is likely to be subbed off early. Brahim Diaz ($5,600) looks like an exciting tournament option in this range, but like many other options, he is unlikely to play a full 90 minutes.

DEFENDERS

Mario Rui (NAP at ACM, $5,500) and Reece James (CHE at RMA, $5,300): Without set pieces, Theo Hernandez ($5,700) is slightly overpriced. He's a solid tournament option, but there are a few other worthy options in this price range. If Rui starts, he should take a few corners, but James might be an even better play despite a worse matchup. He took almost every set piece for Chelsea against Wolves over the weekend and racked up an absurd 17 crosses playing in a back four. I haven't spoken very favorably about Chelsea in this column, but James is a good option since Madrid are not overwhelming favorites. Ben Chilwell ($5,100) is an appealing option, as well, but I'm not certain he will split set pieces with James and I feel like that makes him a slight risk in cash games.

Nacho (RMA vs. CHE, $3,600): I'm not excited about rostering Nacho, but he is a bit too cheap for a full-back playing for a home favorite, and some lineup constructions make it impossible to afford two defenders priced above $5,000. He is not an active shooter or crosser, so he probably makes most sense in lineups that speculate Madrid keep a clean sheet. If you want to punt at second defender, Antonio Rudiger ($2,900) is inexpensive for Madrid's clean sheet odds.

GOALKEEPER

Thibaut Courtois (RMA vs. CHE, $5,500): With two games, I'm more likely to try to force the favorite home goalkeeper into my lineups, especially in cash games. Otherwise, any goalkeeper is fine. Madrid take plenty of shots, so Kepa Arrizabalaga ($4,000) has a good chance of seeing save opportunities. Mike Maignan ($4,600) is priced below Alex Meret ($4,900) despite Milan being slight home favorites, which is technically a slight pricing inefficiency.