Who to replace Michael Olise from Bayern with in the Fantasy Champions League
Bayern's leading attacker Michael Olise will miss the crucial Champions League match against Arsenal – who will replace him?
The French attacking midfielder Michael Olise greatly disappointed his owners in the Champions League Fantasy League in the Tuesday match against the Norwegian Viking in the second round. Not only did Olise make no scoring actions in the match that ended 3:3, but towards the end of the game Michael managed within a minute to first receive a yellow and then a red card for throwing the ball at an opponent's face. This red card was Olise's first in his professional career ever!
In the end – Bayern, which at the moment of Olise's dismissal was leading 3:2, missed the victory, and Olise's fantasy owners not only failed to score points on this star and very expensive player, but also lost them. The Frenchman finished the round with a “-2 points” balance, and since you cannot replace a player after a dismissal according to the rules of the Champions League Fantasy League, it turned out that Olise became a real ballast for his owners this week in the Fantasy UCL.
And many managers were counting on the opposite outcome. We even advised taking Olise as captain for this round, and many readers listened to this advice. But now they will have to not only catch up in the league table with competitors who did not select Olise in their squad, but also use one of their substitutions for the next round. After all, Olise will miss the match against Arsenal due to suspension.
Who to replace Olise with in the Champions League Fantasy League
Who could be an equivalent replacement for Bayern's French midfielder in the 3rd round of the Champions League. Considering that Olise costs a lot in the Fantasy UCL – 9 million euros, there will definitely be options for a replacement at that price. And here are our suggestions:
Antoine Semenyo (Manchester City) – price 7 million euros
The winger of the Citizens will play at home against modest Greek AEK, and will surely be in the starting lineup for this game. Semenyo's statistics this season are very good, and the threat from his shots or passes to the opponent can ultimately convert into performance points with high probability.
Nikola Barella (Inter Milan) – price 6.5 million euros
The Inter youngsters, after a disastrous start in the Champions League, are hungry for redemption, and in the third‑round opponent Inter will have modest Shakhtar, against whom Christian Chivu's charges can score at least a couple‑three goals. Barella is the midfield leader of his team, who often threatens the opponent's goal himself and can also make his mark with a goal‑assist.
John McGinn (Aston Villa) – price 6.6 million euros
One of the most underrated players in the Champions League Fantasy League, who after the departure of Aston Villa’s leaders in the summer became the true captain of the team and a player who gets everywhere on the pitch. McGinn has already amassed a good number of points for his fantasy owners in the UCL, and against the Norwegian Viking at home in the third round he can improve his stats.
We should note separately that by replacing Michael Olise with someone from the Barella‑McGinn duo, you will free up about 2.5 million euros for strengthening the squad, and a second substitution before the next round. Thus, the suspension of Bayern’s French winger is, on the one hand, a problem for fantasy players, and on the other hand, an opportunity to improve your roster. And it is precisely in such situations, when a big star becomes unavailable for a fantasy round, that the true talents of “managers” making responsible decisions emerge.