Champions Manager Spillerunde 4: captain and best buys

Champions Manager Spillerunde 4 preview: best buys, captain picks and who to sell

Champions Manager Spillerunde 4 is a round to buy for the run behind it. Barcelona have the best three-round program in the game, [H]AVL → [A]SFK → [H]MCI, and Lamine Yamal has the highest three-round total of any player. Kylian Mbappé still has the top score of the round at 148k and again in Spillerunde 5, and Erling Haaland, owned by only 9.6%, has two strong weeks back to back before City's trip to Barcelona. At the other end, Roma, VfB Stuttgart and Aston Villa have weak programs, and a lot of managers still hold their players.

Below: the programs worth owning through Spillerunde 6, the best buys and differentials by position, the captaincy plan and the sells, each with the reason to act this round rather than next. All 36 clubs play in Spillerunde 4 (18 fixtures on 3 and 4 November), so there are no blanks to plan around. The projections were pulled on 21 October, before the last Spillerunde 3 games; the Champions Manager player picks page always shows the latest numbers, and the optimal teams for Champions Manager solver weighs the same rounds live. Last round's analysis is in the Champions Manager Spillerunde 3 preview.

Champions Manager Spillerunde 4 programs: whose next three rounds are worth owning

Barcelona lead on attack with 7.25 expected goals over three rounds: [H]AVL → [A]SFK → [H]MCI. Aston Villa at home is the best fixture of the round (65% win probability, 2.37 xG), and the Sabah trip in Spillerunde 5 is worth 2.89 xG, the best attacking fixture of Spillerunde 5. Manchester City in Spillerunde 6 is the game to plan around, not a reason to wait: the two weeks before it are the best attacking fixtures of their rounds.

Bayern München are second at 6.94 xG, and their run gets better as it goes: [A]ATM → [A]LIL → [H]SLP. Two away games first (1.90 and 2.06 xG), then Slavia Prague at home at 2.98 xG, the best fixture of Spillerunde 6. That is why the Bayern attackers rise in the tables below. Real Madrid ([A]AEK → [H]PSV → [A]ARS, 6.46 xG) have two good games before the Arsenal trip.

On defence, Paris Saint-Germain have the most expected clean sheets over the three rounds at 1.08 ([A]VIL → [H]ROM → [A]AVL), ahead of Arsenal ([A]SLP → [H]BVB → [H]RMA) and Liverpool ([A]FB → [A]CLB → [H]POR), both on 1.05. Arsenal have the best clean-sheet chance of the round at 42% in Prague, and Liverpool never drop below 30% across the three. Galatasaray are the under-the-radar program: [H]STU → [H]AVL → [A]AEK, two home games at 2.02 and 1.61 xG.

Two clubs have one or two big weeks with a weak one behind. Viking host Sabah (58% win, 2.24 xG) and then travel to Atletico on [H]SFK → [A]ATM → [H]FEY, so their players are one-round buys. Bodø/Glimt go [H]LIL → [H]LAS → [A]RCL, and the LASK game in Spillerunde 5 (2.47 xG) is the one to own them for. At the bottom, Aston Villa ([A]BAR → [A]GAL → [H]PSG, 3.67 xG, 0.50 expected clean sheets), Roma ([A]MUN → [A]PSG → [H]SCP) and VfB Stuttgart ([A]GAL → [A]INT → [H]LIL) have nothing to hold for.

Check the expected teams on the Champions Manager predicted lineups page, the full calendar on the Champions Manager schedule, and the bookmaker numbers behind every fixture on the Champions Manager market probabilities page.

3-round CS is expected clean sheets across the three games, not a percentage. Every club has three fixtures in the window.

Best goalkeepers for Champions Manager Spillerunde 4

Matvey Safonov (5.71m, PSG) has the best three-round total of any keeper: [A]VIL → [H]ROM → [A]AVL, 67k → 83k → 67k, 217k. Paris have the best defensive program in the game and his weakest week is still 67k. Only 0.8% own him, so he is the keeper to buy and leave alone.

David Raya (5.77m, ARS) has the top keeper score of the round at 71k on Arsenal's 42% clean-sheet chance in Prague. His program is [A]SLP → [H]BVB → [H]RMA, 71k → 70k → 58k for 199k: the Real Madrid game costs him, the first two weeks do not. Alisson Becker (4.65m, LIV) is level with Raya over three rounds for 1.1m less: [A]FB → [A]CLB → [H]POR, 66k → 62k → 71k, and his best week is the last one.

The budget keeper is Ugurcan Cakir (3.50m, GAL): [H]STU → [H]AVL → [A]AEK gives 64k → 55k → 54k, 172k over three rounds and 18k per million this round, with no week below 54k. He is a hold, not a rotation.

Best defenders for Champions Manager Spillerunde 4

Gabriel (5.20m, ARS) is the top defender of the round at 67k, and [A]SLP → [H]BVB → [H]RMA gives him 67k → 68k → 51k, 186k over three rounds. Riccardo Calafiori (3.99m, ARS) is the value route into the same defence on the same program: 64k → 64k → 48k, only 11k behind Gabriel over three rounds for 1.21m less, and 16k per million this round. Champions Manager allows four players per club, so Raya, Gabriel and Calafiori together fit with room for an Arsenal attacker.

Virgil van Dijk (4.58m, LIV) is the steadiest program: [A]FB → [A]CLB → [H]POR, 60k → 56k → 67k (183k), and the Porto home game in Spillerunde 6 is his best week. Achraf Hakimi (5.68m) follows Paris's defensive run at 51k → 66k → 48k, but he projects only around 50 minutes a game, which is why Safonov is the better way into that defence.

This round and the three-round ranking disagree on Alejandro Grimaldo (5.11m, ATM). He projects only 48k against Bayern, but [H]FCB → [H]VIK → [A]PSV then gives him 87k against Viking, the best defender score of Spillerunde 5, and 186k in total, level with Gabriel. If you are buying one premium defender to keep, Gabriel gets there with no weak week; Grimaldo is the better buy one round later, for Spillerunde 5.

The budget defenders. Davinson Sánchez (2.97m, GAL) is projected to start all three, with 86 and 83 expected minutes in Galatasaray's two home games: [H]STU → [H]AVL → [A]AEK, 58k → 43k → 36k, and 20k per million this round. The Bodø/Glimt pair Fredrik Sjøvold (3.30m, BOD) and Odin Lurås Bjørtuft (2.91m, BOD), at 53k → 85k → 27k and 51k → 83k → 26k, are two-round buys on [H]LIL → [H]LAS → [A]RCL: the LASK game is worth 85k and 83k, and the trip to Lens in Spillerunde 6 is where you sell them again. Both are under 0.5% owned.

Best midfielders for Champions Manager Spillerunde 4

Lamine Yamal (8.07m, BAR) is the template midfielder at 31.9% ownership, and the program is why: [H]AVL → [A]SFK → [H]MCI, 144k → 162k → 113k, 419k, the highest three-round total of any player in the game (weighted over five rounds: 450k). Keep him. If you do not own him, buy now, before the Aston Villa and Sabah games.

Bukayo Saka (7.30m, ARS) is the premium differential. Only 0.8% own him, and [A]SLP → [H]BVB → [H]RMA gives 98k → 106k → 85k, 288k over three rounds, the second best of any midfielder. Bruno Fernandes (6.72m, MUN) is 0.58m cheaper and Manchester United's penalty taker: [H]ROM → [A]SCP → [H]RBL, 107k → 77k → 95k (279k). Bruno has the bigger round, Saka the better three; if you are buying one and keeping him, buy Saka.

The Bayern midfielders are the case for buying a round early. Michael Olise (7.99m, FCB) goes 76k → 84k → 116k on [A]ATM → [A]LIL → [H]SLP, rising every week into the Slavia Prague game. 11.3% already own him; hold. Luis Diaz (6.76m) follows the same curve at 72k → 80k → 110k. Ademola Lookman (5.69m, ATM) is the other premium to note at 0.3% ownership: [H]FCB → [H]VIK → [A]PSV, 75k → 118k → 72k, with the Viking game in Spillerunde 5 his best week.

The best cheap midfielder is Ole Blomberg (3.00m, BOD). [H]LIL → [H]LAS → [A]RCL gives him 86k → 126k → 53k: 126k against LASK is the second best midfield score of Spillerunde 5, behind only Yamal, and at 0.3% ownership almost nobody has him. Anis Hadj Moussa (3.74m, FEY) is the flat-program hold: [H]INT → [H]POR → [A]VIK, 70k → 88k → 88k, 245k, a starter in all three at 0.1% ownership.

Jesse Bisiwu (1.99m, BAR) is the cheapest pick worth making. He is projected to start both Barcelona games before City, 86k → 98k → 26k on [H]AVL → [A]SFK → [H]MCI, and 43k per million is the best of any midfielder this round. Buy him for two rounds and sell before Spillerunde 6, when his minutes drop. Zlatko Tripic (3.27m, VIK) is a pure one-rounder: 116k against Sabah, then 38k in Madrid on [H]SFK → [A]ATM → [H]FEY.

Best forwards for Champions Manager Spillerunde 4

Kylian Mbappé (10.40m, RMA) is the most-owned player in the game at 35.8% and has the top projection of Spillerunde 4 and 5: [A]AEK → [H]PSV → [A]ARS, 148k → 182k → 80k. The Arsenal trip is his one weak week, and LASK at home follows it at 228k. Hold him.

Erling Haaland (10.12m, MCI) is the premium buy of the round. [A]RBL → [H]NAP → [A]BAR gives 127k → 160k → 97k, 384k over three rounds, behind only Yamal and Mbappé, and he is City's penalty taker. Why now: 127k and 160k come first, so the buy has to be in before the run starts, and at 9.6% ownership every point he scores in them is a point most of the field does not get. The Barcelona trip in Spillerunde 6 is the week to plan around.

Victor Osimhen (5.47m, GAL) is the value pick of the round. He costs 5.47m, takes Galatasaray's penalties, and [H]STU → [H]AVL → [A]AEK gives 127k → 96k → 83k, 306k over three rounds. At 23k per million he is the best value of any forward above 4m, and only 2.3% own him.

Raphinha (7.35m, BAR) and Harry Kane (10.10m, FCB), owned by 26.9% and 28.1%, are holds for different reasons. Raphinha has the Barcelona program, [H]AVL → [A]SFK → [H]MCI, for 117k → 129k → 89k, although the model has him at only about 50 minutes a game. Kane's line rises, 91k → 100k → 137k on [A]ATM → [A]LIL → [H]SLP, and he is the top captain option of Spillerunde 6. Neither is a sell.

Alexander Isak (6.09m, LIV) is the mid-price hold: [A]FB → [A]CLB → [H]POR, 86k → 85k → 97k, with no weak week. The budget forwards split by horizon. Peter Christiansen (3.12m, VIK) has the best points per million of any forward this round (36k per million), but 111k → 35k → 72k on [H]SFK → [A]ATM → [H]FEY makes him a one-round buy. Nacho Ferri (2.52m, FEY) is the opposite: 53k → 68k → 82k on [H]INT → [H]POR → [A]VIK, rising every week from a 2.52m price.

Champions Manager captain picks for Spillerunde 4

Kylian Mbappé (10.40m, RMA) is the captain on [A]AEK → [H]PSV → [A]ARS. He has the top projection of the round at 148k, so a double score is worth about 297k in Athens, and he is the top projection again in Spillerunde 5 at 182k against PSV.

Lamine Yamal is a close second at 144k against Aston Villa, and the safer pick for anyone who does not own Mbappé. Erling Haaland and Victor Osimhen are next at 127k each. The plan beyond this round: Mbappé again in Spillerunde 5, then Harry Kane in Spillerunde 6 (137k against Slavia Prague, while Mbappé drops to 80k at Arsenal). That is one more reason to keep Kane. The captain picking guide explains how to weigh ceiling against floor.

Who to sell before Champions Manager Spillerunde 4

Fabián Ruiz (3.39m, PSG) is owned by 26.2% and projects 27k → 35k → 25k on [A]VIL → [H]ROM → [A]AVL. Paris have a good program; the problem is his role, at under 40 expected minutes a game. Why now: his best week of the three is only 35k, and Anis Hadj Moussa costs 0.35m more for 70k → 88k → 88k.

Donyell Malen (5.87m, ROM) is owned by 26.8% and projects 63k at Manchester United, which is a fair return. But [A]MUN → [A]PSG → [H]SCP drops him to 40k in Paris, and Victor Osimhen costs 0.40m less and out-scores him in both of the next two rounds (127k → 96k against 63k → 40k). Why now: the swap gains most in the next two weeks, so it pays to make it before they start.

Pierluigi Gollini (3.04m, ROM), owned by 17.3%, is projected to start at Manchester United and score 40k, then only around 30 expected minutes a game after that: 40k → 8k → 21k on [A]MUN → [A]PSG → [H]SCP. Why now: 40k is the most he projects in any of the three rounds. Cakir is 0.46m more for 64k → 55k → 54k. Mario Hermoso (12.1%) is the same story in Roma's defence at 18k → 8k → 41k.

The Stuttgart defenders Finn Jeltsch (2.66m, STU) and Josha Vagnoman (3.18m, STU), owned by 16.0% and 15.1%, face [A]GAL → [A]INT → [H]LIL: 21k → 9k → 33k and 31k → 15k → 43k. Why now: the two away games are the next two rounds, and Lille at home is the only fixture worth having. Aston Villa's Nicolas Jackson (5.06m, AVL) (40k → 75k → 46k, 11.9% owned) and Zion Suzuki (3.75m, AVL) (30k → 50k → 41k, 10.3%) are the other sells: [A]BAR → [A]GAL → [H]PSG is the fourth weakest program in the game, and Barcelona away this round is the worst of it.

One you can wait on: Rayan Cherki (19.0%) projects 51k → 70k → 37k. The Napoli game in Spillerunde 5 is worth keeping him for, so sell him after it, before the Barcelona trip. More round-by-round analysis is in the Champions Manager preview hub, and the fixture difficulty guide explains how we rate a program.

FAQ

Who should I captain in Champions Manager Spillerunde 4?

Kylian Mbappé. He has the top projection of the round at 148k at AEK, and the top projection again in Spillerunde 5. Lamine Yamal (144k against Aston Villa) is the alternative, then Erling Haaland and Victor Osimhen at 127k.

Should I buy Erling Haaland for Champions Manager Spillerunde 4?

Yes, he is the premium buy of the round. [A]RBL → [H]NAP → [A]BAR gives 127k → 160k → 97k, so the two strong weeks come first, and only 9.6% of managers own him.

Should I sell Fabián Ruiz before Champions Manager Spillerunde 4?

Yes. He projects 27k → 35k → 25k on under 40 expected minutes a game, and Anis Hadj Moussa costs 0.35m more for 70k → 88k → 88k.

What are the best differentials for Champions Manager Spillerunde 4?

Victor Osimhen (2.3% owned, 127k → 96k → 83k), Bukayo Saka (0.8%, 98k → 106k → 85k), Matvey Safonov (0.8%, the best keeper program) and Ole Blomberg (0.3%, 86k → 126k → 53k).

Which budget defenders are best for Champions Manager Spillerunde 4?

Davinson Sánchez (2.97m, 58k → 43k → 36k) for Galatasaray's two home games, and the Bodø/Glimt pair Fredrik Sjøvold and Odin Lurås Bjørtuft as two-round buys for the LASK game in Spillerunde 5. Riccardo Calafiori (3.99m) is the best value route into Arsenal's defence.

This preview was written by TheFantasyTool AI.