Champions League football returns this evening and we have some really cracking ties to sink our teeth into and I've focussed on matches from Glasgow, Barcelona, Athens and Lisbon as we look for some tasty winners from European footballs elite competition. Barcelona host Juventus in what is surely the tie of the round from the Nou Camp while Celtic host the Quatari family and their Parisien play thing as Neymar and co roll into town with most expecting a comfortable night for the French side, while in Italy, Roma host Atletico Madrid in what should be a tight affair from the Stadio Olimpico. Elsewhere, routine home wins should be the order of the day for Bayern and Real Madrid as they host Anderlect and Apoel respectively while Man United will hope for a similar outcome as they host Swiss champions and CL regulars, FC Basel. With odds of 1/12, 1/20 and 1/4, finding value in those fixtures, could be tough. Here then are my previews and best bets for our first night of Champions League football this season. #BOlieve 19:45 Barcelona vs Juventus - Prediction - 2.2
Best Bets - BTTS @3/4, Juventus or draw @7/5 Key Facts * Juventus have lost only 1 of their last 14 away CL ties (in 90 minutes * Juventus have won 5 of their last 6 away CL fixtures * Juventus convincingly eliminated Barcelona 3.0 on aggregate in last seasons' quarter finals Final Verdict Juventus not to lose is my favourite bet of the night @ super tasty 7/5 odds with the bookies surely overstating Barcelona's chances, pricing the hosts at just 4/7 to collect the points in this fabulous group opener. The visitors have a tremendous recent away record in this competition and the bookies seem to have forgotten the ease with which Juventus overcame the Catalan giants in last seasons' quarter final tie. With Barcelona losing Neymar and changing their head coach, they have much to prove in the coming weeks and it remains to be seen if they should be anywhere near as short as 4/7 to beat last season's losing finalists. BTTS looks likely, given that Juventus will have more incentive to attack than they did in the second leg of their quarter final tie last year (a 0.0 stalemate) with the likes of Dybala, Costa and Higuain sure to cause Barcelona plenty of problems defensively and given that this is Barca, we should expect goals and a potentially entertaining, high-scoring draw. ________________________________________________________________________________________ 19:45 Benfica vs CSKA Moscow - Prediction 1.1 Best Bets - BTTS @21/20 Final Verdict CSKA have a decent record of scoring in away Champions League fixtures and I fancy them to bring up the BTTS here with Benfica suffering from injuries and the loss of some key players during the previous transfer window. Indeed the hosts have lost Lindeloff, Ederson and Semedo to Man Utd, Man City and Barcelona respectively and far that reason, I can't back the hosts at short odds of 13/20, especially with Benfica also suffering from plenty of injury concerns including key striker Jonas, who is also a doubt for the hosts. The visitors have scored in 9 of their last 13 away CL group stage fixtures while they have won 8 of their last 10 away games domestically and they can score in Portugal while the hosts have scored in 15 of their last 17 home CL group fixtures, including each of the last 9 so BTTS has to have a good chance at 21/20 odds. Benfica do have a strong record over Russian opponents in Lisbon, but CSKA are an experienced CL team and they can certainly find the net and perhaps sneak a draw. ________________________________________________________________________________________ 19:45 Celtic vs Paris Saint Germain - Prediction - 1.3 Best Bets - BTTS and over 2.5 goals @21/20, Celtic to score @4/6 Key Facts * PSG have kept only 2 clean sheets in their last 12 away CL fixtures and only 3 in their last 8 Ligue 1 away fixtures Final Verdict PSG are awfully short to win @ 3/10 so once again the value can be found in backing BTTS and over 2.5 goals @21/20 with Celtic no mugs on their own patch. Of course the visitors have a stunning new look attack in the shape of Mbappe, Neymar and Cavani, however the Parisien side are not without their own shortcomings in defense and Celtic certainly have it in within them to score at 4/6 odds. Still, the visitors should have too much quality for Celtic and I expect an away win with goals so BTTS and over 2.5 goals is my best pick here @21/20, while you might also consider Celtic to score @4/6, as well as PSG and yes on the BTTS and win market at 6/4 odds. ________________________________________________________________________________________ 19:45 Olympiacos vs Sporting CP - Prediction 2.1 Best Bets - Olympiakos to win @9/5, BTTS @ 19/20 Key Facts * Olympiakos have won 9 of their last 12 home CL group fixtures since 2011 * Olympiakos have won 39 of their last 41 home league fixtures * Over 2.5 goals were scored in 12 of Olympiakos last 15 home CL fixtures. 10 of those games also saw BTTS * Sporting have seen BTTS in 7 of their last 9 away CL group stage fixtures * Since 2007, Sporting have scored in 15 of their last 17 away CL ties * Sporting have lost each of their last 6 away CL group stage fixtures, while they have not won any of their last 9 on the road Final Verdict Olympiakos look good value for the win at big odds of 9/5, given both sides respective home and away records in this competition. Sporting have made a fine start to their season domestically, winning 5 from 5 but have conceded in each of their last 3 wins while they are missing key men Daniel Podence, Fabio Coentrao and Cristiano Piccini for the trip to Greece, while key man Andre Silva has since departed to limbo in Leicester. A home win seems the most likely outcome and given both sides ability going forward, I expect BTTS here as well. ________________________________________________________________________________________ 19:45 Roma vs Atletico Madrid - Prediction 1.1 Final Verdict A tough one to call in Rome with neither side starting the season in particularly inspiring form and while Atletico certainly have the better pedigree in this competition in recent years, home advantage might be enough to edge the hosts to a narrow, low scoring draw. Better to avoid this fixture in my opinion. ________________________________________________________________________________________ Best Bets Celtic v Paris - BTTS and over 2.5 goals @21/20 - NB Barcelona v Juventus - Juventus or draw @ 7/5 NAP Barcelona v Juventus - BTTS @3/4 Benfica v CSKA - BTTS @21/20 Celtic v Paris - Celtic to score @4/6 Olympiakos to win @9/5 Olympiakos v Sporting - BTTS @19/20 Comments are closed.
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