the second night of the second round of champions league group games sees another eight great matches and whilst there may not be any genuinely heavyweight clashes between two euro giants, there are plenty of great games and fascinating ties. both manchester sides are in action, as well as psg, both madrid clubs and juventus, and we’ve got analysis and betting tips for all eight contests in the second of our weekly champions league previews.
in addition to our moneymaking predictions, we also help you cash in by making it quick and simple to get the best available odds on all the matches as well as the champions league outright betting. our live odds comparison compares the odds from all the best betting sites around so you can get quickly see where the value lies. anyway, let’s get to those tips, starting with the pick of the night’s action, as man united host wolfsburg.
the red devils have come in for some criticism this term and yet they are second in the premier league table. disappointingly they lost at psv on the opening round of champions league group games, going down 2-1, so they really need to win here. wolfsburg are no mugs though (although seeing nicklas bendtner with the squad number 3 might make you think otherwise!) and julian draxler has settled in well following his move from schalke. andre schurrle provides more pace and skill whilst a strong brazilian contingent brings both steel and class to the side.
however, whilst wolfsburg are bright and capable, on home soil louis van gaal’s men should prove too good. their home record under the dutch disciplinarian is excellent and at betting odds of 10/11 with paddy power we think they are a superb proposition.
their city rivals travel to germany, with man city playing monchengladbach and, like united, the citizens are odds-on to bounce back from champions league defeat and claim a crucial three points. city lost 2-1 at home to juventus last time out despite starting the premier league brilliantly and a further defeat, at home to west ham, will have dented their confidence that bit more. they are yet to make any sort of impact in the champions league but we predict they will record a big win away from home here.
their opponents were beaten 3-0 by sevilla and at the time of writing their record this season in all competitions is six defeats from six, with a goal difference of minus 13. borussia monchengladbach are bottom of the bundesliga, unsurprisingly given their 100% losing record, and are prime for the taking. they have failed to score four times so back the away win to nil at nice odds of 9/4 with sky bet in what we predict will be a comfortable city victory.
the other game in group d (for death) sees juventus host sevilla and a win for either would give them a huge boost, both in terms of qualifying and possibly winning the group. juventus’s home record is superb and they rarely lose at the juventus stadium, although they have made a quite abysmal start to their campaign domestically and sit 13th, with just one point from two home games.
sevilla have just two points from their opening four games though, and are struggling without their influential striker carlos bacca, who moved to ac milan in the summer. both sevilla and juve won their first game in the group but on home soil we have to favour the italians here, with their defence a great bet to keep a clean sheet, meaning our prediction and betting tip is juventus to win to nil at betting odds of 23/10 with paddy power.
in the fourth seriously classy champions league clash of the night, atletico madrid host iberian rivals benfica. the home win can be backed at best betting odds of just 8/13 with sportingbet whilst the draw is 3/1 and away win 5/1. diego simeone is a masterful manager and his side are very hard to beat. benfica beat astana 2-0 last time out but the step up in class here could well see that score reversed and a 2-0 home win (also the score atleti beat galatasaray by) is the way to go at very decent odds of 13/2 with paddy power.
the other fixture in group c sees astana face turkish giants galatasaray and gala will have to win this match if they are to compete with the sides above them in the race to qualify for the champions league round of 16. sportingbet make them 13/2 favourites but we fancy an upset here, with the turks having made a slow start domestically and never especially strong on the road. back the kazakh outfit at a generous 5/2 with sky bet.
another game taking place in the former soviet union sees dutch giants psv head to cska moscow. the home side are rightful favourites but psv will be boosted by their win over man united and are worth backing in the draw no bet market at best betting odds of 2/1 with william hill.
from psv to psg and zlatan ibrahimovic and co face a tough trip to the ussr (sort of) too, as they travel to ukraine to play shakhtar. psg are the fifth favourites in the outright champions league betting and we predict they will deliver the goods and eke out a narrow victory here. back the away win alongside btts at generous odds of 10/3 with bet365 in what we fancy could be a high scoring match.
our final champions league betting tip is for the game between malmo and real madrid, with real looking to make it six points from six after beating shakhtar at home, whilst the swedes will hope to improve on a 2-0 defeat in paris as they press their claims for a europa league spot. madrid are often lacking in potency on the road so, whilst we think they’ll win (the bookies do too – the spanish giants are priced at best odds of just 2/9!), it may be worth backing them to win by just a single goal, available at tasty odds of 7/2.