The second legs of the Uefa Champions League Round of 16 matches between Real Madrid and PSG and Manchester City and Sporting Lisbon take place on Wednesday night and BetOlimp have a variety of bets.
Real Madrid vs. PSG
After striking late to down Real in the first leg, Kylian Mbappe is a doubt for the return clash. The Frenchman is still heavily linked with a free transfer to Madrid this summer, so his absence removes one of the big plotlines from this clash.
However, Mbappe being out would be a major boost to Real’s hopes of winning the tie. Given that Lionel Messi has failed to score in his last 695 minutes of action against Real Madrid in all competitions, you have to wonder where PSG’s goals are coming from. Could that cost them a quarter-final place?
Despite their success and the investment in their side, the Champions League eludes PSG. Their constant slip ups in this competition mean that it’s hard to trust them, even when they head into a second-leg with the advantage.
The French side could easily find themselves blowing that lead, especially given that they are winless in their last four away matches in the Champions League (D2 L2). They’ve also lost consecutive away matches in Ligue 1, so they look vulnerable here.
Real have won each of their last three games, scoring eight times. They also have put together an impressive unbeaten run at home, while they’ve won 10 of their last 12 games at their own ground.
Last term Real won 3-1 at home to both Atalanta and Liverpool on their way to the semi-finals. We think Real are good value for a victory, while we're backing them for another 3-1 win in our correct score prediction.
Karim Benzema has scored 12 goals in his last 11 Champions League home games for Real Madrid and he’s good to score again. Overall, he’s netted 64 goals for the Spanish side in the competition, behind only Cristiano Ronaldo (105) and Raul (66). With Real in need of a comeback, back Benzema to find the net.
Bets:
Manchester City vs. Sporting Lisbon
After a comfortable 5-0 win at Sporting three weeks ago, there’s little jeopardy for Man City coming into this clash. They’re basically guaranteed a place in the last eight, but they have the chance to extend their lead in the home leg.
City won 4-1 against rivals Man United at the weekend, keeping them on course for a treble this term. After that comfortable win, you have to worry for a Sporting side who have been defensively vulnerable in Europe.
Sporting have failed to keep a clean sheet in any of their last 13 away matches in the Champions League, conceding 31 goals in the process (2.4 per game). They didn’t really boost their record this term, especially after losing 4-2 at Ajax in their last away game in Europe.
Sporting have also lost all three of their matches in the knockout rounds of the Champions League, conceding 17 goals in total. That’s the quickest that any side has conceded 17 knockout round goals in this competition, with Basel (6) the next quickest.
Manchester City have won each of their last six home matches in the knockout stages of the UEFA Champions League, while they had a perfect record at home in the group stage. City scored 12 times across their three home matches in the last round, while they’ve scored 23 times across seven matches in the competition this term.
Sporting were outclassed in both meetings with Ajax this term, having conceded nine times across their two meetings. I’m backing City to score another three goals or more in this game, while a 3-1 victory in our correct score prediction given Sporting have scored in five of seven games in Europe.
Meanwhile, Riyad Mahrez has scored six Champions League goals in 2021-22. The Algerian needs one more strike to set a record for most goals in a single season in the competition by a City player. Having scored in seven of his last nine City games – hitting nine goals in that run – Mahrez is a great anytime scorer option.
Bets:
Note, odds are correct at the time of writing, but are subject to change.
All of this week's Champions League markets are available here.
Good luck!
