Football ManCity120Club Brugge KV vs Manchester City and Ajax vs Dortmund are the Champions League matches in focus in Tuesday's preview including goals markets and goalscorer betting tips courtesy of @Olimp_SA

 

 

 

 

Champions League Group Stage Round 3, Tuesday 19 October

 

Club Brugge KV vs. Manchester City 18:45

 

Club Brugge

 

It’s been a dream start to the UCL Group Stage for Belgian side Club Brugge and they currently sit in second place in Group A with four points, narrowly behind French giants PSG who have a slightly better goal difference.

 

In their opening Group A encounter Brugge pulled off a big upset at home where they managed to hold PSG to a 1-1 draw. After conceding early Brugge scored their only goal of the match in the 27th minute thanks to Hans Vanaken, while their defense did an excellent job in the second half of shutting down the PSG attack. They went into this match as huge underdogs and defied odds of 10.00 for a win and 6.00 for a draw to take a point off their opponents. It was the first time in the club’s history that they managed to avoid defeat against PSG and it was a big result for them indeed.

 

In Round 2 of their group stage the boys from Belgium jetted off to Austria to take on Leipzig where they once again relished in their role as underdogs. They went into the match with odds of 7.00 to win the match and despite this they managed to pull off a 2-1 win and secure all three points. Once again they started off the match by conceding an early goal, but just like he did against PSG Hans Vanaken equalized shortly after. Mats Rits added another shortly before half time and yet again the defense stepped up in the second half and shut down the opposition’s attack.

 

Manchester City

 

Things have not been as smooth for the Sky Blues and they find themselves in third place in Group A with three points and a record of one win and one loss. They look to pick up maximum points in their remaining fixtures to ensure qualification for the Round of 16 and avoid being sent to the Europa League.

 

City’s campaign got off to an excellent start in Manchester after a thrilling encounter with Leipzig that saw nine goals. The pre match betting indicated that City were clear favourites to win and they did exactly just that. The hosts dominated the first half and went into the break with a 3-1 lead thanks to goals by Nathan Ake, Riyad Mahrez and an own goal from Leipzig. After conceding first in the second half they were quick to hit back with three more goals through Jack Grealish, Joao Cancelo and Gabriel Jesus and secure a comfortable 6-3 victory.

 

Round 2 was an unpleasant one for the men from Manchester where they failed to pick up any points on their trip to Paris. They went into their match with PSG as slight favourites, but their attack was unable to put much together and find the back of the net. An early goal by PSG meant that City would trail for pretty much the entire match and another late goal by the hosts would see them go down 2-0 and be denied any points.

 

Prediction

 

Once again Club Brugge will go in as massive underdogs but this is a role that they have been embracing so far in the group stage. Their defense was able to hold PSG to a draw in their last UCL home clash and with City struggling on the road in both the UCL and Premier League there definitely does seem to be value in taking the home team on the double chance. Goals have been coming thick and fast in the tournament this year and with the exception of City’s 2-0 loss to PSG all the group stage matches for these two teams so far have seen both teams score.

 

At just under even money I think both teams to score is worth a crack as well. With goals in both his sides’ matches so far along with an assist or two Brugge’s Hans Vanaken stands out as having the best value for a goalscorer bet.

 

BetOlimp Best Bets

 

Double Chance: Club Brugge or Draw – 3.73
Both Teams to Score: yes – 1.94
Anytime Goalscorer: Hans Vanaken – 4.70

 

Ajax vs. Dortmund 21:00

 

Ajax

 

Defending Dutch Champions Ajax are flying-high in the UCL and sit at the top of Group C with 6 points. They have won both of their group stage clashes so far and only a goal difference separates them from their opponents. Qualification for the Round of 16 is looking very likely for ten Hag’s men already, but they will try to move three points clear of Dortmund on Tuesday.

 

Ajax started off their UCL Group Stage in Portugal where they went into the match as favourites at just under even money for a win. It was a dominating performance by the Ajax boys from the get go and they were already up 2-0 within the first ten minutes thanks to a quick double by Sebastien Haller. The Dutch side did let their opponents slip a goal through later in the first half, but managed to secure themselves a 3-1 lead at the break courtesy of a 39th minute Steven Berghuis goal. A further two goals in the second half by Haller ensured his side a comfortable 5-1 victory and three points.

 

They were back at home for their second round clash three weeks ago against Turkish side Besiktas and although their performance was not as dominating as their clash in Portugal they managed to get the job done with a 2-0 win. They went into this clash as overwhelming favourites and would have perhaps fancied themselves to score more than just two goals. Once again it was Steven Berghuis and Sebastien Haller who found the net for Ajax in the first half, while the defense did enough to hold the visitors off for the duration of the match.

 

Dortmund

 

With two wins in two clashes Dortmund are second on the Group A table and only trail Ajax due to their inferior goal difference. Tuesday night will be there opportunity to become clear leaders of the group and to send a message to their opponents that Group A is theirs for the taking.

 

The German side played their first match of the group stage in Turkey against Besiktas where they went in as big favourites at 1.40 for a win. It only took 20 minutes for the visitors to find the net through English midfielder Jude Bellingham, while the ever present Erling Haaland added a second during first half stoppage time. The BVB would have been disappointed in themselves for not adding any more goals in the second half, but nonetheless they were able to hang on for a 2-1 win despite a late Besiktas goal.

 

In Round 2 Marco Rose’s men were back in Germany to face Sporting in what turned out to be a pretty average performance. Dortmund managed to win the match 1-0 and secure all three points, but after being priced up as 1.45 favourites for the match many expected a much more dominating showing. The only goal of the match came in the 37th minute from Dutchman Donyell Malen who was also denied a second goal by VAR late in the second half.

 

Prediction

 

For me Dortmund have been below par in their first two fixtures against two average teams and I cannot see them getting a win in Amsterdam. The might be able to pull off a draw, but I think it is very likely that we will see Ajax triumph and I am happy to back them at just over even money. It’s a bit of a stretch but I feel like Ajax does have a chance to keep Dortmund from scoring if the German side put in another average performance and I think there is a very generous price on both teams not to score.

 

Sebastien Haller has been scoring goals left right and centre for his side and I am surprised that you can get even money on him to score anytime and 4.70 on him to score first. I recommend a larger wager on him to score anytime and a small nibble on him to score first.

 

BetOlimp Best Bets

Ajax to win – 2.23
Both teams to score:no – 2.78
Anytime Goalscorer: Sebastien Haller – 2.08
First Goalscorer: Sebastien Haller – 4.70

 

Note, odds are correct at the time of writing but are subject to change

 

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