Liverpool v Bayern Munich
The first of our Feb 19-20 Champions League betting tips. Another exciting round of fixtures from the Champions League takes place on Tuesday and Wednesday with each of the four games shown live on BT Sport from 8.00pm. A night of high-class action ahead, the only problem for armchair fans is deciding which game to choose. Liverpool v Bayern Munich at Anfield will feature near the top of most lists as the English Premier League challengers welcome their German opponents to town. The Reds came through Group C with a record of three wins against three defeats, the nine points on the board leaving them two behind PSG and level with Napoli, edging the Italians on goals scored.
They are lucky to still be involved in the tournament; however, fans will be hoping their team can hit form when it matters, starting with a first-leg win over a talented opponent in Munich. Liverpool is involved in a title race in the Premier League and takes confidence from recent wins over Crystal Palace and Bournemouth, battering The Cherries 3-0 at this venue on 9 February. Mane, Wijnaldum and Salah were on target that day and know they must take any chances that come their way on Tuesday. Traders across the board have Liverpool marked as favourite and backers will find no more than Unibet’s 21/20 available if following the betting. That’ll do for us.
FCB Capable of Upsetting the Odds
Results in this competition so far tell us it wouldn’t be wise to write off Bayern Munich and they head to England having enjoyed the better recent form of the two sides involved so far. They finished top of Group E when claiming four wins and two draws to come home two points ahead of runners up Ajax and seven better than Benfica in third. Qualification was secured well before the end, but they must be credited for sticking to their task and winning the pool.
Pole position was secured thanks to three wins on the bounce and they have been just as impressive in the Bundesliga so far, winning 14 of their first 21 to battle it out with Borussia Dortmund for the top spot. FCB boosted confidence in the ranks with a stunning 3-1 home win over Schalke, a Bruma own-goal added to by strikes from Lewandowski and Gnabry. A win in Liverpool would really shake this tie-up and supporters can get 12/5 at Bet365 on the away day. A draw would be almost as good for the Germans, trading 13/5 (888sport).
Our Tip: Liverpool to win – 21/20 at Unibet
Lyon v Barcelona
Lyon joins us in the knockout stages of the Champions League after finishing second behind Manchester City in Group F, despite winning just one of their six starts. Astonishing, but they did end unbeaten, their final tally showing that one win against five draws. Making themselves difficult to break down and impossible to beat was enough to land them a money-spinning match with Barcelona; however, will that luck desert them when it all gets serious?
The French Ligue 1 will be won by PSG, once again, leaving the likes of Lyon, Lille and Montpellier to battle it out to be crowned best of the rest. OL was beaten 1-0 by Nice on 10 February but they did upset the odds to grab an emphatic win over leaders PSG on 3 February, smashing their way to a 2-1 victory. That was the Parisians first league defeat of the season and was achieved thanks to goals from Dembele and a Fekir penalty. They’ll need all that fight if they are to land a blow on the mighty Barca, but bookmakers don’t expect it. The home win is as big as 4/1, a draw 16/5 with Bet365.
More of the Same
Followers of Barcelona are expecting more of the same as the La Liga leaders line-up against Lyon. They are well quoted in the outright betting market and that’s no surprise after they came through as winners of Group B, showing stats of four wins against two draws. They’ll know the dangers of being held to a level finish by a draw specialist in Lyon; however, that wouldn’t be the worst result for the visitors who would be heavily fancied to get things sorted in the second-leg when back in front of their own fans. That’s something to think about if you’re after a shot at a bigger price.
Barca picked up a couple of draws of their own in La Liga recently when playing out a 1-1 at home to Real Madrid before ending goalless away to Athletic Bilbao. The latter went down as a bit of a shocker and was a result that ruined more than a few accumulators. That leapt off the page; however, it’s not enough to put us off a bet on the away win and although we expect it to be tight, we’re with the Spaniards to deliver. Back Barcelona to bag a first-leg lead at 4/6 with 888Sport. Those after more can take them -1 goal on the handicap at 8/5 (Bet365).
Our Tip: Barcelona to win – 4/6 at 888sport
Atletico Madrid v Juventus
Moving on to Wednesday and we stop in for a visit to Spain where Atletico Madrid face the unenviable task of trying to stop a Juventus side who appear to be firing on all cylinders. The locals are more than holding their own in La Liga and are pushing Barcelona and Real Madrid hard for the major places. A title win is unlikely at this stage; however, second is within their capabilities and they’ll know a strong showing at home will give them half a chance at causing an upset here.
Atletico Madrid finished second in Group A and was unbeaten in their last three, grabbing two wins and a draw. That had them level with winners Borussia Dortmund with goal difference leaving the Germans in charge. Club Brugge was seven points behind in third, applying no pressure in the closing games of the round. Atletico is 17/10 favourites with Unibet with the draw 21/10 with the same firm. There doesn’t look enough value in either to entice us into a bet.
Old Lady Deserves Better
Juventus go into this match as second-favourites; however, we think they deserve better than bookmakers have given them in terms of the pre-match betting. They came out of a star-studded Group H with 12 points on the board and despite losing two of their last three they were deserved champions, finishing two better than Man Utd and four ahead of Valencia in third. Four wins and two defeats mean they travel to Spain confident in their ability to cause an upset.
The visitors have been scoring goals for fun so far this month, bagging three in a draw with Parma before smashing another three past Sassuolo in a win to nil on 10 February. We expect them to set-up a little more defensively here, looking to hit their opponents on the counter and make their chances count when they appear. We really don’t see a good reason why Juventus should be written off by traders and will back them for the upset at 9/5 with Coral. That’ll do a job in your midweek accumulators, but we think it’s best suited to a super single.
Our Tip: Juventus to win – 9/5 at Coral
Schalke v Man City
The last of our top Feb 19-20 Champions League betting tips is for Schalke v Man City. Schalke would’ve hoped the draw would be a little kinder to them; however, it hasn’t gone to plan and they now face Manchester City over two legs. The English side arrives in devastating form in the Premier League but have failed to deliver at this level in the past and that will give the locals a little comfort. Schalke really has to win here and keeping a clean-sheet in the process would be their best chance at sneaking through. Easier said than done.
Despite having home advantage, traders are bold enough to set-up against Schalke and believe they will have nothing to cheer in this match. Oddsmakers are so confident, in fact, they have written the Germans off at 9/1 no-hopers, a price you’ll get at Bet365. The draw is more likely, but only slightly, some firms handing over a decent 5/1. Value hunters may take note, but it’s not a bet for us.
Cityzens Were Rampant
Man City arrive here on the back of a rampant run of form that saw them destroy Chelsea in the Premier League earlier this month. With a close match expected, The Cityzens blitzed their way to a jaw-dropping 6-0 win at the Etihad. That result was achieved thanks to another hat-trick for Aguero, a double for Sterling and goal from Gundogan.
The English champion’s undoing in this competition in the past has been their inability, or unwillingness, to defend properly, preferring all-out attack in their approach. Both teams to score appeals at 19/20 – best price with Bet365 – and that drops into our accumulators. The Man City win is 10/29 at Unibet, but we’ll combine the two. Both teams to score in an away win is our best bet, priced highest at 888Ssport who go 37/20.