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Champions League betting tips:
- Barcelona to beat Antwerp + BTTS No – evens with bet365
- Feyenoord to beat Celtic + BTTS Yes – 21/10 with BetVictor
- Lazio v Atletico Madrid Under 2.5 Goals – 8/11 with Betfred
- PSG v Borussia Dortmund Over 3.5 Goals – 11/8 with BoyleSports
It’s the opening week of the 2023/24 Champions League group phase and all eyes are on Manchester City as they begin the defence of their European crown.
Pep Guardiola’s side couldn’t have asked for an easier group opener against Red Star Belgrade, but with football betting sites rating City 1/16 for a win we’re overlooking the tournament favourites on this occasion.
We’ve identified alternative picks for fixtures involving some of the other big names including Barcelona, Atletico Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain.
You can follow our advice by betting singles or a Champions League accumulator bet, whereby the odds for each selection multiply together.
Barcelona to beat Antwerp + BTTS NO
There’s little doubt that Barcelona will open their Group H account with a victory at Camp Nou on Tuesday evening, although Xavi’s team are trading at a prohibitively short price (1/6) to claim three points against Antwerp.
We’re instead going to back the Blaugrana to claim a victory without conceding at longer odds.
Although key players might be rested for Barca, we’re confident the Spanish champions can claim a comfortable win, having thrashed Real Betis 5-0 on Saturday.
They limited their opponents to two shots on target on that occasion, having beaten Cadiz 2-0 in their previous home clash where the visitors registered just one attempt on target.
Antwerp overcame the challenge of AEK Athens in the preliminary round to earn their place in the group stage and the Belgian side were in good form to beat Westerio 3-0 on Friday night.
However, this is a big jump up against a team who had the likes of Ilkay Gundogan, Raphinha and Sergi Roberto on the bench at the weekend.
Tip: Barcelona to beat Antwerp + BTTS No – evens with bet365
Feyenoord to beat Celtic + BTTS Yes
Feyenoord were the champions of the Eredivisie last season and Arne Slot’s side have hit their stride once again in recent weeks.
De Stadionclub thrashed Heerenveen 6-1 on Saturday and that came after putting FC Utrecht to the sword by a 5-1 scoreline before the international break.
The Dutch side have now scored an incredible 17 goals in their past three matches, with Mexican forward Santiago Gimenez looking sharp.
It’s hard to see how Celtic are going to stop such a vibrant attacking team who are 8/13 to beat the Scottish champions according to UK bookmakers.
However, we think that Brendan Rodgers’ side are capable of finding the net considering that Feyenoord have conceded in their past four Eredivisie clashes.
They are not defensively watertight and will clash with a Hoops side who have registered 11 goals in their first five SPL games to predictably lead the way.
Tip: Feyenoord to beat Celtic + BTTS Yes – 21/10 with BetVictor
Lazio vs Atletico Madrid Under 2.5 Goals
We expect a cagey encounter at the Stadio Olimpico on Tuesday night with both teams fancied to qualify from Group E and reach the last 16 stage.
A low-scoring draw could well be on the cards considering a point apiece would suit both teams before future clashes against Feyenoord and Celtic.
Atletico Madrid are renowned for playing out low-scoring clashes in Europe and they registered a goalless draw at Real Betis earlier this season.
They then freakishly scored seven goals away to Rayo Vallecano before failing to net in a recent 3-0 reversal at Valencia.
Expect Diego Simeone’s side to be defensively resolute against a Lazio side who have endured a slow start to their Serie A campaign.
They’ve only played one game at home thus far and that was a 1-0 reverse against Genoa, with Maurizio Sarri recently seeing his team dominate possession at Juventus before losing 3-1.
The bookies make under 2.5 goals odds-on here and there are key indicators suggesting that a low-scoring clash is likely.
Tip: Lazio v Atletico Madrid Under 2.5 Goals – 8/11 with Betfred
PSG vs Borussia Dortmund Over 3.5 Goals
If you want Tuesday night Champions League entertainment, you could do worse than tuning in to the action at Parc des Princes.
We’re looking forward to two entertaining sides squaring off and goals could be on the menu when you consider some of the recent scorelines involving Paris Saint-Germain and Borussia Dortmund.
PSG have made a relatively poor start to their Ligue 1 title defence and suffered a 3-2 weekend home reverse against Nice.
After 3-1 and 4-1 wins over Lens and Lyon respectively, there have now been three consecutive clashes where we’ve seen at least four goals scored in their games.
Similarly, Dortmund played out a recent 2-2 draw with Heidenheim before claiming a 4-2 victory at Freiburg on Saturday.
Donyell Malen has now scored four goals this season, while that man Kylian Mbappe is enjoying himself in front of goal and looks set to improve on his current tally of seven.
Tip: PSG v Borussia Dortmund Over 3.5 Goals – 11/8 with BoyleSports
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Last Updated: 14th March 2024, 07:22 AM
