After a week that gave us 22 goals across four last-16 ties, next week’s Champions League Round of 16 second legs have a lot to live up to. We saw Chelsea shocked by PSG, Real Madrid nearly dumped out, and Bayern Munich destroy Shakhtar Donetsk 7-0 to breeze through to the quarters. After entertainment like that, here’s hoping that the second batch of games from this round can equal the first in terms of quality.
The potential is certainly there, with two English sides scrapping for their lives in the competition, alongside the last two runners up. There aren’t many sides in action this week that you’d back to win the tournament, but there are four well matched games that could all be great spectacles. Ahead of those ties, here are our previews for each match, including betting tips that we hope will earn you a few quid.
Tuesday 17th March 2015
Monaco v Arsenal (19:45) – Arsenal to win (13/10 with BetVictor)
The first leg gave Arsenal a huge shock, as they underperformed against the principality side, falling to a 3-1 home defeat. This tie looked to have been cherry picked for them, but conceding three goals against a side who scored just four in the group stage hints at either complacency or ineptitude. The Gunners need a huge turnaround to force their way through here, with a minimum of three goals needed to get them through. If their defending is as poor as the first leg, then they will be as good as out here.
Arsene Wenger’s men have had second leg fight-backs in the past, with Arsenal getting a win and a draw at Bayern Munich in the last two years after losing the first leg at home. They should be good enough to win this, but it’s tough to see them being able to force the kind of result than would send them through. After Monaco’s three away goals, the Gunners will be forced to attack. Monaco will likely sit back and defend their lead, and they would probably even accept a close defeat that would see them progress. At such a good price, Arsenal are worth backing to restore some pride, but don’t expect them to progress.
Atletico Madrid v Bayer Leverkusen (19:45) – Atletico -1 (7/4 with Sky Bet)
Atletico Madrid are struggling to match up to last year’s stellar achievements, which many sides would given their La Liga title and Champions League final appearance. Their hopes of making this year’s showpiece took a hit in Germany three weeks ago, as a 1-0 defeat to Bayer Leverkusen put the Bundesliga team in the driving seat going into this second leg. Bayer do have to come through a tough night in Madrid to book a quarter final place, but expect them to make things difficult for Atleti now they have something to protect.
It’s hard to see Bayer coming here looking to emulate what Schalke did across the city at the Bernabeu. They aren’t going to be looking to score three or four, they’ll be hopeful of keeping things tight. Bayer have a good defensive record in this season’s Champions League, but they are yet to come up against a side as good as Atletico on the road. Expect the Spaniards to get the result they need, making the -1 handicap good value. A 2-0 win for Atleti is something else to look at, priced at 13/2 with BetVictor.
Wednesday 18th March 2015
Barcelona v Manchester City (19:45) – Barca -1 (23/20 with Coral)
Wednesday night sees Manchester City looking to overturn a 2-1 defeat at the Nou Camp, but the bookies give them little chance of succeeding. Lionel Messi’s missed penalty late on at the Etihad kept them in the tie, but City’s chances of beating the Spaniards here are remote. They struggled to get the ball at home three weeks ago, so they’re hardly likely to see much of the ball here. Barca are in a fantastic run of form, and they look like they could slice through the Premier League champion’s backline with ease.
City know they need to score at least twice, and the more they concede the tougher it gets for them. Chelsea’s 2012 triumph here is inspiration for them, but the Blues had a lead to protect going into that one. If City go all out to attack, Barca will punish them on the counter, while sitting back won’t do them much good at all. Both sides should attack, making a both teams to score winner likely but poor value. With Barca in incredible form, expect them to record a comfortable victory over City, which will pile pressure on boss Manuel Pellegrini.
Dortmund v Juventus (19:45) – Both teams to score (4/5 with Betfred)
The first leg between these two was a close and entertaining affair, and this game is likely to be the same. Juventus ran out 2-1 winners in the last meeting, giving them the advantage but the Germans have a potentially crucial away goal. Dortmund have soared up the Bundesliga in to mid-table, and this competition will now be their main focus. Given the atmosphere the club generate for these kinds of big games, this meeting with the Italian champions is likely to be a major event.
It’s going to be a close run thing as well, like the first leg. It’s hard to see either side running away with this. Juventus will try to keep it tight, but they have attacking talent that could punish the Dortmund defence. Neither side are incredibly solid at the back, which makes backing both teams to score look like the best choice here. We should see an entertaining game, and it could well end up like the first leg. Dortmund’s experience should help them through, but it wouldn’t be surprising if this goes all the way to extra time. For that to happen, Dortmund would need a 2-1 win, which is priced at 9/1 with BetVictor.