The club campaign has picked up with gusto after the international break, and the Champions League gets back under way on Tuesday night. The last eight contains some of Europe’s biggest sides, with an all-English tie to look forward to on Wednesday night. However, just because the Premier League’s two representatives aren’t casting their eyes further afield doesn’t mean that we can’t.
Arguably, Tuesday’s tie between Juventus and Real Madrid is bigger than the English clash on Wednesday. On top of that, both Bayern Munich and Barcelona are heavy favourites to progress through their ties, having been drawn easier games. However, they’re still likely to be tested, given that we’ve hit the business end of the European campaign. Ahead of the four big ties this week, we’ve picked out tips on each quarter final, which you can see below.
Tuesday 3rd April 2018
Juventus v Real Madrid (19:45) – Juventus Draw No Bet (10/11 with Betfair)
Real Madrid ultimately didn’t have any problems against PSG, but was that because they’ve found their feet in Europe and returned to form? They’ve certainly improved from their early season struggles, but the first leg in Madrid showed us a side who have very obvious weaknesses. The French champions managed to control the early stages in Madrid and impress in Paris, but they lacked the guile and experience to make Real pay. The Spanish champions won’t get that lucky this time around, as this Juve side are now regulars at this level.
While this is a repeat of last season’s final, we have to look at more than just that game ahead of this clash. Juventus have been beaten twice in the Champions League final in the last three years, each to the side who had just won the Spanish title. However, along the way on both occasions the Italians did put out the struggling member of La Liga’s big two. With Real struggling and Juve in brilliant shape defensively, we expect them to edge this tie, and as a result we’re backing them to win the first leg on the Draw No Bet market at nice odds of 10/11 with Betfair.
Sevilla v Bayern Munich (19:45) – Both Teams to Score (4/6 with Ladbrokes)
Bayern Munich could well have been lining up against Manchester United in the last eight, but Jose Mourinho’s conservatism allowed Sevilla to secure a spot in the last eight. The Spanish side were rewarded for patience throughout their two legs, but they were only allowed to hang in the game because their defence was barely tested against the Red Devils. With Bayern heading to the south of Spain in excellent form, we expect to see a very different game when these two meet, but just how will Vincenzo Montella’s side respond?
The hosts showed against Liverpool that they’re also capable of playing an end to end game against attacking opponents. Sevilla drew 3-3 at Anfield and 2-2 at home to the Reds, while Bayern did concede in their trip to Besiktas. In fact, the Germans have conceded in every away trip in Europe this term, slipping up at Celtic and Anderlecht in the group. Sevilla have scored in nine of their 10 Champions League ties, with the other the 0-0 with United. As we said, this should be a very different game. As a result we’re backing both teams to score here at 4/6 with Ladbrokes.
Wednesday 4th April 2018
Liverpool v Man City (19:45) – Liverpool Double Chance (3/5 with Bet365)
As far as these two sides go, this is probably the game that least suited each of them. Man City are going up against one of the few teams to have already beaten them this season, while Liverpool host a City side who beat them 5-0 earlier in the campaign and who can boast an 18 point lead over them domestically. Liverpool would have been fearsome opponents against most of the other sides in this competition, but they’re now sharing a platform with an impressive City outfit. This tie does seem evenly balanced, but do the Citizens deserve to be favourites at Anfield?
There’s logic behind putting this City side as the favourites for this clash, but we certainly don’t mind opposing Pep Guardiola’s team here. Liverpool showed that their way of playing can stop City in their tracks, and we expect the Reds to come flying forward as they did in their league meeting. The fact that City recently lost here is huge for this tie, and Guardiola would probably be secretly pleased if his side were level ahead of the Etihad clash. We can see Liverpool getting at least a draw in this opening salvo and they seem like decent value on the double chance market at 3/5 with Bet365.
Barcelona v Roma (19:45) – Barcelona to Win to Nil (23/20 with BetVictor)
Roma are being talked down among the last eight, but that does seem harsh on a side who have been excellent at times in this competition. After all, they topped a group with Chelsea in it, which sent the Blues on a collision course with the Catalans. The Giallorossi showed that they’re a match for Premier League opposition with a 3-3 draw at the Bridge and a 3-0 home win, one of the four home European ties this season in which Roma have kept a clean sheet.
If this clash was close going into the second leg, Roma might have an outside chance. However, we can’t see the Italians getting an away goal in this game to make things difficult for Barca. We expect a mean Barca defence to hold out here, especially as they’ve conceded in just two of their last nine home outings in the Champions League. They have six clean sheets to their name in this season’s competition, while they’ve been really solid at the Nou Camp this term. We’re backing a home win to nil here, which can be backed at 23/20 with BetVictor.