UEFA Champions League Betting Tips (17th - 19th September)
Bayern Munich, Sporting Lisbon, Shakhtar Donetsk, Celtic & Bayer Leverkusen to win - 15.8/1
The revamped UEFA Champions League kicks off this week with the first round of league phase fixtures taking place. No fewer than 18 matches are scheduled between Tuesday and Thursday with all of European football’s big hitters in action. Here at betting.bet we’ve cast our eye over the first round of matches and hand-picked some solid betting options. As well as match insights and betting tips you’ll find the latest Champions League betting odds from our partners at Ladbrokes.
Champions League Acca Odds - 15.8/1
- Bayern Munich to win (1/9)
- Sporting Lisbon to win (1/2)
- Shakhtar Donetsk to win (16/5)
- Celtic to win (1/3)
- Bayer Leverkusen (4/5)
Bayern Munich v Dinamo Zagreb
Bayern Munich to win - 1/9
The first team on our list will not come as a huge surprise as we tip German giants Bayern Munich to win at home against Dinamo Zagreb. This season’s Champions League final will be staged at Bayern’s Allianz Arena which serves as extra motivation for the six-time European champions to go all the way. Vincent Kompany is the new man in charge at Bayern Munich and he has started life in Germany with three wins out of three in the Bundesliga.
Dinamo Zagreb had started their own domestic season in similarly impressive fashion as they won each of their first four league games. However, they have since slumped to third in the table with just one point from their last two matches. A home defeat to fierce rivals Hajduk Split at the weekend was a real blow to the reigning Croatian champions and they’re set for a long night in Germany on Tuesday.
Harry Kane netted a hat-trick last weekend and has already chalked up 4 goals in 3 league games this season. The England captain will be amongst the favourites for the Golden Boot and should be considered at 4/11 to score against Dinamo Zagreb on Tuesday evening.
Sporting Lisbon v Lille
Sporting Lisbon to win - 1/2
Sporting Lisbon have made a superb start to the season, racing to the top of the Primeira Liga table with five wins in five matches. Ruben Amorim’s side have scored 19 goals in those five league games, conceding just twice and have kept three successive clean sheets, most notable when winning 2-0 at home to major rivals Porto just over two weeks ago. Sporting’s home form is particularly impressive, losing just once at the Estadio Jose Alvalade since the beginning of last season. On Tuesday they host a Lille side that have lost three straight matches in all competitions, including the second leg of their Champions League play-off tie against Slavia Prague and back-to-back matches in Ligue 1 against Paris Saint-Germain and Saint-Etienne.
Swedish international Viktor Gyokeres has started the season in red-hot form, netting eight times in five league games already. At 17/20, Gyokeres will prove extremely popular in the anytime scorer market on Tuesday.
Bologna v Shakhtar Donetsk
Shakhtar Donetsk to win - 16/5
Bologna were the surprise package in Serie A last season, qualifying for the Champions League for the first time in their history but they endured a series of high-profile departures in the summer. Vincenzo Italiano is the new man in charge at Bologna following Thiago Motta’s switch to Juventus whilst on the pitch they have lost Joshua Zirkzee, Riccardo Calafiori and Marco Arnautovic to Manchester United, Arsenal and Inter Milan respectively. In the absence of Motta and many of last season’s stars, Bologna find themselves languishing in 17th in Serie A, winless in their first four matches.
Whilst a home tie against Shakhtar Donetsk is not the most difficult fixture they could have faced this week, we are backing the Ukrainians to upset their Italian hosts on Wednesday. Shakhtar warmed up for Wednesday’s trip to the Stadio Renato Dall’Ara with a convincing 5-2 league win against Karpaty Lviv.
Celtic v Slovan Bratislava
Celtic to win - 1/3
Celtic have flown out of the blocks this season, winning all five of their Scottish Premiership matches without conceding a single goal. That run of wins is all the more impressive when you consider that they have already played each of the other four sides that made up last season’s top five in the SPL.
The reigning champions of Scotland have dominated Scottish football in recent seasons yet their recent European record is poor. However with that ferocious Celtic Park crowd behind them they always have a chance and their opening match against Slovan Bratislava is probably their most winnable game across their eight league phase fixtures. Slovan Bratislava have made a solid start to their domestic season and currently top the Slovak First Football League however they were on the receiving end of a convincing 5-0 defeat at home to MSK Zilina just two weeks ago.
Feyenoord v Bayer Leverkusen
Bayer Leverkusen to win - 4/5
Life after Arne Slot has not gone too well so far this season for Feyenoord as new boss Brian Priske has won just one of his first four Eredivisie matches in charge. Having lost two key defensive components in Mats Wieffer and Lutsharel Geertruida during the summer, Feyenoord are yet to register a single clean sheet in the league this season and we’re expecting Bayer Leverkusen’s dynamic forward line to exploit this obvious weakness on Thursday evening.
Bayer Leverkusen were one of the major success stories in Europe last season as they remained unbeaten domestically to claim a first ever Bundlesiga / DFB-Pokal double. The German champions have already lost to RB Leipzig in the Bundesliga this season to end their long-running unbeaten domestic run however they have won the other two of their three league games so far and are expecting another big season under boss Xabi Alonso. Ironically it is probably Alonso’s decision to snub Liverpool in favour of remaining at Bayer Leverkusen that saw Arne Slot depart Feyenoord for Anfield.
-
Ladbrokes
Get 4 x £5 free bets when you register and bet £5. That's 4x your initial bet!
18+ New UK+IRE Customers only. Certain deposit methods & bet types excl. Min first £5 bet within 14 days of account reg at min odds 1/2 to get 4x £5 free bets. Free bets available to use on selected sportsbook markets only. Free bets valid for 7 days, stake not returned. Restrictions + T&Cs apply.
-
Interbet
Deposit a tenner and get a £10 free bet to use on any market. Simple!
New Players Only. Min £10 qualifying bets stake not returned. Free bet - one-time stake of £10, min odds 1.5, stake not returned. 1X wager the winnings. Wager from real balance first. Wager calculated on bonus bets only. Max conversion: £200. Valid for 7 Days from issue. Withdrawal requests void all active/pending bonuses. Excluded Skrill and Neteller deposits.