If you don't agree with my picks, I would love to bet against you (up to 30 SCR). Please leave let me know what you think, and we might arrange a deal in the comments section.
The Champions League starts today, and we will have some classic matches, including Liverpool - PSG, Inter - Tottenham, and Monaco - Atletico. Usually, we get to see a lot of goals in the Champions League group stage because teams from different countries have different styles of play and can easily surprise their opponents. That doesn't happen in the Premier League or La Liga where each team knows what to expect from the opponents.
Bookies also make mistakes in the Champion League, and from my experience, it is one of the best tournaments to make bets if we are talking about the highest level football.
Liverpool - PSG
Recommended bet: Liverpool to win @2.05
For people who like to gamble: Liverpool -1.5 handicap @3.7
I don't see PSG as the favorites to win this match. To be honest, I don't expect much from them at all today. Last season, we already saw many times how Liverpool beats attacking teams like PSG in a very beautiful manner.
PSG are missing their key defensive players Kurzawa and Alves. Veratti and Buffon won't be able to play because of red cards. Also, Neymar and Mbappe missed the weekend match against St.Etienne. They will be fit to start today, but I don't expect to see miracles from any of PSG star players. Also, PSG won't give the ball control to Liverpool, and we all know what that means - Liverpool will have a lot of spaces to play their most favorite football based on fast breaks. In my opinion, there is a lot of value to bet against PSG tonight even though their squad is slightly better than Liverpool's.
The only concern is Firmino. If he is not fit for the match, Mane and Salah will have to step up their game. You can wait one hour before the match to see the line-ups first.
Inter - Tottenham
Recommended bet: Tottenham to win @ 2.7
Inter and Tottenham will probably end up fighting for the second spot in their group. I don't believe that any of these teams are capable of stealing the first spot from Barcelona or fail and let PSV finish above them. That is why the first match in Italy will be of extreme importance, and both managers understand that.
At this stage of the year, it would be stupid not to bet on Tottenham against Inter, which looks terrible thus far. Inter already lost two out of four matches in the domestic league. And they did not lose to Napoli or Juventus which would make sense. Instead, Inter decided to lose against Parma and Sassuolo. These are not the teams you are supposed to lose if you have such a powerful squad like Inter. The poor start of the season put Spalletti under a lot of pressure.
Tottenham lost their last two games against Watford and Liverpool. However, the team did not look bad and let's face it; there are not so many teams which are capable of winning against Liverpool this year. Also, I expect Tottenham to play much better in Europe just like the last season. Maybe Eriksen will finally show some signs of life against Inter?
This bet is mainly based on the poor form of the Italian side. Tottenham plays just like I expected them to play and with Son Heung-min finally back to the rotation, I expect the English side to raise their level even more. Alli might not be fit for the match, but that would be great as he is playing awful this season so far so I would prefer to see Son start the match instead of him.
Club Brugge - Dortmund
Recommended bet: Dortmund to win @1.8-2
I'll be honest, I haven't seen much of Club Brugge or Dortmund this year so far, but I have checked their performances and have to say that these are teams of a completely different level. I understand that Club Brugge is playing wonderfully in their domestic league and that is why the odds are so high for Dortmund. We must take it, I guess. Of course, last year Dortmund failed miserably in the Champions League and couldn't even beat Apoel, but I doubt that this poor performance can happen twice in a row. Also, with a new manager, Dortmund looks much more reliable. On top of that, Pulisic should be fit for the match. The US superstar is turning 20, so he will be eager to celebrate his birthday with some goals and a victory.
I can see that Club Brugge scores a lot of goals and plays very attacking football. However, they concede in most of the match as well. I don't think that Brugge fans expect their team to control the ball as they do in their domestic games, but still, Brugge will try to score goals. That's their only chance in this match If you don't trust Dortmund after the last year, you might want to bet on over 2.5-3.5 goals.
This victory is a must for Dortmund if they think about the playoffs. Brugge is without a doubt the weakest team in this group, so anything less than 6 points is a bad result for Atletico, Monaco, and Dortmund.
FK Crvena Zvezda - Napoli
Recommended bet: Napoli to win @1.7
Are you kidding me with these odds? A few days ago we could only get 1.4 for Napoli, but the lines have moved a lot. I don't usually like to bet against the movement, but this time I see a lot of value. The only advantage that Zvezda has is their home stadium and fans. Let's face it, Belgrad must be among the hardest places in the world to play at. The fans are crazy in Serbia, and that is a compliment. However, Crvena Zvezda simply doesn't have enough to offer on the pitch to face a chance against Napoli.
I have watched Crvena Zvezda play against Suduva and Spartaks in the Champions League qualifier, and I was not impressed at all. Of course, Zvezda star players can score and play one on one, but I doubt that Napoli will allow that. There is nothing much to say about this game - Napoli will either adapt to Belgrad's fans and win easily, or Crvena Zvezda players will play twice above their level and pull off an upset. I don't see the latter happening, though, so Napoli to win is one of the best picks for today.
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