UEFA Champions League > 14 September

[Mustafa]

	Wednesday 14 September 2011	Home	Draw	Away	BPP
	Ajax v Olympique Lyonnais (19:45 BST)	2.42	3.45	3.2	101.56 %
	Benfica v Manchester United (19:45 BST)	4	3.5	2.11	100.96 %
	Dinamo Zagreb v Real Madrid (19:45 BST)	13	6	1.3	101.28 %
	FC Basel v Otelul Galati (19:45 BST)	1.63	4.06	6.14	102.01 %
	Internazionale v Trabzonspor (19:45 BST)	1.42	4.9	10	100.82 %
	Lille OSC v CSKA Moscow (19:45 BST)	2.21	3.4	3.76	101.26 %
	Manchester City v Napoli (19:45 BST)	1.45	4.75	9.5	100.54 %
	Villarreal v FC Bayern München (19:45 BST)	3.24	3.42	2.4	101.77 %

[Kiddo112]

Re: UEFA Champions League > 14 September One that caught my eye is in the Real Madrid game. William Hill are a standout 1.3 on Madrid to win. They have started the season in fine form, really testing Barca in the Super Cup, losing to a late goal at the Camp Nou. They did manage to score twice in both legs, and could of had more in the 2-2 draw in Madrid. Here they forced 9 corners (to Barca's 2) and 12 goal attempts. At Camp Nou they had an impressive 16 goal attempts. This against the best side on the planet. They followed this up with a 6-0 romp at Real Zaragoza in their only league game to date, a game in which they had 64% possesion, a whopping 33 goal attempts, 16 of which were on target. It is clear that Mourino understands that to have any chance of toppling Barca, they need to start the season at full tilt. I think what often happens in the CL is that when the big clubs play away from home to one of the lesser teams, the excitement and euphoria of just geing there can overcome the home team and they go too gung-ho in thier home games. This is especially true in the early group games, where "the dream is still alive" for the leser teams. And as a result, they get picked off nearly at will by the better quality of the bigger teams. Given the players Madrid possess, I think there is a strong likelyhood of this scenario playing out here. Bookies are generally going 1.36 on Madrid to net twice, and 2.00 on them getting 3 or more. However there maybe be some value in the "Race to x goals" market with William Hill. Here they are 1.44 to win the race to 2 goals, and 2.375 in the race to 3 goals. I think the better prices more than offset the risk of Zagreb notching 2 or 3 before Madrid. Be interested to get any views on this, particularly any from a Zagreb point of view.

[Mustafa]

Re: UEFA Champions League > 14 September

One that caught my eye is in the Real Madrid game. William Hill are a standout 1.3 on Madrid to win. They have started the season in fine form, really testing Barca in the Super Cup, losing to a late goal at the Camp Nou. They did manage to score twice in both legs, and could of had more in the 2-2 draw in Madrid. Here they forced 9 corners (to Barca's 2) and 12 goal attempts. At Camp Nou they had an impressive 16 goal attempts. This against the best side on the planet. They followed this up with a 6-0 romp at Real Zaragoza in their only league game to date, a game in which they had 64% possesion, a whopping 33 goal attempts, 16 of which were on target. It is clear that Mourino understands that to have any chance of toppling Barca, they need to start the season at full tilt. I think what often happens in the CL is that when the big clubs play away from home to one of the lesser teams, the excitement and euphoria of just geing there can overcome the home team and they go too gung-ho in thier home games. This is especially true in the early group games, where "the dream is still alive" for the leser teams. And as a result, they get picked off nearly at will by the better quality of the bigger teams. Given the players Madrid possess, I think there is a strong likelyhood of this scenario playing out here. Bookies are generally going 1.36 on Madrid to net twice, and 2.00 on them getting 3 or more. However there maybe be some value in the "Race to x goals" market with William Hill. Here they are 1.44 to win the race to 2 goals, and 2.375 in the race to 3 goals. I think the better prices more than offset the risk of Zagreb notching 2 or 3 before Madrid. Be interested to get any views on this, particularly any from a Zagreb point of view.

I think you are underestimating Zagreb here. They are quite strong at home and I don't think Real Madrid will have an easy game here. I can see Dinamo getting something from this game or at most losing buy just 1 goal.

[Kiddo112]

Re: UEFA Champions League > 14 September You say quite strong at home Mustafa, but at what level? In the CL, they have been eliminated in the 4 previous years by: 07 - Werder Bremen 5-3 on Agg (losing 2-3 at home) 08 - Shaktar Donetsk 5-1 on Agg (losing 1-3 at home) 09 - Red Bull Salzburg 3-2 on Agg (losing 1-2 at home) 10 - FC Sheriff 2-2 on Agg lost on penalties (drawing 1-1 at home) True they stuffed Malmo 4-1 at home in the previous round, but how many levels difference is there between Malmo & Madrid? And while Werder Bremen and Shaktar can be considered established European teams, Red Bull Salzburg and FC Sheriff (of Moldova) can not. Are we saying that they have improved massively in the last season or two? The UEFA co-efficients suggest that this is not the case:

#	country	07/08	08/09	09/10	10/11	11/12	ranking	teams
1	England	17.875	15.000	17.928	18.357	3.875	73.035	8/ 8
2	Spain	13.875	13.312	17.928	18.214	3.142	66.471	6/ 7
3	Germany	13.500	12.687	18.083	15.666	2.916	62.852	5/ 6
4	Italy	10.250	11.375	15.428	11.571	2.214	50.838	5/ 7
5	France	6.928	11.000	15.000	10.750	3.333	47.011	5/ 6
6	Portugal	7.928	6.785	10.000	18.800	3.000	46.513	4/ 6
7	Russia	11.250	9.750	6.166	10.916	2.416	40.498	4/ 6
8	Ukraine	4.875	16.625	5.800	10.083	2.750	40.133	4/ 6
9	Netherlands	5.000	6.333	9.416	11.166	2.600	34.515	4/ 5
10	Greece	7.500	6.500	7.900	7.600	2.800	32.300	3/ 5
11	Turkey	9.750	7.000	7.600	4.600	2.625	31.575	2/ 4
12	Denmark	5.125	8.200	4.400	6.700	1.700	26.125	2/ 5
13	Belgium	4.500	4.500	8.700	4.600	2.900	25.200	4/ 5
14	Switzerland	6.250	2.900	5.750	5.900	2.200	23.000	2/ 5
15	Austria	3.200	2.250	9.375	4.375	3.375	22.575	3/ 4
16	Cyprus	2.666	6.333	4.250	3.125	4.375	20.749	2/ 4
17	Scotland	10.250	1.875	2.666	3.600	1.500	19.891	1/ 4
18	Israel	2.375	1.750	7.250	4.625	3.250	19.250	3/ 4
19	Czech Republic	5.125	2.375	4.100	3.500	4.000	19.100	1/ 4
20	Croatia	3.666	4.333	3.000	4.125	3.750	18.874	1/ 4

[Mustafa]

Re: UEFA Champions League > 14 September Thanks for the info Kiddo112. Somehow I don't think Real will destroy Zagreb and win by 1 or 2 goals, so taking Zagreb +2 AH @ 1.70 might be a good option.

[MPLouis]

Re: UEFA Champions League > 14 September

One that caught my eye is in the Real Madrid game. William Hill are a standout 1.3 on Madrid to win. They have started the season in fine form, really testing Barca in the Super Cup, losing to a late goal at the Camp Nou. They did manage to score twice in both legs, and could of had more in the 2-2 draw in Madrid. Here they forced 9 corners (to Barca's 2) and 12 goal attempts. At Camp Nou they had an impressive 16 goal attempts. This against the best side on the planet. They followed this up with a 6-0 romp at Real Zaragoza in their only league game to date, a game in which they had 64% possesion, a whopping 33 goal attempts, 16 of which were on target. It is clear that Mourino understands that to have any chance of toppling Barca, they need to start the season at full tilt. I think what often happens in the CL is that when the big clubs play away from home to one of the lesser teams, the excitement and euphoria of just geing there can overcome the home team and they go too gung-ho in thier home games. This is especially true in the early group games, where "the dream is still alive" for the leser teams. And as a result, they get picked off nearly at will by the better quality of the bigger teams. Given the players Madrid possess, I think there is a strong likelyhood of this scenario playing out here. Bookies are generally going 1.36 on Madrid to net twice, and 2.00 on them getting 3 or more. However there maybe be some value in the "Race to x goals" market with William Hill. Here they are 1.44 to win the race to 2 goals, and 2.375 in the race to 3 goals. I think the better prices more than offset the risk of Zagreb notching 2 or 3 before Madrid. Be interested to get any views on this, particularly any from a Zagreb point of view.

I suppose if Real Madrid score fairly early, the path is open to the to score a lot more with their attacking ability on the counter. There is a realistic possibility of a high Madrid score I suppose ...

[MPLouis]

Re: UEFA Champions League > 14 September OK, just for fun I've had a look at Real Madrid's last 10 away games in the Champions League (most recent first) - http://www.soccerway.com/teams/spain/real-madrid-club-de-futbol/ Barcelona 1 Real 1 Spurs 0 Real 1 Lyon 1 Real 1 Ajax 0 Real 4 Milan 2 Real 2 Auxerre 0 Real 1 Lyon 1 Real 0 Marseille 1 Real 3 Milan 1 Real 1 Zurich 2 Real 5 Won 5 Drawn 4 Lost 1 Goals scored 19 Goals conceded 9

[Kiddo112]

Re: UEFA Champions League > 14 September Thanks MPLouis. I had actually considered this myself, and believe it is possible to strip out some of these games based on the level of opposition, and also the stage of the competition they were played at. So if we were to exclude knockout stages, given the quality of the opposition is higher, and that the circumstances of the tie could alter the approach of Madrid, then we are left with: 10/11 Ajax 0 Real 4 Milan 2 Real 2 Auxerre 0 Real 1 09/10 Marseille 1 Real 3 Milan 1 Real 1 Zurich 2 Real 5 Won 4 Drawn 2 Lost 0 Goals scored 16 Goals conceded 6 So in both seasons, the only games they didn't win were away at Milan, who on both occasions qualified from the group along with Madrid. Again this points to the quality of the opposition. Also, only once, against Auxerre, did they win but not score twice. A lot of what I am looking at is whether there is better value in them in the goals market that in the 90 mins market. Their match odds are 1.25-1.3. Would you rather take that, than 1.44 on them to score twice (assuming Zagreb don't net twice first of course). Furthermore, if you look at Madrid's away record in La Liga, they have won 7 on the trot. Their goal return in that run is 3, 2, 3, 6, 6, 3, 6. So an overage of +4 goals a game. That includes visits to the likes of Valencia, Seville and Villareal. Or if we consider goals vs a handicap bet. The 2.375 on them to "win the race" to 3 goals, vs the 1.675 on them on a -1.5AH market.................

[Mustafa]

Re: UEFA Champions League > 14 September Villarreal - B.Munich B.Munich has a bad record away against Spanish team. They last win in Spain was 10 years ago against Real Madrid. Villarreal won their last 9 home games in Europe so I will back them not to lose here. Man.City - Napoli Both teams don't have Champions League experience, but Man.City has a much stronger squad than Napoli, plus the citizens have already played 4 competitive games, winning the last 3. For Napoli it will be the first competitive game this season and I don't see them getting anything against in form Man.City. Villarreal +1 & Man.City @ 2.08 (3 units) Ladbrokes

[Kiddo112]

Re: UEFA Champions League > 14 September

One that caught my eye is in the Real Madrid game. William Hill are a standout 1.3 on Madrid to win. They have started the season in fine form, really testing Barca in the Super Cup, losing to a late goal at the Camp Nou. They did manage to score twice in both legs, and could of had more in the 2-2 draw in Madrid. Here they forced 9 corners (to Barca's 2) and 12 goal attempts. At Camp Nou they had an impressive 16 goal attempts. This against the best side on the planet. They followed this up with a 6-0 romp at Real Zaragoza in their only league game to date, a game in which they had 64% possesion, a whopping 33 goal attempts, 16 of which were on target. It is clear that Mourino understands that to have any chance of toppling Barca, they need to start the season at full tilt. I think what often happens in the CL is that when the big clubs play away from home to one of the lesser teams, the excitement and euphoria of just geing there can overcome the home team and they go too gung-ho in thier home games. This is especially true in the early group games, where "the dream is still alive" for the leser teams. And as a result, they get picked off nearly at will by the better quality of the bigger teams. Given the players Madrid possess, I think there is a strong likelyhood of this scenario playing out here. Bookies are generally going 1.36 on Madrid to net twice, and 2.00 on them getting 3 or more. However there maybe be some value in the "Race to x goals" market with William Hill. Here they are 1.44 to win the race to 2 goals, and 2.375 in the race to 3 goals. I think the better prices more than offset the risk of Zagreb notching 2 or 3 before Madrid. Be interested to get any views on this, particularly any from a Zagreb point of view.

Well looks like someone agrees with this anyway, as the "Race to 2 goals" is now 1.33 from 1.44, and the "Race to 3 goals" is 1.95 from 2.375. :( For the record I have taken these bets for small-medium stakes prior to posting, but was hoping for some more info before going back in with higher stakes. Won't be playing again now the prices have dropped.

[matdusud]

Re: UEFA Champions League > 14 September Ajax-Lyon pick ajax-0.25 ladbrokes 2.14 I dont trust in lyon depsite of their CL spirit, their defense is still bad cris getting injured every month and getting old now, mensah doubtfull, Koné is coming from 2nd division and still has to prove. they didnt get a skipper after toulalan departure, their best striker lisandro lopez is out for this game, they sold pjanic who brought creativity to the team at the beginning of the season and gourcuff hasnt played for months , i cant see ajax losing this one in those conditions and taking ajax above 2 with a half draw cover looks good enough to me :hope

[Plavi24]

Re: UEFA Champions League > 14 September

You say quite strong at home Mustafa, but at what level? In the CL, they have been eliminated in the 4 previous years by: 07 - Werder Bremen 5-3 on Agg (losing 2-3 at home) 08 - Shaktar Donetsk 5-1 on Agg (losing 1-3 at home) 09 - Red Bull Salzburg 3-2 on Agg (losing 1-2 at home) 10 - FC Sheriff 2-2 on Agg lost on penalties (drawing 1-1 at home) True they stuffed Malmo 4-1 at home in the previous round, but how many levels difference is there between Malmo & Madrid? And while Werder Bremen and Shaktar can be considered established European teams, Red Bull Salzburg and FC Sheriff (of Moldova) can not. Are we saying that they have improved massively in the last season or two? The UEFA co-efficients suggest that this is not the case:

#	country	07/08	08/09	09/10	10/11	11/12	ranking	teams
1	England	17.875	15.000	17.928	18.357	3.875	73.035	8/ 8
2	Spain	13.875	13.312	17.928	18.214	3.142	66.471	6/ 7
3	Germany	13.500	12.687	18.083	15.666	2.916	62.852	5/ 6
4	Italy	10.250	11.375	15.428	11.571	2.214	50.838	5/ 7
5	France	6.928	11.000	15.000	10.750	3.333	47.011	5/ 6
6	Portugal	7.928	6.785	10.000	18.800	3.000	46.513	4/ 6
7	Russia	11.250	9.750	6.166	10.916	2.416	40.498	4/ 6
8	Ukraine	4.875	16.625	5.800	10.083	2.750	40.133	4/ 6
9	Netherlands	5.000	6.333	9.416	11.166	2.600	34.515	4/ 5
10	Greece	7.500	6.500	7.900	7.600	2.800	32.300	3/ 5
11	Turkey	9.750	7.000	7.600	4.600	2.625	31.575	2/ 4
12	Denmark	5.125	8.200	4.400	6.700	1.700	26.125	2/ 5
13	Belgium	4.500	4.500	8.700	4.600	2.900	25.200	4/ 5
14	Switzerland	6.250	2.900	5.750	5.900	2.200	23.000	2/ 5
15	Austria	3.200	2.250	9.375	4.375	3.375	22.575	3/ 4
16	Cyprus	2.666	6.333	4.250	3.125	4.375	20.749	2/ 4
17	Scotland	10.250	1.875	2.666	3.600	1.500	19.891	1/ 4
18	Israel	2.375	1.750	7.250	4.625	3.250	19.250	3/ 4
19	Czech Republic	5.125	2.375	4.100	3.500	4.000	19.100	1/ 4
20	Croatia	3.666	4.333	3.000	4.125	3.750	18.874	1/ 4

The answer is yes.But to put this table as some kind of an argument is beyond ridiculous.You obviously know nothing about Dinamo Zagreb,so please don't put ridiculous "arguments" like this.May I also add that Croatia is one of the rare countries whose country coefficient is actually made by a single team alone,because the rest of the Croatian teams bring almost nothing to this coefficient.Dinamo is a much stronger team than few years ago.Nevertheless,Real Madrid is one of the top 3 strongest teams in the world,your bet is right and I think Real will win this game by 2,3 goals difference,but don't analyze what you don't know,this game mostly depends on Real Madrid so stick with that.

[croato]

Re: UEFA Champions League > 14 September I think the best option in Dinamo-Real Madrid match is that Dinamo is not going to score and I am pretty confident in that bet. Probably Dinamo"s coach Jurčić is going to try with "controled" football and not have more than two chances to score on the match.

[Plavi24]

Re: UEFA Champions League > 14 September

I think the best option in Dinamo-Real Madrid match is that Dinamo is not going to score and I am pretty confident in that bet. Probably Dinamo"s coach Jurčić is going to try with "controled" football and not have more than two chances to score on the match.

Yeah,the formation should be very defensive,don't think we'll score,and that's @1.86 currently on Betfair.Something I would've considered,but I dont bet against my club,hoping maybe we score from some counter attack or free kick;)

[croato]

Re: UEFA Champions League > 14 September we? sorry mate, I am Hajduk Split fan...;)

[Plavi24]

Re: UEFA Champions League > 14 September

we? sorry mate' date=' I am Hajduk Split fan...;)[/quote'] I use "we" whenever I speak about Dinamo,doesnt matter with who,surely you do for your club as well.:pSorry for the off topic mods.

[Kiddo112]

Re: UEFA Champions League > 14 September

The answer is yes.But to put this table as some kind of an argument is beyond ridiculous.You obviously know nothing about Dinamo Zagreb' date='so please don't put ridiculous "arguments" like this.May I also add that Croatia is one of the rare countries whose country coefficient is actually made by a single team alone,because the rest of the Croatian teams bring almost nothing to this coefficient.Dinamo is a much stronger team than few years ago.Nevertheless,Real Madrid is one of the top 3 strongest teams in the world,your bet is right and I think Real will win this game by 2,3 goals difference,but don't analyze what you don't know,this game mostly depends on Real Madrid so stick with that.[/quote'] Cheers mate, thanks for this. This is what PL is all about, getting different opinions, sharing info and discussing games in general. I freely admit I know very little about Dynamo, that's the main reason I posted originally. The fact that the Croatian co-efficient relies so heavily on Dynamo is not something I had even considered. Really the co-efficient was only one of the things I looked at, and posted it more to encourage opinion than to say it was the holy grail!! :ok

[sertinho85]

Re: UEFA Champions League > 14 September

I think you are underestimating Zagreb here. They are quite strong at home and I don't think Real Madrid will have an easy game here. I can see Dinamo getting something from this game or at most losing buy just 1 goal.

Thanks for the info Kiddo112. Somehow I don't think Real will destroy Zagreb and win by 1 or 2 goals' date=' so taking [b']Zagreb +2 AH @ 1.70 might be a good option.

Dont get me wrong, im not trying to trash your opinion Mustafa, im Dinamo fan, but i almost fell of my chair laughing when i red these two :rollin Yes Dinamo stuffed Malmo 4-1 at home in probably the best game they played in the last 10 years, and they wouldnt be playing like that again any time soon. Those who saw the second game at Malmo, which Dinamo lost 0:2, know if that game was going on for two more minutes Dinamo would be kissing CL goodbye because they didnt show anything from the first game and only one they can thank for going to CL is their Goalkeeper :clap who was able to save incredible things that day. So, feel free to put Real Madrid -1.5 AH @ 1.67 or -2 AH @ 2.10 its a sure bet. :ok I only pray they dont loose by 5 or more goals :unsure btw im still laughing at this one :rollin

I can see Dinamo getting something from this game or at most losing buy just 1 goal.

[Mustafa]

Re: UEFA Champions League > 14 September

Dont get me wrong, im not trying to trash your opinion Mustafa, im Dinamo fan, but i almost fell of my chair laughing when i red these two :rollin Yes Dinamo stuffed Malmo 4-1 at home in probably the best game they played in the last 10 years, and they wouldnt be playing like that again any time soon. Those who saw the second game at Malmo, which Dinamo lost 0:2, know if that game was going on for two more minutes Dinamo would be kissing CL goodbye because they didnt show anything from the first game and only one they can thank for going to CL is their Goalkeeper :clap who was able to save incredible things that day. So, feel free to put Real Madrid -1.5 AH @ 1.67 or -2 AH @ 2.10 its a sure bet. :ok I only pray they dont loose by 5 or more goals :unsure btw im still laughing at this one :rollin

I won't be betting on this game because I really don't have as much information about Dinamo as you do. Just want you to know that there is no such thing as "sure bet" otherwise we all were rich. For example yesterday Barcelona were @ 1.16 to beat Real Sociedad and I guess you would have called it a sure bet. However, Barce were winning 2-0 at half time, but the game ended 2-2.

[AHughes]

Re: UEFA Champions League > 14 September Ajax v Olympique Lyon - Over 2.5 Goals SkyBet 2.00 Both free scoring sides at the moment. Ajax have scored 18 goals in 5 games in the Eredivisie, Lyon have scored 9 - 2nd most in Ligue 1. Neither side has collected a clean sheet this season either which gives me more belief in this bet.

[AHughes]

Re: UEFA Champions League > 14 September Lille v CSKA Moscow - Lille to Win 2.15 StanJames CSKA are on a poor run of form. They have only won 1 out of their last 5 fixtures, and a heavy defeat on saturday to Dinamo Moscow at home says a lot about team morale at the moment. Lille are on the other end of the scale, they have come of the back of a 3-1 win over St Etienne where Eden Hazard ran the show. Even Joe Cole had a good input on the game- Check out his run for the 3rd goal. I think Lille are a lot more confident at the moment and should beat CSKA without too many problems.

[sertinho85]

Re: UEFA Champions League > 14 September

For example yesterday Barcelona were @ 1.16 to beat Real Sociedad and I guess you would have called it a sure bet. However, Barce were winning 2-0 at half time, but the game ended 2-2.

hahahaha you got me there :ok No matter what, Real beating Dinamo is surer bet than Barcelona beating Sociedad. And just like Plavi24 said, it all depends on Real Madrid. If they play the way they do Dinamo has nothing to look for in that game, on the other hand, if Real plays like Barcelona played yesterday anything is possible. I just cant see that happening.

[Mustafa]

Re: UEFA Champions League > 14 September

hahahaha you got me there :ok No matter what, Real beating Dinamo is surer bet than Barcelona beating Sociedad. And just like Plavi24 said, it all depends on Real Madrid. If they play the way they do Dinamo has nothing to look for in that game, on the other hand, if Real plays like Barcelona played yesterday anything is possible. I just cant see that happening.

Little bit off topic, but will say it. If you keep picking short priced favorites at least 1 selection will screw your betslip. Stick to singles or doubles.

[Lodge]

Re: UEFA Champions League > 14 September I cant see any value in backing madrid unless your brave enough to go on the handicap. Man Utd to win against Benfica appeals to me more currently @ 10/11 (Bet365) and even if you wanted a safer bet you can get them (+0.25 AH) @ 1.3 - the same price as real madrid just to win! Yes Benfica are a far more dangerous side than Dinamo will be, but just from looking at last years CL results. There record in the group stage wasnt great, w2-l4 in a fairly easy group. Lets not forget Man Utd are red hot right now too, they've scored 21 goals in 5 competetive games so far this season, and i think Benfica's defence will do very well to prevent Utd from scoring with the likes of Rooney, Young and Hernandez playing extremely well. I will be taking Utd -0.5 @ 1.95 (Bet365) - 3/10 stakes :hope

[sertinho85]

Re: UEFA Champions League > 14 September

Little bit off topic' date=' but will say it. If you keep picking short priced favorites at least 1 selection will screw your betslip. Stick to singles or doubles.[/quote'] i usually put 2-3 pairs. this one was if it goes goes if not not :\

[sertinho85]

Re: UEFA Champions League > 14 September

I cant see any value in backing madrid unless your brave enough to go on the handicap. Man Utd to win against Benfica appeals to me more currently @ 10/11 (Bet365) and even if you wanted a safer bet you can get them (+0.25 AH) @ 1.3 - the same price as real madrid just to win! Yes Benfica are a far more dangerous side than Dinamo will be, but just from looking at last years CL results. There record in the group stage wasnt great, w2-l4 in a fairly easy group. Lets not forget Man Utd are red hot right now too, they've scored 21 goals in 5 competetive games so far this season, and i think Benfica's defence will do very well to prevent Utd from scoring with the likes of Rooney, Young and Hernandez playing extremely well. I will be taking Utd -0.5 @ 1.95 (Bet365) - 3/10 stakes :hope

i agree, Man Utd is, next to Barcelona and Real, the best team in the world nowdays and picking Man Utd win over handicap on Real would seem safer bet :ok btw. i red somewhere that Alex Ferguson is starting that game with old school and keeping those young players on the bench i just cant remember where i red it :wall

[Charles Drawin]

Re: UEFA Champions League > 14 September

Lille v CSKA Moscow - Lille to Win 2.15 StanJames CSKA are on a poor run of form. They have only won 1 out of their last 5 fixtures, and a heavy defeat on saturday to Dinamo Moscow at home says a lot about team morale at the moment. Lille are on the other end of the scale, they have come of the back of a 3-1 win over St Etienne where Eden Hazard ran the show. Even Joe Cole had a good input on the game- Check out his run for the 3rd goal. I think Lille are a lot more confident at the moment and should beat CSKA without too many problems.

I'm not in agreement with your reading of CSKA's current form. They've lost two of their last five, against Zenit who they currently share top spot with after having played 23 games and third placed Dinamo at the weekend. It's odd that both Zenit and CSKA both lost at the weekend. Zenit hadn't been defeated for 13 matches. Maybe both teams chose to rest players or they just weren't giving full concentration. How can we possibly know? CSKA are definitely battle hardened as the Russian League plays right through the summer while Lille have played 5. One thing that might be a problem for CSKA is the loss of their highly rated keeper Akinfeev who's out for about 6 months with cruciate ligament damage and Keisuke Honda who's also out with knee damage. I'm not putting CSKA up as an alternative as I have no real idea of how they'll manage with the current injury situation but as a word of caution I feel Lille are a tad on the short side considering they're only just returning to Champion's league action after a 4 year absence. Moscow aren't Champion's League novices either so definitely shouldn't be underestimated.

[Karamzin]

Re: UEFA Champions League > 14 September

I'm not in agreement with your reading of CSKA's current form. They've lost two of their last five, against Zenit who they currently share top spot with after having played 23 games and third placed Dinamo at the weekend. It's odd that both Zenit and CSKA both lost at the weekend. Zenit hadn't been defeated for 13 matches. Maybe both teams chose to rest players or they just weren't giving full concentration. How can we possibly know?

I would rather agree with AHughes that CSKA are on a poor run of form. I took Dynamo with 0 last weekend because I was a bit scared of high odds for Dynamo win (initially I was even thinking of -1 Dynamo). When CSKA was in a good form they usually scored 3 (end of last season as well as during this summer), whereas last weekend they couldn't score a single goal. Added to that the injuries of Akinfeev, Honda, Necid, Gonzalez and others, plus 'lazy' form of Wagner Love, I doubt about the chances of CSKA in the match against Lille. In my opinion, the chances are 51% (Lille) - 29% (draw) - 20% (CSKA). PS. Zenit took the lead 0:2 in the first half but lost 4:2 because (gk) Malafeev made some crucial mistakes and they were without Kerzhakov (fw). CSKA lost because they were playing against very strong side (at the moment) Dynamo.

[AHughes]

Re: UEFA Champions League > 14 September

I'm not in agreement with your reading of CSKA's current form. They've lost two of their last five' date= against Zenit who they currently share top spot with after having played 23 games and third placed Dinamo at the weekend. It's odd that both Zenit and CSKA both lost at the weekend. Zenit hadn't been defeated for 13 matches. Maybe both teams chose to rest players or they just weren't giving full concentration. How can we possibly know? CSKA are definitely battle hardened as the Russian League plays right through the summer while Lille have played 5. One thing that might be a problem for CSKA is the loss of their highly rated keeper Akinfeev who's out for about 6 months with cruciate ligament damage and Keisuke Honda who's also out with knee damage. I'm not putting CSKA up as an alternative as I have no real idea of how they'll manage with the current injury situation but as a word of caution I feel Lille are a tad on the short side considering they're only just returning to Champion's league action after a 4 year absence. Moscow aren't Champion's League novices either so definitely shouldn't be underestimated.

Ill be honest, im just going off what i have seen on soccerway

[Charles Drawin]

Re: UEFA Champions League > 14 September

I would rather agree with AHughes that CSKA are on a poor run of form. I took Dynamo with 0 last weekend because I was a bit scared of high odds for Dynamo win (initially I was even thinking of -1 Dynamo). When CSKA was in a good form they usually scored 3 (end of last season as well as during this summer), whereas last weekend they couldn't score a single goal. Added to that the injuries of Akinfeev, Honda, Necid, Gonzalez and others, plus 'lazy' form of Wagner Love, I doubt about the chances of CSKA in the match against Lille. In my opinion, the chances are 51% (Lille) - 29% (draw) - 20% (CSKA). PS. Zenit took the lead 0:2 in the first half but lost 4:2 because (gk) Malafeev made some crucial mistakes and they were without Kerzhakov (fw). CSKA lost because they were playing against very strong side (at the moment) Dynamo.

I take your points on board but the 4-0 loss to Dinamo could be a bit of a red herring as they don't normally suffer that kind of result, do they? On the other hand it could be a clear representation of their current form. I haven't got my ears close enough to the ground to make a judgement if I'm honest. However I will say it could be folly to judge them on the Dinamo result alone and the fact that they didn't score a single goal. As I said Zenit's loss at the weekend has made me even more suspicious of the results at the weekend but maybe that's just because of the type of guy I am:ok