Your Champions League QF 1st Leg Betting Preview Is Here

We’re getting ever closer to April and May, which means we’re now in the more entertaining part of the Champions League. Things are heating up and with the Round of 16 done, only the best eight teams in Europe remain. Some would argue against this statement, but after all, everyone had their chance. The previous matches had everything from massive embarrassments and annihilations to some really interesting turns and outcomes.

Three English, three Spanish, one Portuguese, and one German club remain in the competition. You know who they are but let’s see their chances in this round. In our Champions League QF 1st leg betting preview, we’re going to list the upcoming matches separately and give you the best odds available. You will read about full and half-time results, goal-scoring options, special bets, and more.

It doesn’t get better than the later stages of the UEFA Champions League and there has been plenty of excitement already. Being a passionate football fan means a lot of heartbreak and joy. You’ve already seen your clubs’ results in the Round of 16 but if you’re wondering what the odds for the most recent matches were, check out the betting tips we had for the 2nd leg of the previous round. The odds serve as guides and they’re correct most of the time. Cast an eye on our Round of 16 1st leg predictions for example. You can compare the experts’ opinions on the odds, our predictions, and the initial outcomes. Before providing what we think the best betting options for the quarter-finals matches are, we’ll shortly mention why no odds are certain in this next subsection.

An Example of The Consistency and Unusual Unpredictability of Betting Odds

Football can be an unpredictable sport, especially at a stage as high as this one. But most of the time, the odds on online sportsbook sites in the UK are correct. It’s the size of the difference between them that you need to watch out for. For example, take that Villarreal-Juventus match. After a 1-1 tie in the 1st leg, the Spaniards headed to Torino with 4.20 odds of winning. Experts gave Juventus 1.83 odds of winning. Anything below 2.00 is considered relatively high in most scenarios. Both clubs’ odds of advancing were closer, however.

Juventus had 1.40, which was considered a done deal, while Villarreal’s odds were 2.75. Not great but not that hopeless either. We mentioned the Spanish side’s recent success before their Round of 16 matches with Juventus and look what happened. 3-0 win in Torino and eliminating the last Italian club from the competition.

Champions League QF 1st leg Betting Preview – The Benfica-Liverpool Match is The Most One-Sided

There was always a chance of Benfica advancing in the previous round of the Champions League. However, Ajax was in favour. 2-2 aggregate, a home game in Amsterdam, undefeated throughout the group stage, what could go wrong? They had 69% possession, 16 shots but only 2 on target? Not to mention those 10 corners. The Dutch side had all the opportunities to take control yet they failed. Congratulations to Benfica, the last time they made it this far was in the 2015/2016 season.

The problem is, they face Liverpool in the quarter-finals and we’re not in 2006. Want to know the full-time result odds? They’re not great, we’re telling you. Benfica’s 8.00 compared to Liverpool’s 1.40 on Bet365 Sportsbook. And the match will be in Lisbon on top of this. For this reason, we’ll give you some betting previews for other Champions League QF 1st Leg categories.

Since it’s not worth it to bet on the full-time outcome with such one-sided odds, let’s take a look at other options. Liverpool is playing better as the visiting team in this tournament. In 8 matches, they’ve scored 12 away goals and 7 at home. This doesn’t mean that The Reds are worse at Anfield, but they don’t have to be better. They trash teams in away games so bad they can relax a bit when at home. For this reason, if you want to bet on something, bet on Liverpool scoring with 2.87 odds and goals to be over 2.5 with 1.57 odds. A similar good bet would be the Over 2.5 and both teams scoring with 2.10 odds. We say this because Benfica has performed better at home in this season’s Champions League.

Give a Chance For Half/Full-Time Bets As An Alternative

Other great betting options for this match, or any match, would be the half/full-time bets. True, Liverpool’s odds of winning are 1.40 but leading both halves are 2.05. Benfica leading at halftime but losing at the full time have odds of 19.00. That’s huge and the crazy thing is it’s quite possible. Then there’s also the option to bet on the half with the most goals. The odds for the first and second half are 3.00 and 2.00 respectively.

Both are good choices but second halves tend to see more action. Betting on the correct score is one of the riskiest options but has a huge turnaround with 15.00 odds. If you’re looking for high odds, we’d recommend the half/full-time betting options. They’re easier to predict and are more rewarding than simple full-time result bets.

Can Atlético Stop the Inevitable March of Man City Towards The Final?

Earlier this year, Manchester City was the favourite to win both the Premier League and the UEFA Champions League. They still are, however, the odds have changed a bit. If you’ve been following the UCL you probably know which clubs are at the top. It’s Man City, Liverpool, and Bayern Munich. We know, it’s not a shocker. In this particular matchup for the quarter-finals, the odds are heavily one-sided once again.

City has 1.40 odds of winning compared to Atletico’s 7.50. That’s a huge gap but it’s no surprise. The Spanish side made it through the Round of 16 with a one-goal advantage over a messy Man United. On the other hand, City has been playing tremendously all season so odds are going to be in their favour pretty much all the time. So let’s take a look at some other betting categories.

Man City is averaging nearly 3 goals per match in the Champions League this season so the under/over goals scored category would be a good bet here too. The odds of more than two goals scored in this April 5 match is 1.72. The odds of only City scoring is 3.25. Both of these would be good options. With our Champions League QF 1st leg betting preview we’d recommend staying within the Goals category on Bet365 Sportsbook.

Out of 20 home games in total this season, City has only lost two. We’d like to remind everyone that this next match will also be in the Etihad. However, do not ignore Atletico’s potential either. While they seemed a bit rusty recently, their ability to score away goals is there. In 8 matches so far, they’ve scored 9 and conceded 9. This is bound to change, so watch out.

Champions League QF 1st Leg Betting Preview – There’s Some Treasure to Be Found In Special Bets

City dominates when it comes to possession, especially compared to Atletico. The Spanish side also tends to rack up more fouls and cards so a penalty is not out of the question either. These fall into the special bets and they always have good odds. Man City scoring a penalty had odds of 4.00 compared to Atletico’s 10.00. It’s not just the ability to score them that comes into play but the chances of them even happening.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A1yTAFhipec

Guessing the correct half-time score is not worth it as it only has odds of 3.25 compared to the full-time’s 12.00. The winning margin however could be a good alternative here. City’s expected to win so why not bet on the winning margin as well? Winning with 2 or more goals has 2.05 odds, while 3 or more goals have 3.60. Bigger margins will mean higher odds so be careful.

Bayern’s Goal-Scoring Means Trouble For Villarreal

Bayern’s ability to dominate their opponents in the Champions League remains strong. They haven’t missed the UCL since 2007 and always put on a stellar performance when it matters the most. But this next segment is what you’ll find shocking. In this year’s competition, the German side is averaging nearly 4 goals per match and they have scored 30 goals in 8 matches. They did this while only conceding 5 goals which amount to an average of 0.63 per match. They remain unbeaten but we don’t want to jump the gun because Ajax was unbeaten too before they were eliminated.

So let’s take a look at the full-time odds. Even though the match will be in Villarreal, Bayern’s odds of winning are 1.57 compared to their opponents’ 5.50. Experts predict a draw with 4.00 odds. Let us explore each club’s chances in the quarter-finals.

Villarreal only went past this stage once, when they reached the semi-finals in the 2005 season. The two clubs only ever faced off in the 2011/2012 group stage and the Bavarians won both of those matches. Even though Villarreal beat Juventus 3-0, on the road nevertheless, they seem to be a bit inconsistent, at least when you compare them to the Germans. They’ve lost two league games in two weeks but there might be something behind this.

The team has very slim chances for the La Liga title so they might be focusing on the UCL more. After all, they haven’t won it before and everybody loves a Cinderella story. They have something to prove here. Their best hope is to try to win at home because Bayern steps on it when they play in the Allianz. Check out the next section for our additional Champions League QF 1st leg betting preview.

High Goal Scoring and Bayern Munich Are a Match Made in Heaven

You could always go with some good old goal-scoring options here. The odds of more than 2 goals in the match are 1.61 and both teams are expected to score. One of these two quarter-finals matches are bound to have many goals too. Although it could happen during both legs it’s not as likely, seeing from recent results. Betting on over 3 goals has 2.50 odds, another safer and more certain option.

Regarding players, Robert Lewandowski is always the safest choice if you want to bet on the goal scorers. He’s also the clear favourite for the top goal scorer in this year’s Champions League. A riskier option, but not completely absurd, is betting on a first ten-minute goal. For this, the odds are 4.00. Double chance bets are not as rewarding but they are certainly worth it. Hop on Bet365 Sportsbook to see the odds we’re talking about.

Chelsea is Trying to Defend Its Title as Real Stays Afloat With the Help of Benzema

Chelsea has been in great consistent form for some time now. Apart from losing on penalties to Liverpool in the EFL Cup final, they remain unbeaten since January 15. It’s interesting when you think about it. Their two losses in the past two months come against Manchester City and Liverpool, the only clubs above them on the Premier League table.

The three best clubs in England right now and they’re all still in the Champions League. In the 1st leg of the quarter-finals, Chelsea has the home advantage against Real. Now, Chelsea’s odds of winning their April 6 meeting with Real are 2.00. This is compared to Real’s 3.60 and 3.40 odds for a draw. Let’s see the reason behind these numbers. The two sides met twice in UCL history and both were in the 2020/2021 season, in the semi-finals more precisely. Chelsea won 3-1 on aggregate and went on to win the final.

Madrid made an impressive comeback in the Round of 16 with Benzema’s hat trick but that loss to Barcelona leaves some things for questioning. They were missing their star forward in Sunday’s El Clasico. Here’s something interesting. Both clubs have the same amount of goals scored and conceded in the UCL this season, 17 and 5, respectively. Interestingly enough, they’re close in numbers regarding possession, clean sheets, tackles won, and a few other categories.

The full-time odds may change until match day but let’s see what some other good betting options are on the online sportsbooks in the UK. Double chance bets in cases where the odds are not so far apart can be some of the safest options. For example, a double chance bet on either club winning has odds of 1.30. This isn’t that rewarding but you can only lose in the case of a draw.

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Defence Will Win You Matches – Champions League QF 1st Leg Betting Preview

Los Blancos play well in away matches but they might have to up their performance in this round. The closer we are to the final, the less room for mistakes there is. We think that Chelsea’s defence might give them the edge in this match. They allowed fewer shots so far and then there’s Édouard Mendy. The chances for a high-scoring match are relatively low. With this Champions League f 1st leg betting review we’d recommend choosing from half time and special bets. For example, the odds for Chelsea leading at halftime are 2.75. Real scoring in the second half has a higher chance with lower 2.10 odds. Explore these categories on Bet365 Sportsbook for your liking as they seem to be some of the best betting options for this match. Just remember the factors that we listed in this article for you.