Football Betting This Week: Champions League 3rd Qualifying Round

This week brings second leg action in the Champions League 3rd qualifying round providing lots of opportunities to bet.

The big European football season is yet to kick off, but the Champions League action is already underway. This week will see the return legs of the third qualifying round in the most prestigious European club competition. Naturally, fans and punters are ready to cheer and bet on their teams under British gambling laws.

Interestingly enough, this year’s qualifying stage has some great names, who might find it difficult to qualify for the group competition, providing a huge blow to their fans and punters betting on them at land-based and online sportsbooks in the United Kingdom.

Celtic on the brink of a disaster

Celtic is one of these big names who now find themselves in big trouble going into the second leg. The Scottish team have lost 1-4 to Legia in Poland and will now be hoping to get back the 3 goal difference backed by home crowd. The match presents a wonderful betting opportunity: Glasgow team can (and must if they want to progress) win, but can still fail to qualify.

Celtic took a lead in the first match in Warsaw, but went down to 10 men and were crushed by the Polish team. A quick goal at home should put them into the driving seat for a 3-0 victory, which will be enough to take them through. Bet365 favors the Scotsmen with a 1.44 line to win on Wednesday, while Legia get a long line of 7.00 to win again and seal the deal, the draw is priced at 4.33.

Déjà vu match-up

Around this time last year Partizan were facing Ludogorets and went out of the competition, whereas Ludogorets surprised everyone during the later stages. The teams meet again at the same stage this year. Naturally, the Serbian team has no lack of motivation to beat the Bulgarian neighbors this time around.

The first leg in Bulgaria ended up in a goalless draw, which was a decent result for Partizan. The Belgrade team pride themselves on their home support and performance record, and securing a win on home turf shouldn’t be a problem for them. They are priced at 2.30 from Bet365 to win, while Ludogorets get a line of 3.10 and the draw stands at 3.20.

The value bets

Copenhagen host Dnipro after a 0-0 in Ukraine, and should have no problems sealing the deal at home. But the bookies feel otherwise providing punters with a chance to score big. Copenhagen got a line of 2.75 to win, while Dnipro enjoy advantage with 2.60 odds, and the draw brings a 3.20 payout.

The most interesting and perhaps the most lucrative match betting-wise will most probably be the Apoel v Helsinki affair. The Cypriots came from 2 goals down to secure a 2-2 draw in Finland, this makes the upcoming match in Cyprus a pleasure to watch and bet on. According to the bookies, the home team enjoys a huge advantage with 1.50 odds to win, while Helsinki get 7.50 odds to beat the Cypriots and the draw stands at 3.80.

Panathinaikos will be hosting Standard Liege after a 0-0 draw in Belgium. The Greeks enjoy a slight advantage with 2.10 odds from Bet365, compared to a line of 3.50 for the Belgians, and 3.30 for the tie. Besiktas managed to grab a 2-1 win over Feyenoord away, and will now be hoping to seal their progression at home. The bookies have the Turkish side at 2.10 to win, while the Dutch are less favored with 3.40 odds, the same as for the draw.

Maribor secured a 1-0 win against Maccabi Tel-Aviv, and the return leg is played on Cyprus, due to unstable situation in Israel. Those who bet on sports in the UK can back the Israeli team to win with a line of 1.85, compared to 4.33 odds for the Slovenians and 3.40 for the draw. Zenit failed to secure the result they wanted against AEL losing out 0-1 on Cyprus, but they are usually strong on home turf. The bookies hugely favor the Russians with 1.06 odds compared to a long line of 13.00 for the Cypriots and 7.50 for the draw.

UEFA Super Cup

And let’s not forget that there’s another great match scheduled for next week: the UEFA Super Cup. The winner of last season’s Champions League, Real Madrid, will meet the winner of the Europa League, Sevilla, in Cardiff.

Both teams already have one Super Cup to their credit and will certainly be looking to take home a second one. No surprise the Real Madrid are the huge favorites with 1.40 odds, after collecting a super-team with all the summer purchases. Sevilla can be a surprise winner providing their supporters and punters with huge payout at 7.00 odds. The draw after 90 minutes stands at 4.75.