Bet on Champions League Favourites Juventus – Says Messi

Ronaldo bring success to whatever shirt he’s wearing

Juventus are ranking below Barcelona on the odds charts offered by providers of internet betting in EU, but the same sentiment is not backed by Messi, who’s giving the Turin side favourite status for the Champions League due to the presence of one man – Cristiano Ronaldo.

The diminutive Argentine acknowledged that Real Madrid’s dominance over the past few years is down to their world-class players, so it made him surprised to see Ronaldo – their all-time goalscorer – leave the Bernabeu for the Old Lady after delivering tons of trophies to the Madrid side. But exactly because they have the Portuguese among their ranks now, they can go all the way in the Champions League and lift the trophy at the Wanda Metropolitano – Atletico Madrid’s home ground. “Obviously they (Madrid) are one of the best teams in the world, they have great players and squad, but yes the departure of Cristiano from the squad makes them less strong,” commented the 31-year-old Barcelona star.

“It makes Juventus a clear favourite to win the Champions League due to the squad they had before and now with him on top. I was surprised by his decision, I did not think he would go from Madrid nor that he would go to Juventus. There were so many teams and I heard less about Juve but it is a very good team.”

Bet on Juventus to win the Champions League this season

Online sportsbooks in EU aren’t all backing the Old Lady to win the biggest competition on the continent, as they have their eyes set on a certain Premier League side that’s dominating English football at the moment.

Manchester City are the favourites to win the Champions League outright, with odds of 5.25 (17/4), Barcelona are right behind them 7.00 (6/1) are splurging massively on new recruits in the transfer market. Juventus on the other hand are third on the odds standing 8.00 (7/1), but their chances may very well improve as the tournament progresses, especially once they reach the knockout phase where all sorts of things can happen. And Bayern Munich are one of the last main favourites, with Unibet Sportsbook giving them odds of 8.50 (15/2).

The Turin side have a capable squad of winning trophies on all fronts, but when it comes to the Champions League (any club’s most desired trophy) they’ve not had much luck. Over the last four campaign, Juventus have reached two Champions League finals, in 2015 and 2017, but they’ve lost both of them to Barcelona and Real Madrid, respectively.

So, speaking objectively, Ronaldo’s decision to join Juventus instantly boosted their chances, as he’s the one player that’s known to deliver silverware to a club, despite his age and perceived diminishing returns.