New 2023 UCL Group F Predictions

Real Madrid, Leipzig, Celtic, and Shakhtar Donetsk make up Group F. This might not seem like the most competitive UCL group this year but looks can be deceiving. Aside from last season’s champions, everything is up for the taking. Join us for this year’s Champions League and check out our 2023 UCL Group F predictions.

Group F of the 2023 UCL is the winningest set of teams. The four teams share a total of 15 European Cup/Champions League titles. Of course, 14 of those belong to Real Madrid while the last one is Celtic’s. We will be looking at each club’s chances of making it past the group stage. As you might have expected, this is more difficult than it sounds. If you want our take on the outright winners of the tournament, take a look at our 2023 UCL betting predictions.

Early predictions for the final 2023 UCL Group F standings

Real Madrid will finish 1st in Group F with an extremely high chance of doing so with 18 points. The Spanish giants qualifying for the Round of 16 is as certain as the Sun setting. Leipzig will need to get their heads right if they want that 2nd place finish. If every piece falls into the right place, the Germans can finish with 8 or 9 points.

Predicting who will finish 3rd is even harder than anticipating the club on the silver podium. Celtic, despite their 3-0 loss to Real could secure up to 6 or 7 points. Lastly, despite their impressive performances so far, we think Shakhtar Donetsk will end up at the bottom in Group F of the 2023 UCL. The idea of the 3rd place isn’t too far out of reach but we’re thinking more of a 5-6 points group campaign.

Real Madrid are the undisputed favorites of Group F

The greatest Champions League club of all time, Real Madrid, won both the LaLiga and the UCL last season. There’s not much to discuss on the topic of why they compete. Los Blancos have qualified for every single UCL since the 1997/98 season. Interestingly enough, during each preseason, Real are never the favorites to win the tournament. And they have proven these predictions wrong on plenty of occasions. Ancelotti and co. are the favorites to win Group F in the 2023 UCL.

On 20Bet Sportsbook, the odds of Madrid finishing first in their group are 1.08. As of 13 September, Real are also the only club across the top five leagues in Europe that won all of their games this season. On Matchday 1, they beat Celtic 3-0 in Scotland. We expect the Spanish giants to reach the Round of 16 without significant issues. They’re one of the few clubs who have a great chance of finishing the group stage with the full 18 points.

Leipzig will need to rally before it’s too late – 2023 UCL predictions

Even after their 4-1 loss to Shakhtar Donetsk, online sportsbook sites in Spain favor Leipzig to advance to the next stage. Leipzig are a relatively fresh club in the Champions League as this season is only their 5th appearance in the competition. It’s worth mentioning that in the 2019/20 season, which was their 2nd UCL appearance, Leipzig managed to reach the semi-finals. Their odds of finishing 1st in the group, which is near impossible, are 15.10. Comparatively, the odds of the Germans advancing are 2.11.

The club’s domestic and international performances have been strange, to say the least. They’ve beaten bigger teams but also lost to smaller clubs. After their loss to Donetsk, they won over Dortmund in an impressive 3-0 match. Last season, Leipzig couldn’t get past the group stage but they have a better chance now. This statement might be hard to believe, especially during that embarrassing first game, but we think they can turn things around. We expect to see Leipzig in the Round of 16.

Celtic might be better off chasing Rangers than UCL titles

When it comes to history, Celtic’s single European Cup title puts them ahead of many bigger clubs. Celtic have been fighting an endless battle with Rangers for the title of the most successful Scottish club. This season is their 37th appearance in the competition. One title in seven decades isn’t good but it’s still better than having no title at all. The problem is the matter of the UCL group stage. The last time Celtic reached the Round of 16 was 10 years ago. Will they continue this streak in 2023?

On 20Bet Sportsbook, the odds of Celtic winning Group F are 31.08. To avoid such irrelevant odds, let’s look at other categories as well. The odds of the Scottish qualifying from Group F are 2.83. These numbers wouldn’t be that bad on their own, but Celtic also have the highest odds to finish at the bottom of their group, 2.01 to be more precise. They might move up to the 3rd position after a few games, but we don’t think they can advance to the Round of 16.

Shakhtar Donetsk will fight valiantly, and they will fall valiantly

Donetsk shocked experts, fans, and the media as well when they beat Leipzig by three goals, in Germany. The Ukrainian club’s market value is nearly seven times lower than that of Leipzig. This is a similar case to Chelsea’s loss to Dinamo Zagreb. See our 2023 UCL Group E predictions to find out more about the topic. Donetsk’s case is similar to Sheriff’s from last season when the Moldavian club beat Real Madrid. In the end, they failed to advance to the next round. We think something very similar will happen to Shakhtar Donetsk.

On 20Bet Sportsbook, the club’s odds to win Group F are 30.09, which is slightly better than Celtic’s but far from a realistic number. On the contrary, Donetsk have the worst odds of qualifying from Group F with 3.25. If they play their cards right, they might secure that 3rd place for a transfer to the Europa League.

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