The Champions League proved to be a tale of two major scorelines for English clubs in recent weeks as Arsenal and Man City both found themselves in the middle of some end-to-end action.
For the former, the flow of action against Ludogorets was certainly a lot more positive than the latter’s experience against Barcelona. This time around, the action may not be as juicy, but there’s certainly likely to be some goals when Man City welcome Barcelona and Arsenal travel to Bulgaria to face Ludogorets.
Starting with the more positive of the two match-ups, Arsenal will head into their second game against Ludogorets with almost no pressure. After blitzing the Bulgarians 6-0 in their Week 3 showdown, the Gunners can afford to take it easy on Tuesday night.
Now, that doesn’t mean Arsenal can completely relax, but it’s certainly safe to say they can play below par and still come away with a result. Indeed, we only have to look to Arsenal’s recent match against Reading in the League Cup. Yes, Wenger’s men won and yes they didn’t look under threat at any point, but it’s important to point out that they lacked a certain lustre.
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain was undoubtedly the shining light during the 2-0 win, but when it came to other forms of attack, the side was severely lacking. Now, it’s worth saying that it wasn’t the strongest Arsenal side possible, but if the players put in a similar performance against Ludogorets they could find themselves in trouble.
Of course, fans of the North London side will point to the 6-0 drubbing and say there’s nothing to worry about. This may be true, but in the Champions League, it’s also true that anything can happen, and a loss of concentration could prove costly going forward.
Now, if you’re of the mindset that Arsenal’s lacklustre performance against Reading will cost them valuable points in the Champions League, then Sun Bets will give you 17/2 on a Ludogorets win. If, however, you’re more inclined to think the Gunners will have too much firepower for the home side, 1/3 is the going price at Paddy Power.
For something a little more lucrative, Arsenal to win 4-0 is currently 14/1 at Paddy Power. Given that the last meeting between the two sides was all one-way traffic, this looks like a potentially juicy bet. For those wanting to spread their risk a little more, 5/6 on an Arsenal win + over 2.5 goals looks to be the value bet of the night.
While Arsenal can look back to their previous Champions League game with a smile, Man City will want to forget theirs as quickly as possible. Although a loss to Barcelona is nothing to be ashamed of, the 4-0 deficit was possibly a little too much for even the most die-hard City fans to bear. According to the odds makers at Coral, the current Champions League betting line for a City win stands at 15/8.
Contrasting this with the 29/20 on offer for Barcelona and the 5/2 odds for the draw, anyone with any appreciation of betting lines can surmise that it’s going to be a lot closer this time around. City manager Pep Guardiola has already acknowledged that he faces an uphill struggle on November 1, but does believe Barcelona are beatable.
“I’d like us to show courage and put everything into the game. Hopefully, our quality can make the difference. For them it’s not a final, for us, it is like a final,” Guardiola told the media.
Will it take an almost perfect performance to do it? Almost certainly. Is City capable of near perfect football? Again, almost certainly. In reality, the result of this Champions League clash will come down to two factors: who wants it more, and who makes the fewest mistakes. City has been sublime in the Premier League this season, but the Champions League has been a different story.
If City is going to win, they’ll need Sergio Aguero to be on top form. The Argentinean forward has scored 13 times this season, which is only one less than Lionel Messi. With both players proving they’re more than capable of scoring this season, 19/4 on Aguero to score first and 4/1 on Messi look like fantastic value. Indeed, even if you leave the outright odds to one side, these markets look to offer impressive alternative value.
Of course, if you do want to speculate on the outright winner, the smart money would be on Barcelona. The first encounter was, for all intents and purposes, a whitewash, and if all goes to plan, things won’t be any different this time around. Naturally, home advantage will give City something extra to play for this time around, but it’s hard to see past Luis Enrique’s men in this one.
Betfair:
Bet on Henrik Stenson to become the BMW PGA Championship Winner.
Paddypower:
Back Australia to take the Ashes home with them.
Betway:
Back Rafael Nadal to become the Mens French Open Winner.
Coral:
Back One For Arthur to win the Grand National.
Bet365:
Back Mexico to win the Confederations Cup.
