Champions League prediction & betting tips: 4/1 Haaland can hit Inter hard | OneFootball

The Champions League returns on Tuesday and with it comes a new format, with more teams and more games affording more betting opportunities to football punters.

Gone are the group stages, which have been a key part of the format since 1991 and instead there is one big league which will constantly change over eight match weeks, culminating in an 18-game finale on 29 January 2025.

There are now 36 teams battling it out to go through to the regular knockout stage at the end of January. The top eight in the league automatically qualify while those placed 9-24 will play off for a place in the round of 16.

While the format has changed, the Champions League markets on betting sites have a familiar look to them. Manchester City enter the tournament as favourites to win their second European title at a best-price of 11/4.

Defending champions Real Madrid are next in the market at 7/2 with football betting sites to win their 16th title, followed by Arsenal (17/2), Barcelona (12/1), Bayern Munich (12/1) and Liverpool (14/1).

City, Arsenal, and Liverpool are three of the five British representatives in this year’s competition, alongside Aston Villa and Celtic, with the Gunners and Reds facing a tough start to their campaigns with trips to AC Milan and Atalanta respectively.

Aston Villa travel to Young Boys (Tuesday), Manchester City host Inter Milan (Wednesday) and Celtic welcome Slovan Bratislava to Celtic Park (Wednesday).

After suffering a home defeat at the hands of Nottingham Forest on Saturday, a trip to Italy to face AC Milan could be the perfect game to get back on track for Liverpool, who had to make do with Europa League action last season.

This competition has a habit of bringing out the best in the Reds, who have won it six times, and they have plenty of history against Tuesday’s opponents as well, contesting to finals against them previously with one win apiece for the two European giants.

The sides met more recently in the group stages in 2021/22 when Jurgen Klopp’s side won both home and away but how will Arne Slot’s side get on this time around?

Both games then were close affairs a 3-2 win at Anfield and a 2-1 win in Milan, and it’s worth noting Mo Salah scored in both games.

Before blanking against Forest on Saturday, the Egyptian had been enjoying an excellent start to the season and will pose a threat to a Milan side that’s shipped two goals in three of their first four Serie A games this season.

The Rossoneri recorded their maiden win of the campaign at the weekend, beating Venezia 4-0, and bookmakers expect them to struggle against Liverpool, who are no bigger than even-money on betting apps.

The Reds are fancied to get the win, but may not have things all their own way against a Milan side that’s netted 17 goals across their last five home games and an an away victory can be paired up with both teams to score.

We see another repeat of a recent final on Wednesday when Manchester City welcome Inter to the Etihad. The two sides met in the 2023 final when Rodri’s solitary strike secured City their maiden Champions League title.

That was the first and only meeting between the two sides so we don’t have much history to go on ahead of this one, except both sides’ previous form in the competition, which is pretty impressive.

Pep Guardiola’s side have reached the knockout rounds in the last 11 seasons – and the quarter-finals or better in all of their last seven campaigns. They are also unbeaten in their last 23 Champions League matches contested over 90 minutes.

Inter are making their seventh successive Champions League appearance and the three-time European champions are unbeaten so far this season, albeit they’ve drawn both their away games in Serie A.

City have a 100 per cent record in the Premier League after four games and it’s hard to see anything other than a City win on Wednesday. New betting sites concur, pricing the English champions at no bigger than 8/15.

And the man likely to do the damage is Erling Haaland. He has already scored nine goals in just four Premier League games and his brace on Saturday against Brentford means he now has 59 goals in 50 appearances for City at the Etihad Stadium.

He was the Champions League’s top scorer with 12 goals when City won the title in 2022/23 and bagged six times in Europe last season. He’s the obvious threat to Inter, but stopping him will be easier said than done.

Arsenal get their Champions League campaign underway on Thursday when they travel to current Uefa Europa League holders Atalanta.

It is only the fourth time the Italian side have been in the Champions League but Mikel Arteta will remember their impressive 3-0 win at Anfield in last season’s Europa League quarter-final.

The team from Bergamo have only one win from their five home matches against Premier League opponents and are 3/1 in the Champions League odds to claim the scalp of Arsenal.

The Gunners are entering their 21st Champions League having made a fairly successful return to the competition after a six-year absence. They won four of their first six games last season to top their group before eventually going out to Bayern Munich in the quarterfinal stage, losing 3-2 on aggregate.

They don’t have the best of records away from home in this competition, losing five of their last 10, including defeats at Lens, Porto and Bayern last season and a draw at PSV Eindhoven.

Arsenal’s away record, their injury situation and upcoming trip to Manchester City on Sunday all add to the suspicion that this will be a tough fixture for them to win.

Arsenal are still unbeaten in the league this season while Atalanta have had a mixed start with two wins and two defeats, scoring eight and conceding eight and we think this will be a close call.

Responsible gambling

If you are planning to bet on the Champions League this week, it’s important to remember to always gamble responsibly. Betting should only ever be considered a form of entertainment – it has not, and will never be, a surefire way to make money, no matter how much you think you know about sports.

When betting on football, only bet what you can afford. Sports betting can also be addictive, so please take steps to remain in control of your time and budget.

Make sure you use the responsible gambling tools offered by betting companies such as deposit limits, reality checks, loss limits, time-outs and self-exclusion. These can stop your gambling from getting out of hand.

If you have gambling-related concerns, then seek independent help. There are several UK charities and institutions that offer support, advice and information, with a few listed below:

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