Oppose Teams With A European Hangover at the Weekend

The upcoming weekend follows a fortnight which includes two seismic European legs in the Round of 16 for a whole host of teams lucky enough to be still involved in the UEFA Champions League, Europa League or Conference League.

Considering the extra emotional and physical turmoil in the legs and minds of many, Sam Ingram asks the question of is this the moment to oppose those clubs slogging it out in Europe?

Odds courtesy of bet365. Correct at time of publishing and subject to change.

Rangers Jaded After Full-Blooded Turkish Visit?

Rangers picked up a fantastic result in the Europa League in Turkey, where they snatched a 1-3 scoreline from under Jose Mourinho’s nose in Istanbul. The SPL outfit now has a two-goal lead to protect, but if you think that’ll make this encounter any less frantic, you’re wrong. 

Fenerbache were outclassed in the first leg, though they had their fair share of opportunities (shots: 23-8). Jose’s eleven racked up 1.80xG as they chased the game following Cyriel Dessers’ opener in the 6th minute. As one would imagine, the hosts dominated possession and territory from there on out. Rangers showed their grit and guile on a European stage where they nearly triumphed in Seville only a few short years ago.

Rangers have their work cut out in the return leg in Glasgow. That’s for sure. Elsewhere in the capital, the other half of the Old Firm have their feet up, readying themselves for a visit of Rangers just three days later.

It will only take 1% here or there to swing a contest at this level. I fear for Rangers that their output on Thursday evening will hamper them in the Celtic vs Rangers fixture on Sunday. It’ll likely still be the Old Firm spectacle that we know and love – the fans will make sure of that – but might we see the visitors taper off towards the end of the 90 minutes? Perhaps, and who could blame them? 

Rangers sit 16 points off top spot in the SPL. They won’t be caught in second, and they’ll fail to get anywhere near a Celtic side now without any Champions League commitments. Lean towards a Celtic victory at the prices.

Leggy Leverkusen Eyeing Historic Comeback 

Similarly to Rangers and Celtic, we have a pair of Bundesliga giants clashing in the Champions League on Tuesday night. Bayern enters the second leg in Leverkusen clutching to a dominant 3-0 lead. It looks like one that won’t be ripped from Vincent Kompany’s bosom unless we see one of the greatest comebacks in Champions League history.

Xabi Alonso has proven over and over that he’s a fantastic coach. Last week was the first time Bayern Munich have been able to mastermind a victory over Alonso’s Leverkusen in six attempts. The bookmakers have Bayern priced at 1.02 to qualify from the Round of 16, but Alonso will not be giving up that easily. 

The former Liverpool midfielder was so heavily involved in the comeback of Istanbul in 2005. There is no way that the Spaniard has given up this tie. That can be seen in the rotated eleven Alonso fielded in the 0-2 Werder Bremen defeat sandwich in between the first and second leg of the Round of 16.

After The Lord Mayor’s Show

Regardless of the result on Tuesday night, this has a feel of ‘after the Lord Mayor’s show’ to it. If Leverkusen put up a fight and pushes Bayern all the way, the energy expended would’ve been monumental. If Leverkusen fails to land a punch on Bayern and the visitors pile on the misery, that could have adverse effects on the mindset of the group in the following game at the weekend. 

With nine games to go in the league, our in-house predictive model, BETSiE, projects a 72.2 points return for Bayer Leverkusen come the final day. That’s 11.2 points shy of Bayern Munich. Will Leverkusen’s intent in the Bundesliga remain despite the dwindling hope of retaining the league crown?

Unfortunately for Alonso, Stuttgart away from home is the next assignment in the Bundesliga; a team that likes to break quickly, play on the counter, work in transitions and engineer chaos when turning the ball over. If Stuttgart presents their usual work-rate and desire into a 90-minute performance on the weekend, they might leave Bayer Leverkusen behind.

Safer Gambling

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