The Champions League Quarter Finals kicked off yesterday as Real Madrid put the pressure on Liverpool, leaving them a 2 goal lead to chase in the next leg.
Meanwhile in Manchester, City got up against Borussia Dortmund 2-1 in controversial fashion as Jude Bellingham was denied a goal that should have been allowed.
Bayern Munich vs PSG
Wednesday, April 7th, 3.00 PM EDT
Bayern Munich welcome Paris Saint Germain to the Allianz arena today for a rematch of the tournament’s 2019/20 finalists, and with 2 legs to play, a 1-0 scoreline is unlikely to fill either team with confidence this time around.
Munich have been on a warpath to get to this point, the reigning champions of Europe have gone undefeated over the 8 games, winning all but 1 game, and scoring 24 goals while conceding just 7.
The German giants have gone their last 19 games in the Champions League undefeated and are 1 game away from becoming just the 2nd team to go 20 games unbeaten in the tournament’s history.
In a team full of stars, Joshua Kimmich has proven himself as one of the greatest midfielders on the planet this season, and Robert Lewandowski has been integral to their successes, scoring a career best 35 goals in 25 games in the league, with a further 5 from 5 Champions League games.
Unfortunately for Munich they will be going into this one without the services of their talisman, Lewandowski, who has been sidelined with injuries sustained during the international break.
Get ready. 🍿 #FCBPSG pic.twitter.com/dsiX1wwNjl
— 🇺🇸 FC Bayern US 🇨🇦 (@FCBayernUS) April 6, 2021
PSG’s run has not been as flawless, dropping points to Man U and RB Leipzig in a tough group stage. They did enough to finish atop their group, and went on to crush Barcelona in the Round of 16, 5-2 on aggregate.
They have scored 19 goals in the tournament so far, and are yet to be kept goalless. Remarkably, they have scored in 42 of their last 43 games played in the tournament, with Bayern Munich the only team capable of keeping the Parisian powerhouse at bay for a full 90 minutes.
It is not hard to see why teams have such a hard time dealing with PSG, with an attack that possesses the likes of Neymar and Kylian Mbappe, the duo have 12 goals and 3 assists between them so far in the tournament.
This rematch is one of the most exciting fixtures of the tournament so far, Munich are the best team on the planet at the moment, and while PSG may not be winning domestically, they are coming off the back of a 5-2 dismantling of Barcelona.
You would have to go back to December of 2019 to find the last time that Bayern Munich were defeated on home soil, and we expect their class to prevail here even in the absence of Robert Lewandowski.
Champions League Prediction: Bayern Munich (-110)
Best Prop: Over 2.5 Goals (-164)
FC Porto vs Chelsea
Wednesday, April 7th, 3.00 PM EDT
Chelsea travel to Portugal to face Porto in a clash between two of the tournament dark horses. The two sides are no stranger to facing each other in this competition, they have played 8 times over the years with Chelsea winning 5, and Porto winning 2, with 1 draw.
The Blues began the season terribly under Frank Lampard, but thanks to an easy draw in the group stage, and the swift appointment of Thomas Tuchel as manager, they now sit in 5th place domestically, and breezed past Atletico Madrid in the C.L Round of 16, 3-0 on aggregate.
Tuchel has enjoyed the perfect start to his life in charge, upon his appointment on the 26th of January, Chelsea went unbeaten for 14 games in all comps, conceding just 2 goals in that time.
They had not had a single hiccup in that time, until their most recent game, a 5-2 home defeat at the hands of West Brom of all teams. A Thiago Silva red card 30 minutes into the game didn’t make life easy for them, but to concede 5 goals to a team that is destined for relegation is not a good look before a cup quarter final.
Porto in our sights! 🎯👀#PORCHE #UCL pic.twitter.com/Z5SAsIxhhw
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) April 6, 2021
Porto are no strangers to a deep run in this tournament, winning the tournament in 2003/04 under Jose Mourinho in a legendary season. They are frequently making it to the round of 16, and even as far as the Quarter Finals, but they have not been able to make it past since the aforementioned 2003/04 campaign.
The success of Porto in this tournament probably shouldn’t have come as such a surprise after they breezed through the group stages, losing just 1 game to fellow Quarter Finalists, Manchester City, and kept a clean sheet in each of their other 5 games.
It was fair to question their chances when they came up against Juventus in the round of 16, but they shocked the footballing world when they progressed on away goals in one of the greatest performances of the tournament.
After their humbling defeat to West Brom over the weekend, Chelsea will be motivated to come out in this match and show that it was just a once off.
There is no taking any respect away from what Porto achieved to get to this point, but they are going up against one of the most expensive squads in football with squad depth in every position. Although it won’t come easy, we expect Chelsea to narrowly edge out Porto in a tight affair.
Champions League Prediction: Chelsea (-130)
Best Prop: Under 2.5 Goals (-166)
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*Odds correct at time of publication, thanks to FanDuel.
