The Champions League Round of 16 is back for the second legs and LB has some fancies for Tuesday night’s fixtures.
Chelsea v Borussia Dortmund
Tue 7th Mar 20:00
The Blues got back to winning ways at the weekend with a tense 1-0 win over struggling Leeds and the odds here seem to imply Potter’s men are on the up. I don’t see it though. Despite their well documented struggles in front of goal Leeds managed 11 chances at Stamford Bridge. A team with more firepower could have taken something from that game, as most sides have managed against Chelsea lately.
Dortmund’s form couldn’t be more different. They have been perfect since January (W10 D0 L0) scoring 30 goals and conceding just eight. Their ability to score from anywhere makes them a headache to set up against, and nine different players have scored for them over the last month. Edin Terzic likes to shuffle his line up based on the opposition and his side are comfortable at drastically changing their approach depending on the game.
Trailing from the first leg, Chelsea will be forced to chase this one and that will play right into Dormund’s hands. Previous Dortmund sides were filed away as high energy “heavy metal” teams but this season they have a nous not seen for quite some time. They regularly switch to a low block – or park the bus, as it was formerly known – to close out games and have the speed to punish teams on the counter.
Benfica v Club Brugge
Tue 7th Mar 20:00
Benfica are clear at the top of The Primeira Liga and considering their form it’s no surprise (W8 D1 L0). They have one domestic loss all season and are unbeaten so far in The Champions League, including two wins over Juventus and two draws with PSG. They resoundingly beat Club Brugge in the first leg and a case could be made that they represent value at 2/5 here.
Brugge’s form, on the other hand, has gone off a cliff. It’s actually quite hard to wrap your head around what has happened to the perennial Belgian champions. They started their Champions League campaign with 3 wins and a draw (without conceding a single goal). They are winless in the four games since (W0 D2 L2) and domestically they are now 21 points behind Genk.
Despite their woeful results Brugge are still scoring plenty and were unfortunate to have a goal chalked off against Benfica. Both Teams To Score looks generous here 11/10.
Smart Bets
Benfica v Club Brugge: Both Teams To Score (BTTS) @ 21/20
Chelsea v Borussia Dortmund: Dortmund To Win @ 3/1
The above in a double at a little over 7/1
