Tag: European football

Bayern Munich vs. Arsenal: A Recurring Nightmare for Wenger

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

When Arsenal travel to Bayern Munich’s Allianz Arena on February 15, they’ll do so without the weight of history on their shoulders according to the home side’s winger, Arjen Robben.

Ahead of the Champions League clash, the Dutch star, who knows Arsene Wenger’s tactics inside from his time at Chelsea, believes that previous results won’t matter when the two lock horns again. Although it looks as though Bayern vs. Arsenal is something of an annual affair given that they’ve played three times in the last four years. However, in the annals of time, the two clubs have only played each other ten times.

Unfortunately for Arsenal, only three of those ten matches have gone their way. However, when Robben talks about previous results, we all know he’s not citing the bare stats (Bayern with 5 wins and 2 draws), we all know he’s talking about 2013, 2014 and 2015. If we look beyond the 2015 5-1 drubbing (we know, that’s hard to do), Bayern has knocked Arsenal out of the Champions League twice in recent memory.

Does History Matter?

Now, fans will instantly recall these results, but the big question is will the players? Well, Robben doesn’t believe it will register with his teammates. Talking to ESPN, Robben admitted that Bayern have “happy memories” against Arsenal but they will need to be 100% focused if they’re going to come out on top.

“They are a very strong team. Even stronger than last year. They’re doing very well in the Premier League. We’ve played them a few times over the last few years and always won — we always got through to the next round — but maybe this one will be the toughest one so far,” Robben told ESPN.

Now, when Robben gave this interview back in December, his assessment that Arsenal was doing “very well” in the Premier League was a fair one. Today, however, things aren’t so good. Although fourth in the table after 24 games, Wenger’s men look unlikely to claim the title and may even miss out on a top three finish. A recent 3-1 loss to Chelsea summed up just how far Arsenal are off the pace and, unsurprisingly, renewed the “Wenger out” calls from some fans.

Bayern are the Form Team

In contrast, Bayern is four points clear of RB Leipzig at the top of the Bundesliga with just one loss to their name this season. Add to that the customary winter break in Germany and it not only seems as though Carlo Ancelotti’s side will start with fresh legs but a ton of confidence. In fact, if the players took a moment to look at the latest betting odds they might find a few more reasons to smile.

Sun Bets currently has the home side as the runaway favourites at 1/2, while William Hill appears to have taken the most pity on Arsenal at 9/2 (Coral is offering 11/2 on an Arsenal win). Now, does this all mean Arsenal will roll over and give Bayern an insurmountable lead ahead of the second leg?

Almost certainly not, but the recent performance against Chelsea won’t inspire many. Lazy defending from Theo Walcott contributed to Chelsea’s first goal and saw him subbed in the second half. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Mesut Ozil both underperformed, while Alexis Sanchez was isolated throughout. One ray of light in the defeat to Chelsea was Laurent Koscielny who continued to battle even when things were going wrong.

There Will be Goals, but Probably Not for Arsenal

Based on those performances, Arsenal will either have to play out of their skins on February 15 to get some sort of result or simply accept they are going to struggle. Looking through the best options, 16/1 from Sun Bets on a 0-0 could have an outside chance of giving you some value. Arsenal’s players will know their best chance of avoiding elimination and progressing in the competition is to steal a draw in Germany and knick a win at the Emirates. Assuming Koscielny can inspire some sort of skill and desire in the likes of Shkodran Mustafi, Arsenal may have a chance of shutting Bayern down.

However, that certainly won’t be easy. With the likes of Robert Lewandowski and the aforementioned Robben running riot in the Bundesliga (21 goals between them), it’s hard to see how Arsenal get this one done. Assuming history repeats itself, the smart money in this game will be on Bayern to score at least two. Over 2.5 goals is a fairly uninspiring 6/10 at Coral, so if you’re looking for some scorecast value, something like 2-0 Bayern (7/1 at Coral) or even 3-1 Bayern (10/1 at Coral) could be good options.

Unfortunately, if you’re an Arsenal fan, February 15 looks as though it’s going to be a long night. Maybe the Gunners can do their trick of upping their game when it counts and get a result. However, all the signs seem to be pointing towards a comfortable win for Bayern Munich on this occasion.

Champions League Betting Preview: Arsenal, Man City and Bayern

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

The latest round of UEFA Champions League action is set to get underway on October 19 and this time around there’s not an easy game in sight (unless you’re Arsenal). While it’s fair to say there aren’t many easy games in the Champions League, this week’s selection of showdowns looks particularly tough for the likes of Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Celtic.

Arsenal vs. Ludogorets

With so many tough games to pick through, let’s start with opponents that shouldn’t pose much of a threat to the Gunners: Ludogorets. The Bulgarian champions are far from the biggest names in the competition, but that’s not to say they’ll just come in and roll over for Arsenal. Indeed, an early goal against Paris St Germain almost caused an upset, while a point away at Basel will go down as one of the club’s standout performances of the last decade.

On top of Ludogorets’ propensity to make it difficult for teams, Arsenal have been known to squander “easy” points in the competition before. In fact, you only have to cast your minds back to last season’s home defeat to Olympiacos and you’ll remember the anguish on Arsene Wenger’s face when his side almost failed to make it out of the group stages.

This time around, however, Arsenal should secure a home win before taking a further three points on their trip to Bulgaria. A quick look at Sun Bets’ odds sees the home side enter the match as the overwhelming betting favourites at 1/8. On the other side of the coin, Ludogorets are the proverbial underdogs at 18/1. If you do fancy hedging your bets and believe the Bulgarians can replicate their result against Basel, 15/2 on the draw is a bet you certainly shouldn’t dismiss outright.

Barcelona vs. Manchester City

While Arsenal should be enjoying a gentle Champions League stroll on Wednesday October 19, Barcelona and Manchester City will be engaged in what promises to be another high octane showdown. Despite City’s issues with UEFA in recent years, Pep Guardiola is a man on a mission in the Champions League this season.

City’s 4-0 win over Borussia Monchengladbach last month was just the tonic the club needed, and has since inspired the players to even greater things in the Premier League. However, Monchengladbach and Barcelona are two different beasts and no one will know that more acutely than Guardiola. Having taken Barcelona to Champions League success in 2008/2009, the Spaniard not only knows what it’s like to win the competition, but what makes Barcelona tick.

Unfortunately, as if a group stage match against Barcelona wasn’t enough, City will have to travel to the fabled Nou Camp on Wednesday night. To compound that fact, a three-game winless run means the pressure will be on when the tackles start to fly. For analysts and fans alike, the current problem with City seems to be a lack of tactical consistency.

Guardiola doesn’t seem to have found a groove he likes, and despite sitting atop of the Premier League, there’s still work to do if he’s going to mount a serious challenge in the Champions League. In contrast, Barcelona aren’t short of goals at the moment and a 4-0 win over Deportivo last Saturday just goes to prove that (as does September’s 7-0 hammering of Celtic).

Although there have been some bumps in the road of late (i.e. a 2-1 loss to Alaves on September 10), the Spanish side will enjoy a slight advantage heading into the game. Of course, if you’re not quite sure how the land lies before the kickoff, there’s always the option of making an in-play bet. At bet365 this week you can earn a free in-play bet for the Barcelona vs. City game by making a pre-match wager.

As advertised, you can get a free in-play bet by: “placing a bet before kick-off then, once the game starts, place another bet on any In-Play market. If your FIRST In-Play bet loses we will refund this stake, up to the same value as your largest pre-match bet (max refund £50*)”.

As it stands, Barcelona are 8/15 for the win, while City will start the game as the 5/1 underdogs. A draw with bet365 will return you 15/4 on your money and if you want the latest live odds you’ll have to check out the site during the game for the best prices.

Bayern Munich vs. PSV Eindhoven

The other standout fixture in the Champions League this week is Bayern Munich vs. PSV Eindhoven. Two veterans of the competition, the odds would suggest that Munich will come away with a comfortable win, but they certainly can’t take things for granted. PSV haven’t lost in five matches, and while those results have been mainly draws, Phillip Cocu’s side have shown they have a certain amount of resilience on the pitch.

In fact, when you look at Munich’s last five results there’s not much more to get excited about. A 3-0 win against Hertha back in September was then followed by a 1-0 win over Hamburger SV before a loss to Atletico Madrid. Despite a less than stellar string of performances, Munich are currently commanding odds of 2/9 at Ladbrokes while PSV are the 12/1 outsiders. However, if you’re looking for a value bet based on recent form, 11/2 on the draw is more than worth a look. Although Munich are undoubtedly the better side, nothing is ever guaranteed in the Champions League; especially when the opponents are as experienced as PSV.