Home » Champions League Acca – 22nd & 23rd February
AccaNation.com aims to provide all users with safe, fair and regulated recommendations for which online gambling sites to use as well as fun predictions for accumulator bets. In the interest of transparency we'd like you to know that we are compensated for any traffic we send to online bookmakers.
Champions League Acca – 22nd & 23rd February
We were close to a great return last week in the Champions League, we predicted the results right on three games (would have been four if Bayern had won), but unfortunately the final game didn’t come in as Bayern let us down.
That’s frustrating and while being close is great, I just wish Bayern had not decided to draw their first of seven Champions League games this season, after winning all the previous six (including home and away to Benfica and Barcelona!).
The one good thing is that it means I am close and hopefully, with the remaining four Round of 16 first leg ties this week involving the other eight Champions League teams, we can turn that near miss into a profitable win.
This week sees, what I believe, is the weaker half of the draw but there are still some fantastic games taking place this week, with Atletico Madrid against Manchester United a real standout fixture, while the Benfica v Ajax match up should be another close game.
Let’s take a closer look now at the games this week and how I see them turning out in the hope of going just one better than last week to land that win.
What do you make of Chelsea at the moment? Sure they won the Club World Cup, but they were not the most convincing and their form of late has been pretty inconsistent, with a lot of drawn games seeing them drop off the pace being set by Manchester City and Liverpool at the top of the table. They still have picked up wins, but they are by no means as convincing as they were earlier in the season. Lille are a tricky side too. They are not in great shape domestically but have won on the road against Wolfsburg and, impressively, Sevilla, this season to top their Champions League group and I just feel the French side may have a bit of a say here and pick up a draw, although I’d still expect Chelsea to go through in the second leg.
Villarreal v Juventus – Away Win
These two teams have never met previously in European competition, but both have plenty of experience at taking on teams from the other’s country. Villarreal actually faced Atalanta in the Group Stages this year, winning away and drawing at home to the Italian side. Juventus won their group ahead of Chelsea but they were well beaten at Stamford Bridge but recovered to earn a big win in St Petersburg against Zenit to top the group. Villarreal are a tough side to beat and they do draw a lot of games, so I was very tempted by the draw here, especially given how close some of the games were in Europe last week, but I just feel Juventus have that extra attacking quality needed to get a narrow win here.
Bet Analysis: Wednesday 23rd February
Atletico Madrid v Manchester United – Home Win
I think both these teams are having a bit of a ‘reality check’ this season. United’s struggles are well documented in the Premier League but they have done well in Europe in the main. Atletico’s once famous defence has been their main issue this season, conceding 34 goals already in La Liga, and they were a distant second best to Liverpool in the group stages. I feel both these teams may well be more dangerous in the away leg due to their counter attacking skills, but I feel Atletico will know that sitting back to try and grab a win here won’t work and plays to United’s strengths, so I expect the home side to be more proactive here, which won’t suit United and will, I feel, give Atletico a slight edge to land the win.
Benfica v Ajax – Away Win
Looking at this side of the draw, I have a sneaky feeling Ajax may be the team to beat in this section of the draw. Benfica are not a pushover by any means, as Barcelona found out in the group stages, but Ajax are a team who do seem to do their best work away from home. They have already been five-goal winners in Lisbon this season in the competition, beating Sporting in the group stage, so Benfica will be well aware of the attacking threat Ajax have. Benfica are strong at home and they won’t make it easy like Sporting did, but I still feel Ajax will run out the winners here.
Author: Dean Wyatt
Dean Wyatt is the founder and editor here at Acca Nation. He’s been betting sports for over 20 years and is a profitable sports trader on the exchanges.
results right on three games (would have been four if Bayern had won), but unfortunately the final game didn’t come in as Bayern let us down.
