CHELSEA AND BARCELONA LISTED AS CO-FAVOURITES TO WIN 2010 CHAMPIONS LEAGUE
The first knock-out stage is a few months away from kick-off, but that hasn’t stopped the punters from piling on to the Champions League outright betting markets. 888sports has just released their odds for the winner of European football’s ultimate club competition and you’ll find some familiar faces at the top of the list.
First and foremost FC Barcelona, led by popular manager Pep Guardiola, navigated a tricky final day and managed to finish as group winners with a solid victory of Dinamo Kiev in Ukraine. Chelsea only managed a draw yesterday with Cypriot side APOEL Nicosia, but it didn’t factor into the equation as the Blues had the group wrapped up. These two sides are both listed as 7/2 co-favourites to win the 2009/10 Champions League. Fancy a final between those two? You can back winners on an each-way bet that pays out on the top 2 places at half the odds. This means, you can bet £10 each-way (a £20 total bet) and should they make the final and fail to win it, you’ll still get paid out at £27.50. Back both of those teams (for a total of £40) and you’ll be receiving exactly £100 should they both make the final.
Manchester United saw Michael Owen roll back the years and secure his first hat-trick since 2005 against heavily-favoured Wolfsburg in Germany. United lost to Bacelona last year and took it against Chelsea on penalties the previous time around. Sir Alex Ferguson’s men will be looking to make it three in a row and add another massive piece of silverware to the trophy cabinet. You’ll find Manchester United at 7/1 to win the 2010 Champions League.
Real Madrid saw their way into the next phase of the Champions League in fairly impressive fashion. Their new team of Galacticos look like they can take on nearly any team on the planet on their day, though they have shown signs of real inconsistency. You’ll find Real Madrid priced ahead of United at 6/1 to win the Champions League.
Arsenal managed to top their group despite losing on the final day when they deployed a team with the lowest average age in history for a Champions League fixture. They are 8/1 to win the tournament, but I feel as though that is far too short of a price.
Jose Mourinho’s Inter Milan had to pull off a matchday 6 victory to see their way through to the next phase of the competition. Mourinho has some great players at his disposal and he’s a cat who knows a thing or two about winning the Champions League. They are well-priced at 11/1.
The odds then take a bit of a jump to Sevilla, who are available at 16/1. We are officially into the dark-horse teams now, but Sevilla are a competent side who can match-up against the best. I don’t think they’re much better than a quarter-final side at this point though.
Bayern Munich look to be starting to get things back on track and they’re through to the next phase as well. They are priced at a lengthy 20/1 to win the Champions League and I’m sure that will excite some value-oriented German punters. I actually think they’re a good bet to make the final with some great performances and a kind draw.
AC Milan are used to being one of the biggest footballing powerhouses on the continent, but they are carrying a lengthy 22/1 price to win the Champions League. Lyon share the same price and, though they’re a decent side, don’t look the same with Karim Benzema. You can also find Bordeaux listed at 25/1.
The long shots include Fiorentina at 40/1, former champions Porto at 50/1, Stuttgart at 66/1 while Olympiakos and CSKA Moscow can both be backed at 100/1.