Inter Milan v Villarreal

Inter's form is solid at home in the Champions League this season - they've won all four of their matches at the San Siro so far - and are worthy of their odds-on favourite status for their clash with Spanish side Villarreal on Wednesday evening. However, Villarreal comes into this match with a much better chance than the top-price of 6/1 at Blue Squre about them in the match betting suggests. Indeed, they have yet to taste defeat in all eight matches played thus far in the Champions League this season. The Manuel Pellegrini-managed side have won one and drawn three of their away ties, conceding just the twice in that quartet of matches, an impressive away-goal-against average of 0.5 goals per game. Inter looked good when beating Artmedia 4-0 at home during the group stages, but the other three matches they won at home were all workmanlike performances, beating Rangers, Porto and Ajax respectively, none of which will have provided the stern resistance Inter can expect from Villarreal in this encounter. Pellegrini has his charges playing excellent football tactically in this competition - defensively they have looked impenatrable at time and while the likes of Adriano and Julio Cruz will give the Spaniards plenty to think about, I think they'll have the requisite mettle to repel the home side and the value bet in this match is to opt for draw/draw in the double result market, about which Betfred offer an alluring 5/1. Rodolfo Arruabarrena and Alessio Tacchinardi have been talismanic at the centre of defence for Villarreal this season, providing a firm foundation around which the rest of the players have flourished, while Forlan and Jose Mari have developed into a potent strikeforce. Although pound-for-pound Inter have the harder punch, and do have the edge in terms of class, I reckon that the collective tenacity of Villarreal will seem them emerge from this tie with a share of the spoils.