Europe UEFA Competitions 2025/26 - Champions League, Europa & Conference League

[Betting Forum]

All of the discussions for the Champions League, Europa & Conference League season goes here from now on.

 

[spkutano]

Inter vs Liverpool Preview (Tuesday) Champions League:

Possible starting lineups:

Inter:
Sommer; Akanji, Bisseck, Bastoni; Augusto, Zielinski, Barella, Calhanoglu, Dimarco; Thuram, Martinez

Liverpool:
Alisson; Bradley, Gomez, Van Dijk, Robertson; Gravenberch, Jones; Szoboszlai, Wirtz, Chiesa; Ekitike

Inter have 12 points after the first five rounds. They started with a 2:0 win against Ajax in Amsterdam and then secured three more. The Nerazzurri outplayed Slavia Prague (3:0) and Royale Union (4:0), while Kairat Almaty were narrowly beaten 2:1. The perfect series came to its end in the fifth round when Inter lost 2:1 to Atletico Madrid. Julian Alvarez had given the home side a lead after 9 minutes. It was his 10th goal in 14 Champions League appearances since signing from Manchester City. The Italians drew level through Piotr Zielinski's goal in the 54th minute. It looked like the points will be shared, but Jose Maria Gimenez scored a last-gasp winner. The defeat leaves Inter in fourth place - level on 12 points with Paris St-Germain, Bayern Munich and Real Madrid. Coach Cristian Chivu could be satisfied with the actual record, though there is no space for any relaxation. The Romanian tactician has some injury issues as Matteo Darmian, Tomas Palacios and backup goalkeeper Raffaele Di Gennaro are out injured, while Denzel Dumfries is rated as doubtful.

Liverpool have 9 points, but they are in very specific situation. The Reds are in big crisis, maybe the biggest one in the last 50 years. During the weekend Liverpool visited Leeds United and collect one point, playing a 3:3 draw. In fact Slot and his men dropped two points as they had a 2:0 lead thanks to Hugo Ekitike's brace early in the second half. Nevertheless, everything went wrong way after Ibrahima Konate made a stupid penalty that was converted by Dominic Calvert-Lewin in the 73rd minute. Just two minutes later Anton Stach equalized the result. Dominik Szoboszlai restored the Reds' lead, but Ao Tanaka rescued point for Leeds in the stoppage time. It means Liverpool are now unbeaten in the last three Premier League matches, but collect just 5 from the possible 9 points. To be worse, Mohamed Salah was benched and he addressed his frustrations to Arne Slot. The Egypt winger said that he feels as though he has been "thrown under the bus" by Liverpool and that his relationship with head coach Slot has broken down. It remains to be seen if his relationship with the Dutchman and the club can be repaired.

Inter vs Liverpool Prediction:

Inter have 12 points and victory here will probably guarantee Top-8 finish. Liverpool, meanwhile. have 9 points and they will probably go through playoff's. However, Liverpool need a positive result in this match more than anything. But big question is how. How the team that conceded three goals from Leeds United or Nottingham could escape the defeat at Meazza? The results in Europe are slightly better, but the Reds conceded four goals from PSV at Anfield in the last round. The defense looks like "Swiss cheese". It will be a miracle to keep a clean sheet at Meazza. At the same time Slott has fantastic players up front. With or without Salah, Liverpool are able to score against every European team.

Inter vs Liverpool Pick: Both teams to score -Yes @ 1.57 with Bet365

 

[BlueMoonTips]

Not gonna lie, Thursday can not come quick enough. Real Madrid vs City is always chaos in a suit.

Matchup wise it’s the usual story. Madrid are happy to suffer a bit, then they hit you fast when you get sloppy. City have to be patient but also not fall asleep on the one moment they pick the lock and lose it in midfield. If we give away cheap transitions, you are basically donating goals.

Bet angle for me is simple. City +0.25 Asian handicap. If it’s a draw you still get paid half, and I can see this being level for long spells even if it goes end to end late. That’s a bet I’d take all day in these big away nights.

Prediction: 2-2. Both teams score, both teams have spells, nobody gets to relax.

 

[spkutano]

Real Madrid vs Manchester City Preview (Wednesday) Champions League:

Possible starting lineups:

Real Madrid:
Courtois; Valverde, Asencio, Rudiger, Carreras; Tchouameni, Camavinga; Guler, Bellingham, Vinicius Jr; Mbappe

Manchester City:
Donnarumma; Nunes, Dias, Gvardiol, O'Reilly; Gonzalez; Cherki, Reijnders, Foden, Doku; Haaland

Real Madrid are in big crisis at the moment. The culmination was the match against Celta Vigo on Sunday. Los Blancos were clear favorites, but suffered a painful defeat. To be worse, the defeat came at Santiago Bernabeu. Coach Xabi Alonso came under huge pressure, as well as the players. Nevertheless, a victory here will improve the atmosphere in the club and increase the players confidence. Real have four wins and one defeat after five rounds and a victory here will be a step towards the knock out phase. However, it won't be easy. Alonso has big injury issues ahead of this match, particularly in defense. Eder Militao is the latest victim after he suffered a first-half hamstring injury against Celta. He is ruled out of Wednesday's fixture, together with the fellow defenders Dani Carvajal, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Ferland Mendy, while Dean Huijsen and David Alaba are both rated as doubtful.

Manchester City have 10 points at the moment and sit on the 9th place. They managed to beat Napoli, Villarreal and Borussia Dortmund, shared the points with Monaco and lost to Bayer Leverkusen at Etihad in the last round. The defeat complicate the situation and the Citizens now need a positive result from Bernabeu. Perhaps Pep Guardiola went too far by making 10 changes for that fixture. The key players, including the top scorer Haaland, started from the bench. When Pep realized he can't win with the "reserves", he made five changes. Haaland, Cherki, Doku, Foden and O'Reilly came in during the second half, but failed to make any impact. I am sure Pep will start at Bernabeu with the best 11in order to escape the defeat. However, Guardiola has some injury issues. Mateo Kovacic and Rodri are definitely sidelined for the trip to the Spanish capital, while John Stones is rated as doubtful.

Real Madrid vs Manchester City Prediction:

Xabi Alonso made 79 appearances under Guardiola, and he certainly knows the way how Pep is thinking. It is not a surprise Alonso already won the title in Germany with Leverkusen. He is one of Guardiola's best students and I am sure this will be a very interesting clash. Both Real and City are in "Must Win"situation. They both want a Top-8 finish to avoid playoffs and three points from this match could be crucial. That is why I am expecting an open and efficient match here. Real have Mbappe who love to play in the competition. The Frenchman has scored nine goals in five games in the Champions League this season. Haaland is also in good form and it will be very hard for Real defenders to stop the Norwegian, particularly knowing the injury situation - Eder Militao, Dani Carvajal, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Ferland Mendy are out, while Dean Huijsen and David Alaba are rated as doubtful. I expect at least four goals to be scored in Madrid.

Real Madrid vs Manchester City Pick: Over 3.5 goals @ 2.23 with Pinnacle

 

[spkutano]

Utrecht vs Nottingham Forest Preview (Thursday) Europa League:

Possible starting lineups:

Utrecht:
Barkas; Horemans, Van de Hoorn, Viergever, El Karouani; Bozdogan, Ongena, De Wit; Rodriguez, Min, Cathline

Nottingham Forest:
Victor; Abbott, Milenkovic, Morato, Williams; Dominguez, Sangare; Ndoye, McAtee, Hudson-Odoi; Kalimuendo

Utrecht have just one point after the first five rounds and it is clear they need a "small miracle" to qualify for the knock-out phase of the competition. The Dutch outfit lost four matches, from Lyon, Brann, Freiburg and Betis, while drew with Porto at Dragao. Playing in Europe is always good for the financial stability, however, sometime the priority list need a revision and this is exactly the situation. Utrecht are 7th in Eredivisie with 22 points, just four adrift of fourth-placed Ajax Amsterdam. On Sunday they will travel to relegation candidates NAC Breda and I think that will be a priority for coach Ron Jans. In addition, some players are unavailable due to various reasons. Midfielder Davy van den Berg is out injured, while Victor Jensen, Noah Ohio, Emirhan Demircan and Kolbeinn Finnsson are all ineligible as they were omitted from the club’s Europa League squad. On the positive note, Barkas Vasileios and Souffian El Karouani returned from injury.

Nottingham Forest have eight points from the first five rounds and few more will guarantee the knock-out phase. But similar to their opponents, the Tricky Trees need to define their priorities. Forest are just outside the drop zone and their situation is very complicated. Just three days later Nottingham will host Tottenham in the Premier League and I think the points from that match are more important. Many pundits are confused how basically the same team that were fighting for a Champions League spot last season have now been transformed into the relegation candidates. The answer is not a secret and has a name - owner Evangelos Marinakis. He already sacked two managers (Nuno Espirito Santo and Ange Postecoglou) and now Sean Dyche is in charge. He has long injury list for this match that also includes two key players - defender Murillo and striker Chris Wood. In addition, Ola Aina, Douglas Luiz, Taiwo Awoniyi, Oleksandr Zinchenko, Dilane Bakwa, Angus Gunn and Ryan Yates are all out injured. Omari Hutchinson and Jair Cunha are ineligible to play in Europa League.

Utrecht vs Nottingham Forest Prediction:

I will give some advantage to Utrecht. They have just a theoretical chance to secure the knock-out phase, but I think they will not give up without a fight. Nottingham have two key players out injured - defender Murillo and striker Chris Wood. In addition, Ola Aina, Douglas Luiz, Taiwo Awoniyi, Oleksandr Zinchenko, Dilane Bakwa, Angus Gunn and Ryan Yates are all injured. Omari Hutchinson and Jair Cunha are ineligible to play in Europa League. On top of that, some players will be rested for Sunday's clash with Tottenham. I will remind You about the previous away fixture, against Sturm Graz on 6 November. Dyche then made seven changes from the side that started three days ago with Manchester United in the Premier League. I expect something similar here.

Utrecht vs Nottingham Forest Pick: Utrecht +0.5 AH @ 2.07 with Pinnacle