The UEFA Champions League group phase continues this week, so take a look at our tips and predictions for the Group A matches. With plenty of picks and markets to choose from, don’t waste your time and join the action at Get More Sports.
Manchester United (Eng) vs. Benfica (Por)
Three-Way: 1: Man United -233; X: +480 Draw; 2: Benfica +1000 at BetDSI Sportsbook
Spread -1.5: Man United +118; Benfica -114
Total +2.5: Over -118; Under +112
MANCHESTER UNITED
The Red Devils are at the top of the Champions League group A with nine points, three more than Basel, and a win here will guarantee them a place in the knockout phase. Manchester United ended a two-game winless streak in the Premier League with a 1:0 victory over the title contenders Spurs, thanks to Anthony Martial’s late goal as all three points stayed at Old Trafford. Marcus Rashford’s peculiar strike in the first match between United and Benfica was enough for a 1:0 win in Lisbon, and the hosts are huge favorites to beat the Portuguese again.
Manchester United have played 16 games so far in the 2017/18, recording 12 victories, two draws, and two losses, with a goal difference of 37:6, which is almost 2.70 goals per contest on average. The Red Devils have been sensational at home in this campaign as they won all seven matches and allowed just one goal in the process. They scored at least two goals in each of the previous three H2H duels at Old Trafford, winning a couple along with one draw.
Romelu Lukaku hasn’t scored for the fifth match in a row, but he is still the team’s top scorer with 11 goals in 15 appearances, but he added an assist last weekend, and now he has three in total. Marcus Rashford is following him on the score-chart with seven goals to his name, while Anthony Martial scored six at the moment. Martial and the Armenian international Henrikh Mkhitaryan are the most creative individuals with six assists apiece, while Rashford added five thus far. Jose Mourinho still cannot count on a trio of midfielders Michael Carrick (calf), Paul Pogba (thigh), and Marouane Fellaini (knee), but he is also without Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Marcos Rojo who are out with a cruciate ligament injury, respectively.
BENFICA
The Eagles won two straight matches in the Primeira Liga and are in the 3rd position with five points behind the leaders Porto, but they have much more significant problems in the Champions League. Benfica is without a point from the first three games, and I can say they are the most unpleasant surprise of this year’s competition. Although three points at Old Trafford would keep them alive, I seriously doubt they can get a positive result here, and I believe their UCL campaign will end on Tuesday.
Benfica played 16 games in this campaign so far, recording nine victories, three draws, and four defeats, with a goal difference of 26:17, which is near to 2.70 goals per contest on average, the same as the Red Devils’. Although the Eagles are without a win at Old Trafford in the previous three visits, they managed to score in each of those duels.
The Brazilian forward Jonas is the team’s leading scorer with 13 goals in 15 appearances, while Haris Seferovic is behind him with six goals to his name. The midfielder Pizzi is the best assist-maker with six dishes at the moment; Andrija Zivkovic recorded three, while Jonas and Eduardo Salvio contributed with a pair apiece. Rui Vitoria doesn’t have plenty of injury-related concerns but he is without a couple of right-backs for this clash as Douglas (ankle), and Andre Almeida are (suspension) are unavailable to feature.
Manchester United (Eng) vs. Benfica (Por) – Match Prediction
Jose Mourinho will demand a win from his players, and I think they will deliver, so I am going with the Red Devils on this one.
MY PICK: Manchester United -1.5 AH (+118)
Basel (Swi) vs. CSKA Moscow (Rus)
Three-Way: 1: Basel -111; X: +278 Draw; 2: CSKA Moscow +408 at BetDSI Sportsbook
Spread -0.5: Basel -118; CSKA Moscow +116
Total +2.5: Over +104; Under -105
BASEL
The Swiss champions are not having the best of times in the Super League as they are seven points behind Young Boys, but they are doing great in the Champions League. Basel is in the 2nd place with six points from three matches, three ahead of the Russians, and a possible victory on Tuesday will put them in a commanding position. The RotBlau failed to get a win in Zurich last weekend as that clash ended without goals, and will be looking to respond against CSKA.
Basel played 19 games in this season, recording 11 victories, four draws, and four losses, with a goal difference of 32:16, which is a bit over 2.50 goals per contest on average. The RotBlau won five out of seven home matches, losing only to Lausanne in the league, so CSKA will have a mountain to climb to get three points at St. Jakob-Park.
The Dutch striker Ricky van Wolfswinkel is the team’s top scorer with eight goals in 12 appearances, but he will not be able to help his teammates on this one due to a metatarsal fracture. Dimitri Oberlin with six and the midfielder Luca Zuffi with three are also significant contributors, while Mohamed Elyounoussi is the most creative player with seven assists to his name. Raphael Wicky is not happy to be without Van Wolfswinkel, but at least he doesn’t have other injury-related problems as only the reserve keeper Germano Vailati is sidelined.
CSKA MOSCOW
The Horses are in a miserable form of three matches without a win, and they even failed to score a single goal in that span. They are now seven points behind the leaders Lokomotiv Moscow in the Russian championship, but CSKA has a chance to get back into the contention in the Champions League if they manage to secure three points at St. Jakob-Park on Tuesday. The surprising victory in Lisbon over Benfica gave them an opportunity to fight for the second place, but a 0-2 home defeat to Basel might come back to haunt them.
CSKA played 24 games in the 2017/18 so far, recording 13 wins, four draws, and seven losses, with a goal difference of 24:18, which is 1.75 goals per contest on average. The Horses are playing way better away from home as they suffered just two defeats on the visits, including the most recent one to Arsenal Tula.
The Brazilian left-winger Vitinho is the team’s leading scorer with four goals to his name, while Bibras Natcho, Georgi Schennikov, and Alan Dzagoev are following Vitinho with three goals each. Vitinho is also the most creative individual with five assists thus far; Dzagoev has four, while the right-back Mario Fernandes contributed with three dishes. Viktor Goncharenko has almost his entire squad healthy and ready for this tilt, with only the winger Aleksandr Makarov is being listed as doubtful.
Basel (Swi) vs. CSKA Moscow – Match Prediction
I think the Russians will try everything to get an early goal and put pressure on the hosts, and I believe that this is their only chance to secure a win in the Champions League, but the Swiss champions will have their own answer, that’s for sure.
MY PICK: Both teams to score YES (-105)
