The UEFA Champions League is back in midweek with the Round of 16 stage getting underway. On Tuesday night, Barcelona host Paris Saint-Germain in a blockbuster of a game. Meanwhile, RB Leipzig and Liverpool lock horns in Budapest in a match the English champions will be hopeful of winning. The following evening, Porto and Juventus square off and Sevilla and Borussia Dortmund go head-to-head in Spain. Which sides will put themselves in strong positions to make it through to the quarters?
Barcelona v Paris Saint-Germain
20:00, BT Sport, Camp Nou
Ronald Koeman’s Barcelona and Mauricio Pochettino’s PSG go head-to-head in what is arguably the standout Round of 16 tie. The first leg will take place in the Camp Nou on Tuesday night with both sides eager to get an early advantage. The home side are the favourites, but can the French champions pick up a positive result in Catalonia? Whichever side wins the tie is sure to fancy their chances of going all the way to the final at least.
Barca are having a tough season in La Liga, but Blaugrana are always a capable outfit in the Champions League. PSG, who reached the final of this competition last term, have also not been at their best domestically this season. Barca only managed to finish second in their group behind Juventus, despite being level on points with the Italians. PSG, meanwhile, edge their group – also on goal difference – ahead of german side Leipzig. We fancy the hosts to edge this first leg tie, so check out the solid price of 3/1 for Barca to win by a one goal margin.
RB Leipzig v Liverpool
20:00, BT Sport, Puskas Arena
Liverpool continue their Champions League campaign with a trip to Hungary to take on RB Leipzig on Tuesday night. The Reds have been struggling for form in the Premier League lately, but Jurgen Klopp’s men are the favourites at the Puskas Arena. Having finished top of Group D ahead of Atalanta, Ajax and Midtjylland, avoided what could have been a tougher draw. But Leipzig are no pushovers as they only narrowly missed out on topping their group which also including PSG and Manchester United.
This will be the first-ever meeting between the two clubs, and the two-legged tie could go either way. The Reds will be relatively confident of a positive result in Budapest ahead of next month’s second leg at Anfield, not least because Klopp will be more than familiar with Leipzig. A draw would not be a bad result for the Premier League champions, though, and an away goal could be priceless. We think the value lies with backing the draw and both teams to score at odds of 10/3.
Porto v Juventus
20:00, BT Sport, Estadio do Dragao
At the Estadio do Dragao in Portugal on Wednesday, Sergio Conceicao’s Porto entertain Andrea Pirlo’s Juventus. The Old Lady will be looking for a comfortable win to take back to Turin. Porto, who finished second behind Man City in Group C, would have been viewed as arguably the easiest draw at this stage of the competition. But they are not going to roll over for the Italians and they could have enough about them to pull off a shock win if things go their way.
Like several of European’s elite this season, Juventus have not been at their best in their respective league campaign. Nevertheless, Juve – who finished ahead of Barcelona in Group G – tend to raise their game in the Champions League and should see off Porto without too much fuss on Wednesday. We like the look of the visitors to win with a -1 goal handicap at odds of 13/5.
Sevilla v Borussia Dortmund
20:00, BT Sport, Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan
Sevilla and Borussia Dortmund square off in a Round of 16, first leg tie at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan on Wednesday night. Ahead of this weekend’s clash with Huesca, Julen Lopetegui’s men have won each of their last eight league and cup games.
Sevilla are having another solid season in La Liga, while Dortmund, who are currently under the interim management of Edin Terzic, head to Spain in patchy form. With that in mind, we’ll be backing the Sevilla win at a decent price of 6/4.