Champions League Betting – Sensational Semifinals Set

Only four teams remain on the road to Milan, where the 2015-16 UEFA Champions League final will be played at San Siro Stadium (Saturday, May 28).  The last time a Champions League final was played in Milan (2001), Bayern Munich won in penalties over Valencia; the Bavarians are still alive in this year’s edition, but will have to get by Atletico Madrid to return to Italy. On the other side of the draw, Cristiano Ronaldo and Real Madrid are gunning for their second title in three years while Manchester City are in search of that elusive first trophy.

Noticeably absent is defending champion Barcelona. But all four remaining teams are powers in the world of club soccer and should put on quite a show when the action gets underway on May 26. Let’s get you set with a quick look and prediction for each two-game, aggregate goal series.

Manchester City (+200) vs. Real Madrid (-275)

Not only has Manchester City never won the Champions League title, but this is the first time they’ve ever reached the semifinals. That history stands in stark contrast to the resume of Real Madrid, who have won a record ten (if you include the UCL forerunner, the European Cup).

City may not have a ton of experience on this stage, but midfielder Yaya Toure did win the title with Barcelona in 2009 and manager Manuel Pellegrini took Villarreal to the semifinals in 2006.

The team already has the Capital One Cup under its belt this year, but won’t be challenging for the EPL title, making the Champions League their last chance for more hardware. City reached the semis by pulling a minor upset over Paris Saint-Germain in the quarters (3-2 on aggregate). Kevin de Bruyne scored the lone goal in the second leg to give City a 1-0 win. He also opened the scoring with a clutch away goal in the first leg. Fernandinho equalized in the second half after PSG had taken a 2-1 lead.

Real have had a relatively easy draw so far, facing AS Roma and Wolfsburg in the Round of 16 and the quarterfinals, respectively. But Ronaldo and company haven’t had an easy time of it. They needed penalties to get by Roma (2-2). Then they fell behind Wolfsburg 2-0 in the first leg, only to storm back in the second with a 3-0 win. Ronaldo tallied all three goals for the Merengues, giving him 16 for the tournament. (The team’s next leading scorer, Karim Benzema, has just four. No one else has more than one.)

Despite boasting one of the most potent rosters in the world, Real have struggled at this stage of the tournament, posting a 1-4 record in their previous five tries. They’ll look to get off to a fast start in the first leg in Manchester on April 26. (The second leg goes on May 4 in Madrid.)

The clubs last met in the Champions League in 2012-13 Group Stage; they played to a draw in Manchester (1-1) while Real won at home (3-2).

Manchester City don’t have what it take to advance to the finals. They’ve played too inconsistently over the last three months and, even on their best day, aren’t quite on Real’s level, especially with Ronaldo in top form. Take Madrid to advance to the final.

Pick: Madrid (-275). 

Bayern Munich (-225) vs. Atletico Madrid (+162)

This series will be a fascinating tactical matchup considering the managers for each side. Bayern Munich’s Pep Guardiola is known for fielding the most offensively aggressive teams in the world; Atletico’s Diego Simeone may be the most defensive-minded boss out there.

Bayern are in the semis for a third straight season, but like Real, have struggled at this stage. Last year, they were ousted by Barcelona (5-3). The year before, they were embarrassed by Real (5-0). Guardiola, who is leaving for Man City at season’s end, will be eager to erase those memories.

Entering the quarterfinals, Bayern were averaging five goals per game at home this Champions League season; Benfica held them to just a single goal (1-0), but that was enough for the Germans to advance 3-2 on aggregate.

Atletico have a firm grasp on their identity and have embraced it. Their stingy defense has allowed just four goals in the entire UCL season. (That’s an average of 0.4 goals per game.) They’ve been doing the same thing in La Liga all year, holding teams to just 0.5 goals per game.

The D put in arguably its best performance of the year in the quarters, holding Lio Messi and Barcelona off the board in a 2-0 (home) win in the second leg. The victory saw them advance 3-2 on aggregate.

Bayern will host Atletico on April 27 in Munich and the second leg will be in Madrid on May 3. Which style will prevail? It’s hard to tell, considering both teams are superb at what they do. The difference will be which teams weakness is stronger. Bayern Munich are slightly better at defending their goal than Atletico is at attacking. Look for Bayern to defend adequately and create just enough chances to move on.

Pick: Bayern Munich (-225).

(Photo credit: RCuerda29 (flickr) [https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/legalcode].)