Champions League quarter final spots are up for grabs when FC Porto face Juventus and Borussia Dortmund clash with Sevilla.
It’s a matchday that raises the eyebrows with both the outsiders in the first leg of each tie gaining the upper hand.
Will Sevilla and Juventus come from behind to qualify or will Dortmund and FC Porto hold on and progress?
Check out or preview and best bets below.
juventus v fc porto
march 10th 7:00am
Juventus welcome FC Porto to the Juventus Stadium facing a 2-1 deficit after the first-leg of its Round of 16 clash in Portugal a fortnight ago.
It was the early cat-like instincts of Mehdi Taremi and a Moussa Marega strike within the first minute of the second-half which would ultimately prove the difference between the sides.
A shocking defensive lapse allowed Taremi in on goal to put FC Porto ahead within two minutes and it was followed up by yet another calamity at the back inside the first 30 seconds after the restart.
Federico Chiesa pinched an important away goal late in the piece to salvage some hope for the bianconeri going back to Turin.
Ultimately, the result would mark FC Porto’s first triumph over Juventus in European football after six attempts. It’s previous five matches had resulted in a draw and four losses.
Cristiano Ronaldo was quiet in the loss but will be absolutely primed to launch yet another Juventus Champions League comeback after he was brought on for limited minutes in the 3-1 Serie A over Lazio on Sunday.
The last time Juventus faced a deficit after the first leg of a knockout tie, Ronaldo produced one of the most awe-inspiring performances in Champions League history. The Portuguese legend hit a memorable hat trick to haul in a 2-0 deficit over Atletico Madrid.
FC Porto do bring in very solid league form having been undefeated in 15 games to sit second in the Primera Division. However, the query is whether that form can hold up against the strong recent Serie A form of Juventus.
Andrea Pirlo now has his men undefeated through their four most recent league fixtures (W3, D1).
Even though the Champions League is a completely different ball game the bianconeri will have enough belief to qualify having been there and done it all before.
Expecting Juventus to be switched on from the beginning and not allow the horrific goals it conceded in the first leg.
Prediction: Juventus 3 FC Porto 1
Suggested Bet: Juventus score in both halves $1.9
Suggested Bet: Same Game Multi
Leg 1: Juventus head to head
Leg 2: Cristiano Ronaldo to score anytime
Leg 3: Alvaro Morata to score anytime
Leg 4: Over 2.5 total goals
Combined odds: $3
BORUSSIA dortmund v sevilla
march 10TH 7:00Am
Borussia Dortmund host Sevilla at the Westfalenstadion with both teams attempting to book a spot in the Champions League quarter finals.
Erling Haaland continued his goal scoring rampage by netting a clinical brace to help guide Dortmund to a 3-2 away victory over Sevilla in the first leg.
A double injury blow for Dortmund made this first leg win all the more important.
Talented duo Jadon Sanchez and Raphael Guerreiro are likely to miss due to injury leaving a gap down the Dortmund flanks which Sevilla will look to expose.
The three away goals do make the task for Sevilla near impossible as does the current seven-game undefeated Champions League record for Dortmund at the Westfalenstadion (W5 D2).
However, second leg ties have not been particularly kind to Dortmund in recent Champions League knockout matches.
In its last two roundsround of 16 ties, Dortmund have been the victims of a 1-0 defeat to Spurs in 2018-19 and a 2-0 defeat to PSG in 2019-20.
Defensively, Sevilla have been one of the most solid in La Liga all year and coach Julen Lopetegui will need to tighten this area of the pitch if his squad stand any chance of qualifying.
Sevilla need to be much more tight on the ball than it was in the first leg. It dominated possession (66% to 33%) but it was the vicious Dortmund press and counter which brought the Sevilla back four undone.
Edin Terzic’ mindset from a tactical perspective is to attack at any given opportunity but he may opt for a more defensive minded approach come Wednesday morning given the omission of Sancho.
Sevilla are likely to control the majority of the play but will need to manufacture a two-goal winning margin in order to qualify.
Expecting this to be a game that has us on the edge of our seats.
Dortmund will do enough to set itself through to the quarter finals.
Prediction: Borussia Dortmund 2 Sevilla 2
Suggested Bet: Draw at $3.6
Suggested Same Game Multi:
Leg 1: Both teams to score
Leg 2: Total goals over 2.5
Leg 3: Erling Haaland to score anytime
Combined odds = $2.3
