Champions League Preview - Wednesday

Celtic's exciting 1-0 home victory against Manchester United assured 'The Bhoys' of qualification to the next stage of the Champions League but they would so dearly love to cap that off with victory here against Copenhagen to make sure they finish top of the group. Their opposition is already eliminated so you would think there is a real possibility for Celtic here in this fixture to push on and become top dogs of Group F, however to do that they must overcome a really poor away European record of ten defeats and one draw on their travels in the group stages.

Shunsuke Nakamura was the Celtic hero against United, winning the match with a spectacular 81st-minute free-kick which sailed into the top corner in unstoppable fashion against Edwin van der Sar. Nakamura is priced at 10/1 with bet365 to open the scoring this time and has to be a good bet from a set piece around the penalty area so 11/4 to score at anytime with bet365 has to be considered very good value.

Kenny Miller's 36th-minute penalty gave Celtic a 1-0 success when these two sides met in Glasgow on Matchday 2. That was a tight affair and it's likely the repeat of that fixture will also be tight. If you fancy Miller to strike again and repeat history this time around then you might want to take note of the 11/2 on offer with Bet365 for him to be the first to score, whilst a 1-0 Celtic victory is priced reasonably at 7/1 with sporting odds.

The match odds are about as tight as possible, which is understandable considering how closely matched these teams are. Celtic are priced at 17/11 with expect.com. Copenhagen are 7/4 with UK Betting and the draw is priced with most firms at 12/5.

Celtic are level on points with Man United and will stay there as long as they match or better the performance of the team they narrowly beat on matchday 5. Alex Ferguson's side have been complacent in recent Champions League matches and have paid the price of having to rely on their last game of the group stages; a tricky home fixture against Portuguese side Benfica. For the second season running, Benfica stand in their way of a place in the last 16. Last year, Benfica upset the odds by knocking United out of Europe so surely complacency will not be the enemy this time. They will be determined to avoid history repeating itself at Old Trafford.

Benfica have it all to play for and have it all to do if they are to qualify. They started badly in this Champions League campaign but successive victories against Celtic and Copenhagen means they are very much in with a shot at qualification should they beat Manchester United on this exciting Wednesday night in Group F.

The previous match between these two sides back in September in Portugal saw the current English Premiership leaders take a 1-0 victory by virtue of a Louis Saha penalty and I am sure Alex Ferguson will be looking for something a little more emphatic this time around. Manchester United are the hot favourites for this game at 2/5 with Bluesq.com, whilst Benfica will have to pull something extra special out of the bag if they are to progress; expect.com have them priced up at 8/1 for victory. Their form isn't great on English soil; their ten visits to England have brought eight defeats and only two wins. However, they did beat Liverpool 2-0 on their last visit in March of this year so they are capable.

There are some mathematical connotations for the professoresque Arsene Wenger to ponder over in Portugal on Wednesday night. His Arsenal side face FC Porto in a game which a draw would see both sides qualified through to the next stage. Any sort of stalemate would put both sides on eleven points, a total which third place CSKA Moscow could also reach should they beat Hamburg, however due to Arsenal's superior goal difference they would still qualify. An Arsenal win or a failure to win by CSKA would obviously also see The Gunners through to the next stage. With all this mathematics and permutations to consider it's likely that Wenger will just field his best defensive side and ensure they don't lose – at least that way they can just count on themselves to decide their future. That highly likely draw is priced at just a meager 4/5 with Betfred and every book maker is throwing caution to the wind on this 'convenient' outcome with not one firm offering odds against. Arsenal are priced at 10/3 for victory with Bet365 and Porto can be backed at 31/10 through expect.com.

Porto started their Champions League campaign quite poorly with a 0-0 draw followed by a defeat away to Arsenal. However since then Jesualdo Ferreira's team have managed three successive wins to put themselves in contention to not only qualify but to win the group. That would surely make up for last season when they finished bottom of their section after just one win and two draws from their six games. The Portuguese side will also be encouraged by their home record against English teams where they have remained unbeaten in seven games, winning four and drawing three.

AC Milan (11/8) v Lille (9/4) Draw (12/5) 19:45
Anderlecht (6/4) v AEK Athens (15/8) Draw (13/5) 19:45
Dynamo Kiev (7/4) v Real Madrid (7/4) Draw (5/2) 19:45
FC Copenhagen (7/4) v Celtic (17/11) Draw (12/5) 19:45
FC Porto (31/10) v Arsenal (10/3) Draw (15/8) 19:45
Hamburg (19/10) v CSKA Moscow (11/8) Draw (28/11) 19:45
Lyon (4/11) v Steaua Bucuresti (10/1) Draw (4/1) 19:45
Man Utd (2/5) v Benfica (8/1) Draw (7/2) 19:45

Good luck with your selections!

Ed note: Make all your Champions League bets at Blue Square

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