Betting Special: Tuesday's Champions League Treble
Ahead of tonight's opening round of matches, Phil Kitromilides has picked three home wins which return a very healthy 18/5 when combined as a treble
| AC Milan |
VS
|
Anderlecht |
| Kick off: 20:45CET | |
| Tip: AC Milan win at 1/2 (1.50) |
Two home defeats sandwiched inbetween a not-entirely convincing win at Bologna mean that Milan have begun the Serie A season in particularly poor fashion. Yet the Rossoneri should be too strong at home for an Anderlecht team who are hardly flying themselves.
Three successive league draws have seen the Belgian champions make an unspectacular start.
The only team to have beaten Milan in their last five Champions League matches at San Siro are Barcelona, and as Arsenal found out to their cost last season, it can be extremely difficult to get anything from a trip to Milan, so back the hosts as a solid start to the treble.
| Borussia Dortmund |
VS
|
Ajax |
| Kick off: 20:45CET | |
| Tip: Borussia Dortmund win at 2/5 (1.40) |
The statistics show just how tough a place Dortmund's Signal-Iduna Park Stadium is to visit as an away team, with the German champions suffering just one defeat there in their last 35 Bundesliga matches.
Of their last 16 league games at home, BVB have drawn two and won 14, and while Ajax may be Dutch champions, their away form in the Champions League is patchy at best.
The side from Amsterdam have won just two of their last nine away matches in the competition and look extremely unlikely to get anything from their visit to Germany so Dortmund are the second of the three selections for this evening.
| Olympiakos |
VS
|
Schalke |
| Kick off: 20:45CET | |
| Tip: Olympiakos to win at 17/10 (2.70) |
Over the last five seasons, the likes of Real Madrid, Chelsea, Arsenal and Borussia Dortmund have all tried and failed to win in Piraeus.
While the Greeks are notoriously bad away from home in this competition winning just one of their last seven games on the road, at the atmospheric cauldron that is the Karaiskakis Stadium, they are a different prospect.
Having won six of their last eight home games in the Champions League, they will be confident of seeing off a Schalke side who have never before experienced a trip to a stadium where the atmosphere is uniquely intimidating. They are a big price to record a home win and it means the payout for the treble is significantly increased.
| Champions League Treble |
|||
| Tonight's Champions League treble pays just over 18/5 (4.6) with Bet365 |
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Phil Kitromilides is a sports broadcaster working on radio and TV in London and Madrid. You can also follow Phil on Twitter.
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