Manchester United v Basel Betting: Hosts to ease past Swiss opponents in European return

Back in the Champions League thanks to last season’s Europa League victory, Manchester United will be looking to prove they deserve their place at Europe’s top table when they welcome Basel to Old Trafford on Tuesday.
 
Jose Mourinho’s men have opened the Premier League season in impressive fashion after taking 10 points from 12, and are 1/6 (1.17) favourites with dabblebet to get their European campaign off to a winning start here.
 
However, the RotBlau are unbeaten in their last three meetings with this opposition, and can be backed at 14/1 (15.00) to maintain that strong record with a shock win in this one.

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The guests have claimed a point in each of their two previous Champions League visits to this stadium, and there are odds of 11/2 (6.50) available on them earning a share of the spoils once again on this occasion.
 
Although undoubtedly elated to be back in the Champions League once again, the home supporters will have unhappy memories of the last time their team were drawn in the same group as their Swiss opponents.
 
Having been held to a 1-1 draw in their home encounter, a 2-1 defeat at St. Jakob-Park in their final group match saw a team still under Alex Ferguson’s management crash out in the first round of the 2011/12 tournament.
 
However, while they have made a habit of upsetting the odds against Premier League outfits over the years, the current Swiss champions seem unlikely to pose much of a threat to the bookies this time.
 
Sacked in the summer despite winning two league titles and one domestic cup in two seasons in charge, Urs Fischer was perhaps made to pay for a poor European performance that saw the team collect just two points in last season’s Champions League.

Having already overseen two defeats in his first seven league games to leave the team 10 points worse off than they were at the same stage last season, replacement Raphael Wicky looks unlikely to improve on his predecessor’s record in his first ever senior managerial role.
 
Instead, odds of 5/4 (2.25) are well worth backing on Manchester United announcing themselves back on the elite stage with at least a three-goal winning margin over a Basel team that has not won in nine Champions League away games – scoring just three goals on that run.