We expect another end-to-end contest in the EFL Cup semi-final 2nd leg at Arsenal, but it should be more routine for VfB Stuttgart at Holstein Kiel.
| Midweek Cup Ties Bet Builder | Odds |
|---|---|
| Arsenal vs Chelsea (Both Teams to Score – Yes) | 1.69 |
| Albacete vs Barcelona (Both Teams to Score – No) | 1.961 |
| Reims vs Le Mans (Under 2.5 Goals) | 1.64 |
| Holstein Kiel vs VfB Stuttgart (VfB Stuttgart to Win) | 1.565 |
Odds courtesy of 1xBet. Correct at time of publishing and subject to change.
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Plenty of goals in North London and Kiel
The EFL Cup semi-final between Arsenal and Chelsea is finely poised. Although the Gunners won the first leg 3-2 at Stamford Bridge, their lead is narrow.
They return to the Emirates for the second leg, where Arsenal have been practically unbeatable, having lost only one of their 12 home games.
Given the head-to-head data, backing both teams to score may be the safest bet. Five of their last seven meetings have resulted in both sides finding the net. Chelsea haven’t kept a clean sheet against Arsenal in their last ten match-ups. Therefore, their success depends on their ability to outscore the Gunners.
Under Liam Rosenior, Chelsea appear to have developed resilience very quickly. A gritty, high-scoring UCL away win at Napoli, followed by a come-from-behind 3-2 win over West Ham, has increased this young team’s confidence.
In the EPL, Arsenal have conceded at least once in four of their last five home games. So, with Chelsea needing at least one goal to stay in the tie, there is value in backing BTTS (Yes).
VfB Stuttgart have been given a very winnable draw in the quarter-final of the DFB-Pokal in Germany. VfB currently sit in fourth place in the German Bundesliga. They are the third most in-form side in the division over the last eight games, with an average of 2.13 points per game.
In midweek, they travel to 2. Bundesliga outfit, Holstein Kiel, who were relegated from the top flight last season. Kiel have since struggled to readapt to the second tier, sitting in mid-table.
Kiel have won only three of their last 14 2. Bundesliga matches. With the winner of the DFB-Pokal qualifying for the Europa League, VfB will be fully committed to winning this tie.
Regardless of their league position, Stuttgart will require just two more victories to secure a place in Europe next season should they win in Kiel.
Barca to overpower Albacete
Albacete Balompie caused an upset in the previous round of Spain’s Copa del Rey by defeating Real Madrid on home soil. The second-tier side scored the winning goal in the 94th minute against Los Blancos to seal a last eight-tie with Barcelona.
In LaLiga2, Albacete have been very average so far this season. They sit 12th in the table, although they are on a three-game winning streak in the league. Their players have been trying to impress for inclusion in the squad to face Barca on Tuesday night.
Albacete’s forward line has been far from prolific in LaLiga2. They’ve scored just 30 goals in 24 matches. They will surely find it tougher to score against a Barcelona side that’s kept clean sheets in their last two Copa del Rey wins.
Hansi Flick’s Barca overcame stubborn lower league opponents Guadalajara, followed by LaLiga2 leaders Racing Santander.
Given that Barca haven’t conceded against Racing, who sit 11 points ahead of Albacete in the league, a clean sheet against Balompie is highly likely. It’s worth noting that Racing have also scored 50 goals in 24 league games to Albacete’s 30 goals.
That’s why we’re backing Both Teams to Score (No), as there’s much more than a 50% chance of Barca keeping a clean sheet.
Reims and Le Mans contest a tight last 16 cup tie
On Tuesday night, the round of 16 in France’s Coupe de France is also due to be played. The last 16 has drawn two in-form Ligue 2 sides together in the shape of Reims and Le Mans.
Reims are aiming to bounce back to Ligue 1 at the first attempt. They sit in 2nd place in Ligue 2, while Le Mans are only behind them in third place on goal difference.
Reims have averaged 2.38 points per game in their last eight Ligue 2 matches. Meanwhile, the visitors have averaged 2.25 points per game over the same period.
Le Mans have lost only once away from home. In fact, they are on a 20-game unbeaten streak in all competitions. They’ve only conceded more than one goal in 30% of their away games this season.
Meanwhile, Reims have kept a clean sheet in 60% of their home games so far this season. They average just 0.80 goals conceded per home game.
In their league meeting at Reims, the hosts secured a narrow 1-0 win in late August. Backing Under 2.5 goals seems like a smart move here, in anticipation of a closely contested battle for a place in the last eight.
Combining all four bets into an accumulator, we can get odds of 6.97, resulting in a potential 697% ROI on this midweek cup action.