CAN Bayern fight back to reach the Champions League Semi-Finals? Chris Graham (@chrisgraham79) previews the game for us.
Bayern Munich v Porto | Tuesday 19:45 | Sky Sports 1
Well this is tasty eh? Not many of us would have anticipated Bayern being two goals down going into this second leg, but that’s where we stand. A 3-1 home win for Porto last Wednesday made us all sit up and take notice.
A key reason for the Bayern loss would have to be attributed to the huge pile of injuries they had to contend with last week. Six days on, it remains a huge concern with Bastian Schweinsteiger likely to be the only first leg absentee to play here.
Naturally though, the fact the game is on home soil this time for Bayern is a huge plus. Their form at the Allianz Arena this season has been sensational.
Over their four home Champions League games, they’ve scored 13 and conceded zero. That’s replicated in their league form too with just six conceded in their 14 Bundesliga home ties.
Keeping a clean sheet on Tuesday is vital to their qualification hopes as they’ve already registered an away goal in Portugal. This means that a 2-0 win here would see them go through and that scoreline has been backed into 15/2 (BetVictor).
Perhaps people are too quick to write off Porto here. As I mention, Bayern’s injuries remain as brutal as they were last week and Julen Lopetegui’s side are unbeaten on the road in this competition in 2014/15.
The problem Porto have is how to approach the game. The urge to protect their lead will be overwhelming and a counter-attack philosophy looks likely.
I’m willing to believe that Bayern can keep a clean sheet and maintain their outstanding defensive home record. Porto will be focussed on defence and the Munich side know that this could be a defining moment of the Guardiola era. At 7/5 with BetVictor it’s Bayern to win to nil for me.
Best Bets
Bayern Munich v Porto – Bayern Munich to win to nil (7/5 BetVictor)
6/1 Barcelona/Bayern Both Qualify
With Barcelona already 3-1 up on PSG after the away leg, this is essentially a single on Bayern to go through.
Join Betfair before kick off to get the 6/1.
TOPICS Champions League Tips European Football Football
