CHAMPIONS LEAGUE BETTING PICK - LIVERPOOL V CHELSEA

Champions League

2009-04-08 - Liverpool vs Chelsea

A Sports Betting Pick by Auls

Liverpool

Liverpool find themselves in a strange position of being in contention for the Champions League and the Premier League in April and it will be interesting to see how they cope. They are 1 of 3 teams that are still unbeaten in the Champions League this season and progressed to the Quarter Finals after comfortably dismissing Real Madrid in the 2nd round. Liverpool finished 1st in their group above Atletico Madrid.

Liverpool are 1 point behind Manchester United in the race for the Premier League title with their 19-10-2 record. They have the only unbeaten home record in the League and they are 9-6-0 at Anfield this season. In those games, Liverpool have scored 27 goals and conceded only 8.

The Reds have managed to win 5 in a row since a shock defeat to Middlesbrough, but it is the manner of those victories that has been most impressive. They have won 1-4 at Old Trafford, while beating Real Madrid and Aston Villa 4-0 and 5-0 respectively. Add to that a late winner at Fulham and it is clear that Liverpool are on a roll at the moment. Liverpool have not lost in 22 games at Anfield this season and they have won their last 3 games there without conceding a goal.

Javier Mascherano misses out through suspension but it is otherwise a full squad for Liverpool.

Chelsea

Chelsea have overcome all of the turmoil they have faced this season with the sacking of Scolari and moved into this stage of the competition with a tough 3-2 aggregate win over Juventus in the 2nd round. Chelsea finished 2nd in the group stage behind Roma to qualify.

Chelsea are also still in the title hunt in England with a 19-7-5 record which leaves them 4 points off the pace being set by Manchester United. However, their 11-2-3 record away from home means they have the best record on their travels this season. They have scored 27 goals in those games and conceded just 9. However, a concern will be that 2 of those away defeats came at Manchester United and Liverpool.

Chelsea employed Guus Hiddink to steer them to the end of season at least when removing Scolari and he has compiled a 7-1-1 record. They recently lost at Tottenham but have bounced back with a 0-2 win at Newcastle. The Blues have played 6 away games under the tutelage of Hiddink and they have won 4 and only conceded 3 goals in those games.

Didier Drogba should be available for Chelsea but they will be missing Jose Bosingwa.

Head to Head

Chelsea have already lost 2 times to Liverpool in the League this season, failing to score on both occasions.

This is the 5th season in a row that the 2 sides have met in this competition and will be the 4th time that it is during a knockout tie. Chelsea finally managed to move past Liverpool for the 1st time in last seasons Semi Final.

Liverpool have a 2-2-0 home record against Chelsea in this competiton and have only conceded 1 goal in those games.

Prediction

Liverpool have all of the momentum on their side at this stage of the season and Benitez sure knows how to get his tactics straight in Europe. They will be hoping to take a lead back to Stamford Bridge but not at the expense of conceding an away goal so I can imagine Liverpool playing tight and looking to counter attack.

Chelsea are an interesting proposition and it will be interesting to see how Hiddink lines them up. I have a feeling they will feel better that the 2nd leg is at Stamford Bridge and would be more than happy to take a 0-0 back there. However, I think it will be hard for them to keep Liverpool out for 90 minutes.

This is a really close game to call as they always seem to be and I have to suggest the obvious under 2.5 goals bet. However to make things interesting for myself, I am also going to play under 1.5 goals.

I also think this will be a close game and its a tough game for both sides and I can see it ending all square, and making everyone ready for a really intriguing game at Stamford Bridge next week.

The Statistics :

The Pick :

BEST BETTING TIP :

Take the DRAW as the result bet.

Also consider UNDER 2.5 goals available at 1.50 generally.