This week’s free OddsDigger PFC CSKA Moscow vs SL Benfica preview examines a match that means far more to one side than it does to the other. With Manchester United running away with UEFA Champion’s League Group A, the race is on to secure that all-important second qualification spot. Qualification is within a touching distance for the Russians who know that a win would go a long way to securing the runners-up spot, especially with their rivals for the position, Basel, facing a tough fixture on Wednesday against Mourinho’s United.
Our partners: Secure, respectable, and player-friendly – those are the three things that come to mind when discussing no deposit keep what you win casino 777Spinslot.
PFC CSKA Moscow are locked on six points after four matches, having won two and lost two of their fixtures since September. Currently, the only thing keeping them from second spot is goal difference, with Swiss side Basel holding them off largely thanks to their 5-0 demolition of Benfica during the second round of Group games. Interestingly, Viktor Goncharenko’s troops have lost both of their clashes at the VEB Arena but have won both contests on the road.
Benfica supporters have had to endure one of their worst ever European campaigns in 2017/18. Eyebrows were raised when they were beaten 2-1 at home by their opponents this week on the opening night of the Champions League, but it was their dismal 0-5 annihilation against Basel that really set the cat amongst the pigeons. Since then, they have had to play catch-up, though a double header against Man Utd put paid any hopes of recovery for the Portuguese giants, who lost both meetings with the Red Devils. Find our selection of free PFC CSKA Moscow vs SL Benfica betting tips below.
Our PFC CSKA Moscow vs SL Benfica bets have been strongly influenced by the respective teams’ motivations for Wednesday’s night match-up. Everything is on the line for the home team, who know that only a victory will suffice in their attempts to secure a place in the Champions League knock out stages. The visitors to the VEB Arena have nothing to play for and may save their energy for more pressing matters in the Primeira División at the weekend.
Even though Viktor Goncharenko’s squad have lost 100% of their Group A home matches to date, their record while playing in Russia is generally quite good. For a club that doesn’t progress too deeply into the latter stages of the competition, four defeats from fourteen duels on home soil is a respectable record. Their Portuguese adversaries are used to struggling outside the Iberian Peninsula – SLB have won just three times from their last twenty-three European away trips. 10Bet have some amazing Champions League football odds this week, including a great price to use with our first expert pick.
The away team analysed in our free PFC CSKA Moscow vs SL Benfica predictions have only scored once this season in the Champions League and that goal came in their first Group match against the Russian outfit. Despite their awful away results in general, SLB have actually managed to plunder at least one goal in seven of their last eleven matches on the road. The home team’s defensive statistics also played a part in forming our second pick today.
Remarkably, the Muscovites have only stopped their opponents from scoring twice in their last thirty-one UCL battles at the VEB Arena. We can add weight to that extraordinary stat by pointing out that the Koni haven’t kept a clean sheet in any of their Group A attempts so far. Their backline has been breached six times in front of their own supporters already, that’s an average of three goals per ninety minutes. With the phenomenal prices available at Ladbrokes, our final pick is one of the best European football tips around. Dafabet beat the competition for value, placing them as the number one bookmaker for this prediction.