Chelsea vs Bayern Munich - prediction and betting preview

The big match in the Champions League on Tuesday evening, from an English point of view, is the one from Stamford Bridge, where Chelsea take on the Bundesliga leaders Bayern Munich in the first leg of their last 16 tie. Such an encounter carries plenty of wagering opportunities with it, and here are our best betting tips for the contest.

Londoners unconvincing at present

This will be a big test for Chelsea. They regularly seem to dominate matches, especially at home, but their wastefulness in front of goal soon has them on the back foot and costs them dearly. They have already paid the price for that in the Champions League this term, when being all over Valencia in the group stage, only to lose the game.

German side full of confidence

Bayern Munich will head to London full of confidence. They are going well in the Bundesliga, and they came through their Champions League group with a perfect record, winning all six matches, bagging 24 goals and conceding only five. They are considered genuine dark horses for the competition outright, and based on the way they are playing it is hard to dispute that.

Bundesliga better than Premier League this season

There have been three occasions when Bundesliga sides have faced Premier League teams in the Champions League this term, and two more clashes in the Europa League, with the German sides winning four of those games, three of them in England. Bayern themselves went to Tottenham and won 7-2, Red Bull Leipzig won 1-0 at Tottenham and Eintracht Frankfurt beat Arsenal 2-1 at the Emirates Stadium.

Verdict

Bayern will begin this first leg as the favourites not just to win the tie, but to head back to the Allianz Arena for the return game with the advantage. It is hard to argue against that based on what we have seen this season. Chelsea leak goals far too regularly, and while they create chances, are having a tough time scoring. Munich have no such issues. They are free-scoring but they do not sacrifice anything defensively to get into those positions, making them tough to beat.
If you take Liverpool aside, the Premier League looks pretty ordinary in comparison to its German equivalent this term, so Bayern are taken to win the game. For those punters who don’t like backing odds on shots, the German giants are 2/1 to win by two goals or more which also appeals.