French Champions Bordeaux travel to Olympiakos tonight in the first leg of their first knock out round clash. Bordeaux have been performing well this season, and are currently top of Ligue 1, three points ahead with a game in hand. Olympiakos are coming second in the Greek Super League, two points behind arch-rivals Panathinaikos.
Olympiakos’ best performance in Europe in recent years was in 1999 when they reached the quarter-finals, and the last time they reached the knock-out stages they were defeated by Chelsea. Bordeaux’s finest moment in Europe was reaching the UEFA Cup final in 1996.
The odds for the match are very close, with Bordeaux edging it as slight favourites, priced at 8/5 with Paddy Power (bet £50 to make £80 profit). The home side are at 2/1 with William Hill, and the draw is generally available at 9/4.
As well as being favourites for the match, Bordeaux are comfortable favourites to qualify from the tie, priced at 2/5. You can back Olympiakos to qualify at 12/5 with Betfair.
The game is set to be very close, and a 1-1 draw is the favourite scoreline at 11/2. A 1-0 win for either side is widely available at 7/1, and a goalless draw is at 15/2. A 2-1 win for les Girondins is a 10/1 shot, and the same scoreline in Olympiakos’ favour is at 11/1. A 2-0 win is at 12/1 for Bordeaux with Sky Bet, and at 14/1 for Olympiakos.
The teams’ similarity is emphasised on the half time / full time market, where draw / draw is the favourite spot, priced at 4/1. Bordeaux / Bordeaux is also at 4/1, and Olympiakos / Olympiakos is at 9/2. The teams are both at 5/1 to be drawing at half time and winning at full time, and at 16/1 to be winning at half time and drawing at full time.
Marouane Chamakh, who has been heavily linked with a move to the Premiership, is the favourite to open the scoring, priced at 13/2, and his strike partner Fernando Cavenaghi is at 7/1 to score first. Konstinatis Mitroglou is the best bet for Olympiakos at 7/1, and former Blackburn striker Matt Derbyshire is at 15/2. Bordeaux’s star player, Yohann Gourcuff is priced at 8/1 to score first.
Neither team is particularly fancied to win the competition, with Bordeaux at 33/1 with Betfair, and Olympiakos at 259/1. Bordeaux could be worth backing at that price, and have picked up some great results, recording aggregate wins over both Bayern Munich and Juventus in the group stages. They could be backed now and laid at a later date for guaranteed profit, and have a good chance of mounting a serious challenge.
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