The Champions League action is over for now and we’re back to Domestic play for our weekend European soccer preview for our football betting action this weekend at Wannamakeabet.com. Borussia Dortmund welcomes back Marco Reus for their clash with Bayer Leverkusen. And Manchester United hope to build on their recent success as they take on Liverpool. We’ve got your soccer betting trends, notes and tips to help you beat the books on the pitch this weekend. Don’t forget to join the Wannamakeabet.com season long 2019 Soccer Sports Betting Championship to bet on all the games with points instead of real money. Entry is free and you can win real cash! Click here and join today.
IS MAN U READY?
The climb back to respectability has been tough for Manchester United. And there’s still plenty of work to be done as they host Liverpool on Sunday in this weekend’s marquee English Premier League game. Man United has eight wins and a draw from their previous nine league matches. And yet they are still +200 underdogs at Old Trafford against a Liverpool side (+125) that enters the weekend even on points with table-leading Manchester City. Manchester United sit fourth in the table. That’s good for a berth in next year’s UEFA Champions League. But they still trail the leaders by 14 points.
TOUGH TIMES FOR JUVE
You don’t see Juventus lose all that often. But when they do, you can expect their next opponent to take a beating. That’s what Bologna is faced with as the 18th-place club in Serie A deal with the unenviable task of hosting a Juventus team coming off a disheartening 2-0 Champions League loss at Atletico Madrid this past weekend. Juventus (-225) have yet to lose a league game this season. And they lead the table by a whopping 13 points over runners-up Napoli. Bologna (+650), on the other hand, has just three victories from 24 matches and have scored just 19 goals on the season. This looks like an easy victory and retribution for Juventus coming off their loss.
(Update: Juve wins 1-0) Highlights below:
SLIDING SEVILLA
A long slide has all but removed Sevilla from championship contention in La Liga. They’ll need to be much better this weekend if they hope to get back on track as they host Barcelona to Ramon Sanchez-Pizjuan Stadium. Sevilla has slipped to fourth in the table with just one victory from their previous eight league matches. They’re hefty +250 underdogs in this match. Barcelona (-106) opened up a seven-point lead atop the standings, and have dominated the recent head-to-head series against Sevilla with nine victories in their previous 11 meetings.
SLIDING DORTMUND
Borussia Dortmund have seen their lead atop the Bundesliga standings shrink to an less-comfortable six points over Bayern Munich. They have the misfortune of facing one of the hottest teams in the league this weekend. Bayer Leverkusen carry a four-game win streak into Sunday’s marquee matchup at Signal Iduna Park (or Westfalenstadion, if you prefer), vaulting to fifth in the table. But the visiting side is a +280 underdog despite Dortmund (-120) having settled for a draw in each of their previous three league matches. Dortmund have three wins and a draw in the previous four meetings.
- It has been a dreadful stretch of road soccer for Fulham. They look to improve upon their eighth-place standing in the English Premier League at West Ham on Friday. Fulham have been losing at half-time and full-time in seven of their previous eight away matches in league play, and are +175 to fall victim to a West Ham-West Ham HT/FT double.
- Give Crystal Palace credit for keeping Leicester City off the scoresheet as the teams renew hostilities Saturday at King Power Stadium. The visitors have registered three consecutive clean sheets against Leicester, winning at half and full-time in all three matches. Bookies are giving Crystal Palace +250 odds of extending their shutout streak this weekend.
- Torino might just have the hottest defense going in Serie A action, carrying a four-game clean sheet streak into Saturday’s home encounter with Atalanta. Torino have held Inter Milan, SPAL, Udinese and Napoli without a goal over their previous four league matches, but are +275 underdogs to keep that run alive vs. Atalanta.
- Road trips have been major problems for Cagliari entering Sunday’s tilt at Sampdoria. Not only have the visitors been losing at half-time and full-time in each of their previous four league matches away from Sardegna Arena, they’ve failed to score in their past three. A Sampdoria-Sampdoria double is worth +187, with the home team shutout set at +137.
- Celta Vigo have given opposing teams plenty of opportunities to celebrate of late heading into their Saturday showdown with CD Alaves. The visitors have surrendered two or more goals in each of their previous eight away matches, coughing up a total of 20 goals over that stretch. Alaves are +137 to go over 1.5 goals scored, and +450 to pot three or more.
- Villarreal goal scorers might find it tough this weekend as they face a daunting visit to Wanda Metropolitano Stadium for a date with Atletico Madrid. Villarreal have been held without a goal in three straight away matches, while Atletico have 12 clean sheets in 18 home games across all competitions this season. Bettors are getting -110 odds on a home clean sheet.
- Allianz Arena might as well be the moon to Hertha Berlin, who visit Bayern Munich in a Saturday encounter. Hertha Berlin have gone four straight visits without a goal, settling for a single point while being outscored by a 6-0 tally in that span. Not only should bettors consider the Bayern shutout (-110), but the under-2.5-goal option is also in play at +220.
- Schalke are on a defensive roll against Mainz as the Bundesliga foes tangle Saturday. Host Mainz haven’t scored in their past five matches against Schalke, with four of those games finishing below the 2.5-goal threshold. As with the above match, there are strong plays here – you can either roll with the Schalke shutout (+240) or the straight Under (-110).
- INJURY UPDATES
- Borussia Dortmund is expected to have Marco Reus back in the lineup for this weekend’s pivotal showdown with Bayer Leverkusen. Reus, who has 13 goals in the Bundesliga this season, has been out of action since Feb. 5, with Dortmund going winless in five games without him. He’s listed at +700 to win the league goal-scoring title.
- Tottenham superstar Harry Kane is reportedly on the verge of returning to the lineup. Kane, who has been sidelined since mid-January, has returned to training well ahead of schedule and is hoping to see action this weekend when Spurs square off against Burnley. Tottenham sit third in the EPL table but will happily welcome back Kane, who has 20 goals across all competitions.
Simon Collins is a Futbol analyst for Wannamakeabet.com.