Wednesday night will see two sides advance to the quarter-finals and fans from all over Europe will be expecting another dramatic evening of Champions League action.
In Turkey, there probably won’t be any shocks – Bayern take a five goal lead into the second leg but Bestikas will want to play for pride in front of their home supporters.
But in the other last-16 clash, there is still everything to play for. Barcelona head into the second leg as favourites to progress but if anyone can mastermind Chelsea to a surprise win, it is Antonio Conte.
The tie is firmly in the balance at 1-1 and an early goal for the visitors could see Barca get nervous. Here are my thoughts on Wednesday’s double header:
BESIKTAS vs BAYERN MUNICH
Besiktas are now just three points behind Super Lig leaders Galatasaray and Senol Gunes’ side may decide to rest players in favour of their domestic efforts.
Having said that, the Turkish outfit know that victory over Bayern would be huge for morale and they will want to put on a show for the ardent Besiktas faithful.
Jupp Heynckes is a fantastic football manager and he has transformed Bayern into genuine Champions League contenders this season.
The Bavarians may also rest a couple of key men ahead of their clash against RB Leizpig. As is the norm, Bayern are clear at the top of the Bundesliga table but Heynckes will be taking no chances.
Predicting a result either way is tough so I’ll go with ‘NO’ in the both teams to score market at a very appealing 31/20. The gulf in class between the two sides was clear for all to see in the first leg and Bayern may go for the jugular here.
In some ways, Bayern have been Europe’s forgotten team this season; Manchester City, Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain have been in the limelight.
This is the ideal opportunity for Heynckes’ side to send out a real message to their Champions League rivals.
TIP: Both teams to score - NO @ 31/20
BARCELONA vs Chelsea
Still widely regarded as one of the best club sides on the planet, Barcelona are hard to look past in this contest. When you've got Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez in attack, you are usually difficult to oppose.
Clear at the top of La Liga, the Spanish giants are still very much in the hunt for another Champions League crown (9/2) – it would be foolish to back against them on current form.
Chelsea may come to rue Andreas Christensen’s mistake in the first leg. The Blues were 1-0 up with less than 15 minutes remaining when his individual error gifted Barcelona a way back into the tie.
Since then, Antonio Conte’s side lost successive Premier League fixtures against the two Manchester clubs but got back to winning ways against Crystal Palace. At the very least, Chelsea will be confident of scoring.
An exciting encounter awaits at Camp Nou and the travelling Chelsea supporters may be disappointed with the result.
Barcelona aren’t the invincible force that they were under Pep Guardiola but they are still very difficult to beat at home and Conte’s men will find it tough to stay focused throughout.
The EVS available for Barcelona to win a relatively high-scoring fixture represents solid value and punters should snap that price up. Goals are usually on the cards when these two teams go up against each other…
TIP: Barcelona to win and three or more goals in the match @ EVS
*Odds subject to change - correct at time of writing*
