Betting tips

[W.HI.P]

Arsenal 0-0 AC Milan
Nesta ,Oddo, Maldini, Kaladze the defencive line
Seedorf and Gattuso are 2 of the greatest defencive midfielders in the world.
Defencivly speaking, Milan is of the absolute elite!
Lets not forget Berlusconi.
The Italians will progress.

Fenerbahce 3-2 Sevilla
As I said before, Sevilla is to strong at home, and in this case, all they need is a win. It should come easy.

Celtic 2-3 Barcelona
Good try by the Scott's, but hope has now faded away.

Lyonnais 1-1 Man Utd
Lyon needs to score in England, but they gotta be carefull.
The English have the advantage at this time.
I will be rooting for the French in this one.

[lookout123]

I have to root for man united, just because I need them to stay in this competition for awhile longer. If they can focus solely on premiership title, it will make the run in even harder.

[W.HI.P]

I hate to bust your bubble.
In european countries, although in the fans eyes, the local league is seen as important, European competition is the one and only way to truly judge a team.
The serious European franchises have one concentration for a season.
Uefa leagues.
It is where the greatest representatives of European countries compete againt each other.
Teams are obligated to rest prior to a CL game.
This is why we have so many favorites loosing to small teams, especialy when the CL is coming down to its end.
It is also why teams that finish 3rd and 4th in their local competitions do so well when Europe is watching.
Coef's are carefully considered by high representatives of the sport in each country, bringing fourth interventions prior to CL games.
Interventions that include communications regarding avoiding injuries etc in these small local (Meaningless) challenges.

Very few elite teams(Arsenal, Bayern Munich), seem to run franchises with different priorities.

Here is a way, one can rank the teams of a country.
I'l use England as an example.... how about this year?

Lets say Arsenal win the Premier league.
Chelsea beats Liverpool in the Champions league semi-final.
Milan Beats Chelsea in the Final of the Champions league.

The rankings of 2008 would be:
1)Chelsea
2)Liverpool
3)Arsenal
4)Man Utd

You would feel good about your team winning the premier league, but your team would clearly be behind the 2 superior teams who represented England in the only league that counts.

[lookout123]

That's one way of looking at it, and it certainly makes the most sense from the avenue you approach the sport - wagers. League play wouldn't have the big exciting playoff - the championship game so it would seem less important. But here is the thing - UEFA cups are just that - CUPS. There is a very large dose of luck of the draw thrown in. A team can potentially make it to the final having not played any of the "great" teams. At the same time a great team may be knocked out early on by simply having a bad night. Teams often play different tactics in the tournament because of that risk. It is overly defensive and often fails to produce exciting games. But it is a glamour event and gets a lot of attention.

League play is about quality and consistency. Each team plays every other team twice - home and away. Those that play the best throughout the season rise to the top. There is no chance of a lucky or unlucky draw deciding the title holder. Inevitably a couple of teams of the highest quality end up battling it out over the last few weeks.

Anyway, rankings can be misleading - afterall the US national team rose something like 20 places a couple of years ago without even playing a game during that timeframe.

This is why we have so many favorites loosing to small teams, especialy when the CL is coming down to its end.

This phenomenon makes perfect sense when you realize that the big teams are expected to produce silverware every year. When they get towards the end of the campaign they have to prioritize. Liverpool for instance is never in the running for the League, so they rest players during league games and pin ALL their hopes for glory on the CL.

[W.HI.P]

Originally Posted by lookout123

Teams often play different tactics in the tournament because of that risk. It is overly defensive and often fails to produce exciting games. But it is a glamour event and gets a lot of attention.

On the internet, and in life, I find few who truly examine this sport properly.
This game is about defence.
If you find the Italian style (Italy, AC Milan) of play boring, well you wll be disapointed, because, those are the teams that hold the titles at this time, and those are the teams to beat, as they are the best.
Its their defence that makes them the best.
This sport has changed.
S.american footbal has died, as did the nations who represent that continent.
Europe is where footbal lives, as leagues and nations.

League play is about quality and consistency. Each team plays every other team twice - home and away. Those that play the best throughout the season rise to the top. There is no chance of a lucky or unlucky draw deciding the title holder. Inevitably a couple of teams of the highest quality end up battling it out over the last few weeks.

What I am saying, is that the elite teams in european leagues, are not interested in the title, allowing a smaller team to win it.

In Italy, rarely does the best team, win the campionato.
They really do have their priorities straight in Italy, but then again, politics is involved.
In England, the same thing.
Very rarely do we see the #1 ranked team in England, win he Premiership. Again, its about having priorities straight.
Arsenal would be the only elite team in England who see things differently... of course, we can blame Wenger.
In Greece, lol, Olympiakos wins the league every year, however,its Panathinaikos that has done wonders in Europe.
Reaching CL Semi's and Q-Finals while the greek champion have a 6-23 goal differential in Europe.

This phenomenon makes perfect sense when you realize that the big teams are expected to produce silverware every year. When they get towards the end of the campaign they have to prioritize. Liverpool for instance is never in the running for the League, so they rest players during league games and pin ALL their hopes for glory on the CL.

Reality check!
The success of finishing in the top 4 in England is obtaining a ticket to the Champions league.
1st 2nd 3rd and 4th place, are pretty much the same thing.
Believe me, Franchises do not depend on Winning leagues for the prize money... thats pocket change.
Liverpool have their priorities 100% on the champions league.

Let me give it to you this way.
If Liverpool had Wenger, they would have won all 75% of Premier league titles, yet, they would have not made it to any CL final.

Understand the money aspect of a franchise.
Most money is generated by being on late CL stages.
This exposure and success raises the value of all players involved.
This kind of economical gain outweighs by far any economical success of winning the premier league.

[W.HI.P]

Premier League(England) / Serie A(Italy) / Primera Division(Spain)

This is the point in time where one can start making money on European Soccer.
The Champions league is coming down to its end.
Teams involved in the competition, when competing in their own leagues usually concentrate on staying healthy, and taking it easy.
A win is not a must.
So I'll bring forth teams who have proven throughout history that they have their priorities straight.

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West Ham vs Chelsea

Draw = 3.20
West Ham win = 4.33

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Roma vs Parma

Draw = 3.30
Parma Win = 5.50

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AC Milan vs Lazio

Draw = 3.00
Lazio Win = 4.20

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Napoli vs Inter Milan

Draw = 3.00
Napoli Win = 4.00

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Deportivo La Coruna vs Sevilla

Draw = 3.10
Deportivo Win = 2.87

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Rec Huelva vs Real Madrid

Draw = 3.25
Huelva Win = 3.80

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[lookout123]

Chelsea has little chance and Milan has no chance of taking their leagues so their hopes are all pinned on the CL. Milan plays arsenal 72 hours later so I expect they will rest their top players. Good calls there.

Inter and Real Madrid can't afford to slip up in their leagues so the game will still be a priority for them, I'd expect them to pull out a result. They'll each rest key players but they'll still have enough in them I think.