Major European football competitions are heating up as we hurtle towards the final third of the season.
The English Premier League, La Liga, Serie A and Champions League are all still up for grabs with a whole host of top Nigerian betting sites already setting forth their odds on who they think will be lifting the silverware.
Odds markets on a number of EPL teams have taken a massive upswing since Manchester City extended their unbeaten streak to 20 games in all competitions. Leading the line at Christmas, Manchester United have since been usurped by their crosstown rivals to top spot.
City have been backed as favourites by the bookies to win the Premier League since before the season started, but odds on the Sky Blues have dropped from around 2.00 back in September 2020 to just 1.01 at present day rates.
And it’s no wonder why. Manchester City have been massacring everyone that comes in their path, both at home and abroad. Pep Guardiola’s side haven’t been beaten since arch nemesis Jose Mourinho took them on back in November.
In fact City are so dominant that a number of bookmakers including Bet365 have recently published odds on the Manchester side completing a historic quadruple. Currently priced at around 10.0, backing City to pick up a record four trophies doesn’t seem like such an outside chance going forward.
City are currently 12 points adrift in the Premier League, set to go through to the quarter finals in the Champions League knockout stages, a League Cup final against Tottenham Hotspur lays in wait and Everton stand in their way in the FA Cup.
If Guardiola’s side pull it off they will go one better than rivals Manchester United who became the first team to win a treble of Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League back in 1999. Alex Ferguson’s side are still one of only four top sides to do so in European football, Guardiola’s Barcelona being one of them.
Although City are also favourites to pick up the Champions League at around 3.50 despite never having won it in their history, on paper it looks to be the most difficult competition for them to win.
Reigning champions Bayern Munich are priced as second favourites at around 4.25. Likewise, last year’s finalists Paris Saint-Germain are third favourites 6.00, followed by out of form giants Liverpool and Real Madrid.
Domestic season difficulties for the likes of PSG, Liverpool, Real Madrid, Barcelona and even Juventus in Serie A have helped boost the odds in the Champions League winner stakes. Many bookmakers are expecting the elite teams of Europe to put their focus on their European Champions League campaigns, rather than putting energies into domestic affairs as would normally be the case.
Should City see off Borussia Mönchengladbach in the second leg of the round of 16 they have Europe’s elite to contend with as we still await the draw for the quarter finals.
