Bayern Munich vs Real Madrid Preview - Champions League Preview and Odds

Published on: 25/04/2018

Bayern Munich vs Real Madrid Preview - Champions League Preview and Odds

April 25th 2018 19:45 Allianz Arena

Champions League

Wednesday night`s Champions League semi-final will be a real clash of the titans as five-time winners Bayern Munich take on a Real Madrid side gunning for their 13th title.

Bayern Munich will look to build an advantage on home soil before they head to Madrid for the second leg next week. The German side are 22 points clear at the top of the Bundesliga table and have not been beaten at home in the league in more than two years. In this competition, they have lost just one of their 22 home matches but that defeat came against Zidane`s men.

While Jupp Heynckes` men are already celebrating the league title, their Spanish opponenets are currently sat in third place in La Liga after a disappointing campaign. Heynckes was drafted in on a temporary basis after Carlo Ancelotti was dismissed in the autumn. Since then, the club has gone from strength to strength.

Robert Lewandowski has scored 38 goals from 42 games this season and will be the key man for the home side. He has a good record against the Spanish giants having netted several goals against them including four in the 2012/13 semi-finals.

Meanwhile, Real Madrid will arrive in Bavaria knowing they have had the upper hand over the Germans in recent years. They have won all of their last five matches against them and defeated them on the way to their 2014 and 2017 triumphs.

Real Madrid were just seconds away from being taken to extra-time in the second leg of their quarter-final against Juventus before an a controversial injury-time penalty from Cristiano Ronaldo saw them through. However, they will be conscious that they nearly threw away a three-goal advantage in front of their own fans.

The Spanish side have not been at their best domestically but if they bring home another Champions League trophy, there will be few complaints.

Cristiano Ronaldo is back to his goal-scoring best having netted 14 times in his last 15 Champions League appearances, five more than Liverpool`s Mo Salah in one less game. If he can maintain that form it could help his side to become the first team to win three European titles years in a row since Bayern achieved that feat in 1974, 1975 and 1976.

Recent Form (All comps)

Bayern Munich: WWWDW

Real Madrid: WDLWD

Betting odds and tips

This will be a tight match but Bayern are one of the strongest home sides in Europe and Real Madrid have been below their best all term.

The home win with over 2.5 goals looks like the best bet.

By Neil Morris