Champions League Tips

Norway topped their group in impressive fashion, scoring eight times as they won all three matches. However, their defensive issues were notable, as they shipped five goals and failed to keep a clean sheet. Italy scored in all three games, but they were unable to shut out Portugal and Spain in their previous two matches.

Linfield need to overturn a 1-0 first-leg defeat, but the Blues have failed to keep a clean sheet in Europe across their last 11 attempts. The hosts have seen BTTS land in their last four home games in Europe, while Shelbourne have conceded over a goal per game on their travels in their domestic league this year.

Norway topped their group in impressive fashion, scoring eight times as they won all three matches. However, their defensive issues were notable, as they shipped five goals and failed to keep a clean sheet. Italy scored in all three games, but they were unable to shut out Portugal and Spain in their previous two matches.

Ludogorets won the first leg 1-0 and probably should have won by a bigger margin. That performance suggests they can get on the scoresheet in Belarus, and with 20 shots in the first leg, they can finish the job against Dinamo Minsk. The hosts should be able to find the net after notching 18 times in eight home domestic games, though.

These teams look fairly evenly matched but home advantage gives Kilmarnock a clear edge. Killie ended last season with three wins in their final four home games and can see off newly-promoted Livingston in this cup tie at Rugby Park.

There have been at least three goals scored in nine of Glimt’s last 11 Eliteserien games and Fredrikstad’s league fixtures average exactly 2.5 goals per-game. Both of these teams should be able to contribute and they can combine for at least three goals.

Larne may have missed their chance after a 0-0 draw in the first leg. The Northern Irish outfit have lost seven of their last eight European away games and they were well beaten by Auda’s domestic rivals RFS in Champions League qualifying last season, going down 7-0 on aggregate. Auda have a decent home record domestically and can make home advantage count.

Justin Thomas has struggled in his last two Masters starts – no surprise given the downturn in his form generally – but he ended 2024 by finishing second and third in his last two events. He’s well suited to Augusta, where his approach play and scrambling ability are huge assets.

Rory McIlroy’s first PGA Tour title came at the Charlotte venue in 2010 and he’s gone on to win the Wells Fargo Championship at the course on a further three occasions. He is comfortable at Quail Hollow and looks an obvious title threat if he can hold it together mentally.

A runner-up in 2022 and third in 2023, the exacting test which the US Open usually provides should prove to be ideal for such a marvellous ball-striker as Scottie Scheffler.

Tommy Fleetwood is one of the best exponents of links golf in the world, finishing in the top 12 in four of the last six Opens. Expect him to make another bold run at the Claret Jug come July.

Aryna Sabalenka dominated the hard courts on the WTA tour last year, winning 40 of her 49 matches on the surface, and she claimed both the Australian Open and US Open titles. She can be devastating in Melbourne, winning 27 of her last 28 matches at the Grand Slam in the last three seasons.

Iga Swiatek remains the undisputed queen of clay on the WTA tour. The Pole has won the title at Roland Garros three seasons running as well as in 2020 and she has lost just twice in 37 matches at the clay-court Grand Slam.

Last season’s ATP Tour was pretty much dominated by Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz, who each won two of the four Grand Slam titles, and between them it should be another stellar year. Alcaraz reigned supreme at Wimbledon, making it back-to-back titles at the All England Club, and Novak Djokovic’s obvious decline at 37 years of age makes the Spaniard a worthy favourite to rack up the hat-trick.

At the back end of a gruelling season, the US Open can sometimes throw up strange results and there are often surprises before the September silverware is eventually secured. It could, therefore, be worth going against the head of the market and hard-court specialist Daniil Medvedev ticks plenty of boxes at a nice price.

America de Cali may have finished third in their Copa Sudamerica group, but they didn’t lose a single group-stage match and may be able to frustrate Bahia in the first leg of this tie. Bahia, who won just two of their group games in the Copa Libertadores, face a tough task against a side that have only lost one of their last 16 in all competitions.

America de Cali may have finished third in their Copa Sudamerica group, but they didn’t lose a single group-stage match and may be able to frustrate Bahia in the first leg of this tie. Bahia, who won just two of their group games in the Copa Libertadores, face a tough task against a side that have only lost one of their last 16 in all competitions.

Vasco da Gama won their most recent away game, but before that they had lost eight and drawn two of their previous ten games, including defeats away to Lanus and Puerto Cabello in Copa Sudamerica. Independiente del Valle, who finished third in their Copa Libertadores group, took seven points from a possible nine at home in the group stages and have won five, drawn three, and lost just one of their last nine competitive home games.

Auda’s last six home wins have all come by more than one goal and four of those victories have been 2-0 successes, so a ‘job done’ 2-0 win for the Latvian outfit appeals.

These two sides drew home and away in qualifying, while Norway are facing a bigger challenge after winning all three group games. Italy scored exactly once in all three of their group matches, so back this to finish 1-1.

There have been at least three goals scored in nine of Glimt’s last 11 Eliteserien games and Fredrikstad’s league fixtures average exactly 2.5 goals per-game. Both of these teams should be able to contribute and they can combine for at least three goals.

Larne may have missed their chance after a 0-0 draw in the first leg. The Northern Irish outfit have lost seven of their last eight European away games and they were well beaten by Auda’s domestic rivals RFS in Champions League qualifying last season, going down 7-0 on aggregate. Auda have a decent home record domestically and can make home advantage count.

There have been at least three goals scored in nine of Glimt’s last 11 Eliteserien games and Fredrikstad’s league fixtures average exactly 2.5 goals per-game. Both of these teams should be able to contribute and they can combine for at least three goals.

Ludogorets won the first leg 1-0 and probably should have won by a bigger margin. That performance suggests they can get on the scoresheet in Belarus and Minsk also look capable of grabbing a goal as they have scored 18 goals in eight home games in their domestic league.

Glimt have three wins in their last five games and look to be getting back on track after their Europa League run impacted on their domestic hopes. Fredrikstad have just one win in their last eight and may fall short as they bid to back up a sensational win over Molde, but they should be able to contribute to the goal count.

Kasper Hogh had three goals disallowed last time out before finally getting on the scoresheet in the second half, and the 24-year-old has now scored in five of his last eight Eliteserien fixtures.

Girelli scored against Portugal in the group stage, which was her 58th international goal. She came off the bench to get a good chance against Spain, while she led Italy in terms of xG generated against Belgium in their opene

Linfield need to overturn a 1-0 first-leg defeat, but the Blues have failed to keep a clean sheet in Europe across their last 11 attempts. The hosts have seen BTTS land in their last four home games in Europe, while Shelbourne have conceded over a goal per game on their travels in their domestic league this year.

Norway topped their group in impressive fashion, scoring eight times as they won all three matches. However, their defensive issues were notable, as they shipped five goals and failed to keep a clean sheet. Italy scored in all three games, but they were unable to shut out Portugal and Spain in their previous two matches.

Ludogorets won the first leg 1-0 and probably should have won by a bigger margin. That performance suggests they can get on the scoresheet in Belarus, and with 20 shots in the first leg, they can finish the job against Dinamo Minsk.

These teams look fairly evenly matched but home advantage gives Kilmarnock a clear edge. Killie ended last season with three wins in their final four home games and can see off newly-promoted Livingston in this cup tie at Rugby Park.

Ludogorets won the first leg 1-0 and probably should have won by a bigger margin. That performance suggests they can get on the scoresheet in Belarus and Minks also look capable of grabbing a goal as they have scored 18 goals in eight home games in their domestic league.

Norway topped their group in impressive fashion, scoring eight times as they won all three matches. However, their defensive issues were notable, as they shipped five goals and failed to keep a clean sheet. Italy scored in all three games, but they were unable to shut out Portugal and Spain in their previous two matches.

Linfield need to overturn a 1-0 first-leg defeat, but the Blues have failed to keep a clean sheet in Europe across their last 11 attempts. The hosts have seen BTTS land in their last four home games in Europe, while Shelbourne have conceded over a goal per game on their travels in their domestic league this year.

Only champions Liverpool are a shorter price than Tottenham to win their opening Premier League fixture and I think I would look to oppose Spurs.Of course, a home tie against Burnley appears a fairly kind fixture, but I wouldn’t be surprised if the Clarets, who conceded only 16 goals in 46 Championship matches last term, were difficult to break down.The decision to replace Ange Postecoglou with Thomas Frank wasn’t met with unanimous euphoria in north London and it could take a while for Spurs to find their stride.

Brentford have a busy summer ahead as they plan for a future after Thomas Frank but they should be ready for the opening weekend of the season and can start with a win against Nottingham Forest at the City Ground.The Bees might be without Bryan Mbeumo, who has been heavily linked with a move to Manchester United, but they are usually a step ahead when it comes to player recruitment and are likely to assemble a strong squad over the next few weeks.Forest will be in for a tough game and they might struggle to shrug off the disappointment of missing out on Champions League qualification.The Tricky Trees have taken one point from their last four home games and they could be stung by the Bees.

Despite little expectation, there was plenty of promise in Fabian Hurzeler’s first season at the Amex and it would be no surprise to see a young Brighton side take another forward step next term.The Seagulls saw out the campaign by drawing with Newcastle and beating West Ham, Wolves, Liverpool and Tottenham in their final five matches and they have already added Sunderland’s playoff hero Tommy Watson and Italy Under-21 centre-back Diego Coppola to a strong squad.Fulham, meanwhile, lost five of their last seven matches of the season, only beating Southampton and Brentford, and are yet to bring in any new faces, suggesting an opening-day defeat may be on the cards for the Cottagers.

Pep Guardiola must adapt his usual pre-season plans due to Manchester City’s involvement in the Club World Cup and the Citizens could drop points in a tricky opening assignment at Wolves.City made hard work of May’s 1-0 home victory over Wolves, who hit the woodwork twice at the Etihad Stadium, and they needed a 95th-minute John Stones winner at Molineux in October.Wolves sold forward Matheus Cunha to Manchester United and left-back Rayan Ait-Nouri to City but their recruitment has been good in recent years and they won ten of their 22 league matches after Vitor Pereira’s arrival in December.

Leeds were the highest-scoring side in last season’s Championship, but they may find the going tougher in the top flight, and they could kick off their season with a low-scoring affair at Elland Road.Ten of Everton’s final 12 games of 2024/25 featured fewer than three goals, and their away games throughout last season averaged a Premier League low of 1.95 goals per game. A mere 26 per cent of them went over 2.5 goals, and no team outside the top four conceded fewer goals than the Toffees.

Liverpool won by at least two goals in nine of their 14 home victories last season, while they comfortably saw off Bournemouth home and away. The Cherries lost 3-0 at Anfield and 2-0 at home to the Reds, despite enjoying a successful campaign.Bournemouth have already sold Dean Huijsen to Real Madrid, while Liverpool are pursuing their left-back Milos Kerkez. The Reds will have plenty of time to bed in their new signings, while Andoni Iraola’s side will likely start this campaign weakened at the back. Back the champions to lay down a marker in their opener.

Montse Tome’s side look to have a much easier group that contains Italy, Portugal and Belgium, especially as they put 19 goals past the latter two in four Nations League meetings this season. Spain have demonstrated they know how to bottle a winning formula and they look strong candidates to add to their trophy collection.

Tadej Pogacar has been nigh on unbeatable since winning a third yellow jersey, claiming the world championship title and three Monuments, and he looks capable of landing this year’s Tour de France.

Lando Norris is yet to win around Silverstone, but the 25-year-old has outperformed team-mate Oscar Piastri in each of their two British Grands Prix at McLaren, finishing third here last year and second the year before, both times over 12 seconds ahead of the Australian.

Ryan Fox looks an excellent each-way bet at generous odds. Fox has claimed PGA Tour titles at the Myrtle Beach Classic and the Canadian Open since the start of May. He is a proven links specialist, winning the Dunhill Links in 2022 – where three of the four rounds are played on Open venues – and he was 16th at Portrush in 2019.

Oleksandr Usyk already has one KO win over Daniel Dubois on his CV and he can remove any controversy over that result with another stoppage in the rematch. The Ukrainian is too slick to get caught by Dubois and has the power and accuracy to win without needing the scorecards.

Peterhead were beaten 4-2 by Scottish Championship side Morton in their opener and lost their final two away games in League Two last season. Motherwell won three and drew two of their final five home matches.

Norway topped their group in impressive fashion, scoring eight times as they won all three matches. However, their defensive issues were notable, as they shipped five goals and failed to keep a clean sheet. Italy scored in all three games, but they were unable to shut out Portugal and Spain in their previous two matches.

These two sides drew 2-2 in the first leg, while St Joseph’s scored home and away against Shelbourne in Europe last season.

Spain scored 14 times in the group stage, but they’ve conceded in 10 of their last 11 games. With home advantage, the Swiss can get on the scoresheet.

KFUM have scored in all but one of their home matches this term, while Brann have kept only one clean sheet on their travels. The hosts have conceded in all but three of their Eliteserien matches so far, so back both teams to score.

Bottom side Haugesund are cut adrift at the bottom, but they’ve scored in four of their seven trips. Valerenga have seen BTTS in their last four home matches, so back goals.