Well now, the first leg of those games are set to be played across Tuesday and Wednesday nights this week and as promised, we are going to give you an in-depth rundown of both games, as well as our up to the minute tips on how each will go in that crucial first leg.
Both games see English sides facing Spanish opposition, with Manchester City taking on the most decorated team in the competition’s history, while in the other semifinal, Liverpool, a six-time winner of the tournament, will host Villarreal.
The two legs of these semifinal ties will be played over the next couple of weeks and we will bring you all the details of how the first legs turned out in our article next week previewing the second legs.
But for now, we are going to take a much more in depth look at each semifinalists performance in the Champions League this season and of course, give you some of our top tips, with the odds taken from bet365 Sport.
Remember, while the odds were correct at the time of writing, they may have changed in the meantime.
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Champions League Semi Finals 1st Leg
Tuesday 26th April
Manchester City v Real Madrid
Manchester City
Champions League Stats 2021/22
Games Played – 10
Games Won – 6
Games Drawn – 2
Games Lost – 2
Goals Scored – 24
Goals Conceded – 8
Leading Goalscorer – Riyad Mahrez – 6 goals
Champions League 2021/22 Results
Group Stage 1 – v Red Bull Leipzig (H) – W 6-3 (Ake 16, Mukiele OG 28, Mahrez 45(p), Grealish 56, Cancelo 75, Jesus 85)
Group Stage 2 – v Paris St Germain (A) – L 0-2
Group Stage 3 – v Club Brugge (A) – W 5-1 (Cancelo 30, Mahrez 43(p),84, Walker 53, Palmer 67)
Group Stage 4 – v Club Brugge (H) – W 4-1 (Foden 15, Mahrez 54, Sterling 72, Jesus 90)
Group Stage 5 – v Paris St Germain (H) – W 2-1 (Sterling 63, Jesus 76)
Group Stage 6 – v Red Bull Leipzig (A) – L 1-2 (Mahrez 76)
Round of 16 1st Leg – v Sporting Lisbon (A) – W 5-0 (Mahrez 7, Silva.B 7,44, Foden 32, Sterling 58)
Round of 16 2nd Leg – v Sporting Lisbon (H) – D 0-0
Quarter Final 1st Leg – v Atletico Madrid (H) – W 1-0 – De Bruyne (70)
Quarter Final 2nd Leg – v Atletico Madrid (A) – D 0-0
Real Madrid
Champions League Stats 2021/22
Games Played – 10
Games Won – 7
Games Drawn – 0
Games Lost – 3
Goals Scored – 22
Goals Conceded – 8
Leading Goalscorer – Karim Benzema – 12 goals
Champions League 2021/22 Results
Group Stage 1 – v Inter Milan (A) – W 1-0 – (Rodrygo 89)
Group Stage 2 – v Sheriff Tiraspol (H) – L 1-2 – (Benzema 65(p))
Group Stage 3 – v Shakhtar Donetsk (A) – W 5-0 (Kryvtsov OG 37, Vini Jr 51,56, Rodrygo 65, Benzema 90)
Group Stage 4 – v Shakhtar Donetsk (H) – W 2-1 (Benzema 14,61)
Group Stage 5 – v Sheriff Tiraspol (A) – W 3-0 (Alaba 30, Kroos 45, Benzema 55)
Group Stage 6 – v Inter Milan (H) – W 2-0 (Kroos 17, Asensio 79)
Round of 16 1st Leg – v Paris St Germain (A) – L 0-1
Round of 16 2nd Leg – v Paris St Germain (H) – W 3-1 (Benzema 61,76,78)
Quarter Final 1st Leg – v Chelsea (A) – W 3-1 (Benzema 21,24,46)
Quarter Final 2nd Leg – v Chelsea (H) – L 2-3 (aet) (Rodrygo 80, Benzema 96)
Manchester City v Real Madrid – Head To Head Record
Played – 6 games
Manchester City Wins – 2
Draws – 2
Real Madrid Wins – 2
Manchester City Goals – 7
Real Madrid Goals – 7
First Leg Preview
Real Madrid will be hoping that Karim Benzema can continue his hot-streak of form in the knockout stages and they are going to need him to as they go head to head with Manchester City, who are many people’s favourites to win the trophy this season.
Real have probably been somewhat fortunate to beat PSG and Chelsea in the last two games, taking advantage of some poor defensive play by both opponents to score goals at key junctures of the game. However, that resilience is going to be put to the test here against a Manchester City side who are desperate to land the biggest trophy in club football.
City got the better of Real when the two teams met back in 2020 in the quarterfinals, winning home and away by a 2-1 scoreline, and I think they will be more than happy to take any advantage into the second leg at the Bernebeu.
So for me, I am backing a City win here which is 9/20 with bet365 Sport, and for a correct score option, I am going to go for a 3-1 win for City on the night which is 11/1. Phil Foden to score at any time at 8/5 is another enticing bet to consider here.
Wednesday 27th April
Liverpool v Villarreal
Liverpool
Champions League Stats 2021/22
Games Played – 10
Games Won – 8
Games Drawn – 1
Games Lost – 1
Goals Scored – 25
Goals Conceded – 11
Leading Goalscorer – Mo Salah – 8 goals
Champions League 2021/22 Results
Group Stage 1 – v AC Milan (H) – W 3-2 (Tomori OG 9, Salah 48, Henderson 69)
Group Stage 2 – v FC Porto (A) – W 5-1 (Salah 18,60, Mane 45, Firmino 77.81)
Group Stage 3 – v Atletico Madrid (A) – W 3-2 (Salah 8,78(p), Keita 13)
Group Stage 4 – v Atletico Madrid (H) – W 2-0 (Jota 13, Mane 21)
Group Stage 5 – v FC Porto (H) – W 2-0 (Thiago 52, Salah 70)
Group Stage 6 – v AC Milan (A) – W 2-1 (Salah 36, Origi 55)
Round of 16 1st Leg – v Inter Milan (A) – W 2-0 (Firmino 75, Salah 83)
Round of 16 2nd Leg – v Inter Milan (H) – L 0-1
Quarter Final 1st Leg – v Benfica (A) – W 3-1 (Konate 17, Mane 34, Diaz 87)
Quarter Final 2nd Leg – v Benfica (H) – D 3-3 (Konate 21, Firmino 55,65)
Villarreal
Champions League Stats 2021/22
Games Played – 10
Games Won – 5
Games Drawn – 3
Games Lost – 2
Goals Scored – 18
Goals Conceded – 11
Leading Goalscorer – Danjuma – 6 goals
Champions League 2021/22 Results
Group Stage 1 – v Atalanta (H) – D 2-2 – (Trigueros 39, Danjuma 73)
Group Stage 2 – v Manchester United (A) – L 1-2 (Alcacer 53)
Group Stage 3 – v Young Boys (A) – W 4-1 (Pino 6, Moreno 16, Moreno.A 88, Chukwueze 90)
Group Stage 4 – v Young Boys (H) – W 2-0 (Capoue 36, Danjuma 89)
Group Stage 5 – v Manchester United (H) – L 0-2
Group Stage 6 – v Atalanta (A) – W 3-2 (Danjuma 3,51, Capoue 42)
Round of 16 1st Leg – v Juventus (H) – D 1-1 (Parejo 66)
Round of 16 2nd Leg – v Juventus (A) – W 3-0 (Moreno 78(p), Torres 85, Danjuma 90)
Quarter Final 1st Leg – v Bayern Munich (H) – W 1-0 (Danjuma 8)
Quarter Final 2nd Leg – v Bayern Munich (A) – D 1-1 (Chukwueze 88)
Liverpool v Villarreal – Head To Head Record
Played – 2 games
Liverpool Wins – 1
Draws – 0
Villarreal Wins – 1
Liverpool Goals – 3
Villarreal Goals – 1
First Leg Preview
Villarreal have proven themselves more than worthy of a place in the semifinals of this competition by eliminating Juventus and Bayern Munich from the tournament, but they now face an arguably even tougher test against a bang in-form Liverpool team.
The Reds have come through with wins in their last three games against Man City, Man Utd and Everton and with Anfield set to be feverish for another Champions League semifinal, this is arguably going to be the biggest test Villarreal have faced in the tournament so far.
The Spanish side will try to defend their way to a result here and look to hit on the counterattack but I think Liverpool are used to that now and if the Reds can score early, inside the first 20 minutes or so, then this could be an uncomfortable night for the Spanish side.
However, I am not sure they will so I am backing Liverpool to land the win here at 2/7 and a 2-0 correct score option is an 11.2 shot. Luis Diaz to score a goal at any time is also worth a look at 6/4.
Join us next week when we review how both semifinal first leg ties went this week and give you our preview and key tips for the crucial second leg of the semifinals in Spain.
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Ian John is a seasoned Sports Writer and UK gambling expert with over a decade of experience at Bonus Code Poker. For the past 10 years, he has been providing readers with insightful analysis and expert opinions on sports betting and poker.
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