jose mourinho

The head of the betting market for the Champions League Golden Boot can be likened to Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol”. We have the Barcelona player of the past in Samuel Eto’o, the Barca player of the present in Lionel Messi and someone for the future in David Villa, with the striker having recently arrived at the Nou Camp.

It is Samuel Eto’o that leads the way after his brace against Tottenham took him to six goals in the competition so far. The Cameroonian is enjoying a brilliant season for Inter and really seems to be relishing the freedom afforded to him by new manager Rafael Benitez. The player is two goals clear of the pack and can be backed at 3/1 with Coral to stay out in front.

Naturally, it often depends on how far the player’s team progresses as to whether they can win this award and that is why the two Barcelona forwards are short odds in the betting. Lionel Messi was the top Champions League scorer last season and his brace against FC Copenhagen takes him to four in Europe so far this season. With some rich pickings to be had in remaining group matches, perhaps he’s the one to back at 3/1 with Coral.

Meanwhile, David Villa has clearly proven himself as one of the best strikers in the world and he could be the sort of player to prove the match winner in the knockout stages when the games start to get tighter. He has just two goals to his name so far to sit four behind Eto’o, although the bookies are wary of offering too big a price about the former Valencia man, going 8/1 (bet365).

Naturally, it’s hard to exclude Cristiano Ronaldo from the shortlist considering that Real Madrid are starting to get amongst the goals and we should probably expect Jose Mourinho to steer the team to the business end of the competition. The former Manchester United man is 14/1 with bet365 to finish top of the pile although he only has one goal so far.

Perhaps it would be better to consider Nicolas Anelka, the Chelsea striker who took his tally to four goals when slotting home in Moscow to help the Blues to a 2-0 victory. With MSK Zilina and Spartak still to come to Stamford Bridge, then the 10/1 being offered by bet365 could be an outstanding each-way price, even if Didier Drogba is back from suspension.

Marouane Chamakh has been helping Arsenal rack up the goals and the Moroccan is 14/1 with Blue Square to finish top of the pile after finding the net in each of the Gunners’ three group games to date. Continuing this ratio might put him close, while Michel Bastos of Lyon can also boast three goals and he is 40/1 with Blue Square. Zlatan Ibrahimovic also has three for Milan and the Swede can be backed at 14/1 with Blue Square.

It’s the start of the Champions League group stages and that will mean punters eyeing up some big money accumulator bets with the bookmakers. There are eight matches taking place on Tuesday night and three include home teams available at odds-on.

Barcelona, Benfica and Manchester United will be expecting to pick up three points against the respective opposition of Panathinaikos, Hapoel Tel Aviv and Rangers, with Paddy Power offering the best odds on a treble with 1.97. We shouldn’t expect Barca to slip up, although perhaps Benfica are the selection which might let us down with that particular accumulator.

Meanwhile, Inter are in action away to FC Twente and you would get odds of 3.67 with Stan James if you added the Italian champions to the above three teams to create an accumulator.

On Wednesday night, there are no less than seven teams available at odds-on to win their opening group games and there will be plenty of accumulator bets on AC Milan, Arsenal, Bayern Munich, Chelsea, Marseille, Real Madrid and Shakhtar Donetsk winning their games.

Blue Square offer odds of 11/1 that all of them oblige with victory, although if you were considering a seven-fold on these teams on Wednesday night, you would be better off taking the 10/1 with bet365 as they have a Euro Soccer Accumulator Bonus which adds extra to your winning multiple bets.

For a winning treble, you will get an extra 5% added to your winnings and there is a 30% bonus available that can be added to winning 7-fold bets. If you fancy trying to pick 14 winning selections in a multiple bet, there is a 100% bonus on your winnings awaiting you at bet365, so you can essentially double your money.

Once again, we should expect the Premier League teams to have a major impact in Europe and they all have matches that could see the quartet land victory. A four-fold on Manchester United, Tottenham, Arsenal and Chelsea is available at 6/1 with Sky Bet, who are the only firm to get anywhere near the 6/1 mark with this particular multiple.

It’s also worth noting that Ladbrokes have a ‘Best Odds Guaranteed’ promotion that runs from Tuesday morning through to the games kicking off at 19:45 BST on Tuesday night. The popular betting firm are committed to offering the best odds about EVERY one of the 32 teams participating in the Champions League this season as far as the outright market is concerned.

Therefore, if you haven’t yet placed your Champions League outright bets yet, then you can get 11/4 that favourites Barcelona achieve greatness this season, while Chelsea will be at least 6/1 with Ladbrokes to finally win a piece of silverware which seems to elude them every season.

Many punters will think that Real Madrid will go well under Jose Mourinho and you should expect to find the Magic Sign offering at least 6/1 as they are committed to offering industry best prices which offers great value to the customers.

CSKA Moscow v Inter Milan Champions League Betting Preview: Jose Mourinho continues to entertain the press, even though his Inter Milan side have been stuttering at the top of Serie A. Mourinho is not a big fan of the way Italian football is being ran, insisting that there are conspiracy theories about to keep his Inter side from dominating on the domestic scene. While Inter have enjoyed success on the home front, one of the primary reasons that the ex-Chelsea boss was drafted in, was to bring the Champions League to the San Siro. After knocking out Chelsea quite convincingly in the last 16, the “Special One” should be confident of progressing, after drawing a quarter final tie against CSKA Moscow. If the Italians progress through, then a big rematch against current Champions League holders Barcelona could be on the cards for the semi final.

Mourinho’s Inter were fantastically efficient and clinical against Chelsea, both in the home and away legs of their encounter. The matches showed that the Mourinho side is still incredibly difficult to play against, and one that is constructed to bring success. Inter finished second in the group stage to the Spanish champions Barcelona, and Mourinho would relish another chance to take on the favourites. Despite gunning for success, Mourinho doesn’t seem a settled man, and has talked about a return to the Premier League, with several clubs at the front of the rumour mill. His future in Italy could all hinge on whether he brings home the Champions League this season or not, and even holding on and winning the domestic title may simply not be enough to keep the wolves from his door.

CSKA Moscow qualified in second place behind Manchester United in their group stage, winning three of their six matches. It could be a long night in Russia for Mourinho’s men, as they try and break down what is likely to be a defensive Moscow side. While appearing to be the lowest ranked team left in the competition, and therefore a good draw for Inter, CSKA Moscow  put in two decent performances to beat a very strong Seville side in the last 16, including a 2-1 win in the away leg. Now they will have to take on one of the best teams in Europe, if not one of the teams which play with the most amount of flair. Mourinho’s team is all about getting the job done, and are more than happy with 1-0 results. Inter have world stars in Samuel Eto’o, Thiago Motta, Walter Samuel and one of the Champions League’s most influential players, Wesley Sneijder, who is one of the best players in the world in his position.

Inter will be favourites, and they are perfectly suited to these tricky away fixtures in Europe, picking up a draw against Russian Champions Rubin Kazan, and a win in Ukraine over Dynamo Kiev in the group stages. Although they only won two of their six league games, their only defeat came at the hands of Barcelona. Driven on by the success they had over one of the Champions League favourites in Chelsea, Mourinho will be expectant of securing a semi final place in this year’s competition.

Match Prices
CSKA Moscow to win: 8/1 at Bet365
Draw: 7/2 at SkyBet
Inter Milan to win: 4/9 at Totesport

The big influx on sports betting, and football headlines of the week will be surrounding the re-uniting of The Special One, Jose Mourinho with Chelsea. Inter Milan host Chelsea on Wednesday, the second of two major Italian v English Champions League clashes. Manchester United beat AC Milan 3-2 at the San Siro last week, and Chelsea will be hoping to leave with less damage done to their defence. Mourinho spent 3 and a half successful years at Stamford Bridge, winning the Premier League title twice for the Stamford Bridge outfit, building a lot on defence. Now he will have to use all of his craft and while to undo a lot of the legacy that he built, which still remains in place today under the new management of Carlo Ancelotti.

Mourinho is one of the great characters of the game, and is something to consider when looking at online betting prices on this match. Between two evenly matched teams, the manager can make all the difference. Both confident and outspoken, Mourinho certainly knows how to play up to the press, and is in many ways refreshing in his honesty. He left Stamford Bridge under a bit of cloud, but his efforts were greatly appreciated by the Chelsea faithful. Mourinho took over at the helm of Inter Milan, after they sacked now Manchester City boss Roberto Mancini for not brining them Champions League success. That is the amount of pressure which Mourinho is under, and while they are stretching their legs at the top of Serie A, domestic honours is often not enough these days for Europe’s elite. A season is apparently not complete without Champions League honours.

For the Nerazzuri, three Serie A titles in a row certainly wasn’t enough, and it cost Mancini his job, and Mourinho has yet to make a real impact with Inter in the Champions League. Keen to build a team with his identity all over it, Mourinho sold Zlatan Imbrahimovic, and brought in Samuel Eto’o, Wesley Sniejder and Diego Milito, which many believe gave Inter a lot more strength. Since the deal, which was a gamble, betting on team quality as opposed to a superstar, Inter have developed from being a one dimensional team, which was hitting the big man Ibrahimovic, to one with attacking threat from everywhere. Sneijder and Diego Milito look to have been two strokes of genius by The Special One, as both have been in outstanding for this season. The pressure is now on Mourinho to deliver in the Champions League, and to make Inter one of the strong favourites, like Barcelona, Real Madrid and Wednesday night’s opponents Chelsea, season after season.

Inter suffered a small set back on Sunday, when they were held to a 0-0 draw against Sampdoria, in which they had Walter Samuel and Ivan Cordoba sent off. Betting on them remains strong to win Serie A, but perhaps discipline is becoming a factor as the pressure mounts, as Sniejder was shown a red card too in their derby win over AC Milan. That wasn’t the end of it though, as two more players picked up bans for incidents off the pitch, and Mourinho will find himself in hot water again after making a “handcuffs” gesture about the refereeing decisions going against his team. Mourinho doesn’t believe that too much has changed since he left. After recently taking a trip to Stamford Bridge to soak up the atmosphere and so that the return fixture wouldn’t get caught up in the emotions of the first time being back there, Mourinho understands exactly where Chelsea are at under Ancelotti.

Mourinho believes that defensive tactics and positioning are the same, the formations of a 4-4-2 diamond and a 4-3-3 which Chelsea switch between are still in place from his days there. So to is the warm up procedure, and of course, the bulk of the players. The likes of Terry, Lampard, Carvalho, Joe Cole, Ashley Cole and Didier Drogba were all part of Mourinho’s success at the club. Chelsea are top  of the Premier League at the moment, but haven’t looked as consistent as in past season. Still, they remain one of the favourites to lift the domestic title, as well as the FA Cup and Champions League for the first time. They are the nearly men of the Champions League, and Mourinho himself suffered two semi finals defeats while in charge. It is hard to see Inter losing at home, as Mourinho hasn’t lost a home league game in 8 years, and betting strategies should reflect that, as well as Chelsea‘s slightly dodgy away form.

This is the big clash of knock-out stages, and a tight game should be in order. Does Mourinho have an advantage by knowing Chelsea? Or do the Chelsea players have an advantage in knowing Mourinho? Chelsea earned a battling 2-0 win away at Wolves on the weekend, and they have had their problems against lower opposition away from Stamford Bridge this season. They do have the players with the big match experience though, and they will need all of that on Wednesday night. Inter Milan keeper Julio Cesar was involved in a car accident on Sunday, which may keep him out the first leg, with bruising and cuts. He will be assessed ahead of the game, otherwise Francesco Toldo will step in.

BETTING STATS

Last 5 Match Goals (League)
Inter Milan: 5 For, 1 Against
Chelsea: 8 For, 5 Against

Overall Stats (League and Cups)
Inter Milan: P35, W22, D10, L3
Chelsea: P39, W27, D8, L4

Win Percentage
Inter Milan have an overall 62.9 win percentage
Inter Milan have a 75.0 win percentage at home

Chelsea have an overall 69.2 win percentage
Chelsea have a 47/4 win percentage away from home

Last 10 Match Form
Inter Milan: W6, D4, L0
Chelsea: W8, D1, L1

Champions League Form:
Inter Milan: DDDWLW
Chelsea: WWWDWD

Match Prices:
Inter Milan to win: 7/4 at Totesport
Draw: 21/10 at Bwin
Chelsea: 19/10 at BetFred

Asian Handicap Betting Advice: Not much to choose in the betting above, but Inter’s a pretty nice price at home. Inter Milan finished as Runner’s Up in their group, behind Barcelona. They did hold Barca to a 0-0 draw, so this isn’t going to be an easy task for Chelsea, although only two wins for Inter out of their six group matches wasn’t startling form. They have a great midfield, but there shouldn’t be too much to chose between the teams on the night. A draw is favourable in the betting, but Chelsea shouldn’t be too overawed by the occasion. Carlo Ancelotti will know about the Italian way of course, and should be an even contest between two very good sides. Depending on which way you are going to lean here are some betting options. 
Chelsea +0.5 Asian Handicap: 1/2 at Bet365 is a decent price
Or
Inter Milan -0.75 Asian Handicap: 2/1 at Bet365 is a similarly nice price

It has recently come to our attention that there has been a change of fixture scheduling as far as Europe’s elite club competition is concerned. In previous seasons, the last sixteen ties would start with four first leg games on the Tuesday and the other four matches taking place on the Wednesday. This pattern would then be repeated a fortnight later, essentially giving punters four nights on In-Play betting opportunities.

However, it’s all change for season 2009/10. Now there will be two Champions League matches being played on 16th February, 17th February, 23rd February, 24th February, 9th March, 10th March, 16th March and 17th March! Eight evenings where customers can turn on their televisions, log on to their favourite bookmaker such as bet365 or Ladbrokes and decide which of the two matches are most attractive for In-Play betting!

UEFA have clearly identified that the Champions League has now become so popular that the competition can demand high viewing figures when it reaches the business end of proceedings. There are some truly exciting ties taking place, with Jose Mourinho’s return to Chelsea possibly making Inter’s last sixteen game the most attractive. The first leg at the San Siro will be all the better for In-Play betting, considering that the only other match that night is CSKA Moscow v Sevilla, with bookmakers looking forward to increased business as a result.

The bookies are expecting England to have the upper hand over Italy at this stage of the competition, with Paddy Power offering 8/15 that Carlo Ancelotti has the upper hand over his nemesis at Inter. The Italian’s former club Milan entertain Manchester United on 16th February, with all eyes on David Beckham as he looks to help steer the Rossoneri to a memorable victory. However, bet365 offer a best price 4/7 that Sir Alex Ferguson will be having the last laugh, with Milan the 6/4 outsiders (Coral).

Once the competition reaches the quarter finals, we will see a return to the normal format of two matches being played on four separate evenings. While the bookmakers like to promote In-Play excitement during the group stages by stating that punters can bet live on up to eight matches simultaneously, it’s realistically impossible to follow all the matches and place accurate bets on each and every one. For the last sixteen stage, we can watch the games more carefully and hopefully place some informed bets.