Tuesday 20th February 2018 Kick off 1945hrs Bayern Munich v Besiktas Football – Europe – Champions League You would be forgiven for thinking that if Bayern Munich draw Besiktas in the knockout phase of the Champions League that it would almost always be the Germans who finished top of their group and therefore playing away from home in the first leg – not on this occasion, though. Bayern could only manage second spot behind PSG, although they finished on the same number of points. For Besiktas they surprised most with their dominant display in the previous stage but they arguably got the hardest of second seed opposition as a ‘reward’.
Carlo Ancelotti lost his job on the back of Bayern’s 3-0 capitulation to PSG back in September and was promptly replaced by a club legend in Jupp Heynckes, who was the last coach to lead Bayern to European glory back in 2013. Since his appointment the German champions have stormed to a huge lead in the Bundesliga and gained some revenge with a 3-1 win over the Parisians in the final game of their section. It wasn’t enough to secure them top spot, though, but they will have been relatively pleased with their draw all things considered. They are also in excellent form just now having won their last 13 games in all competitions. It’s a tremendous run and one which they will be looking to continue on Tuesday. It will be a slightly strange experience for Bayern to be playing at home in the first leg at this stage as they are so used to winning their group. That said, it was the same last season and they ended up winning 10-2 on aggregate against Arsenal, so it should not be too much of an issue. They will want to travel to Istanbul with a decent lead, though.
Besiktas were excellent in the group stage as they romped to top spot in a section that included Leipzig, Monaco and Porto. The last named team of that trio did not do much for the form last week when being humbled 5-0 at home to Liverpool, but Besiktas have proven themselves very capable thus far in Europe. They went through their section unbeaten, winning four games, including all three of their away matches. It’s a team packed full of experience and made up of players who seem to have found a home at the club having not hit the heights elsewhere. Ryan Babel and Ricardo Quaresma are two of those players and were instrumental in their run to first spot in Group G. It’s the first time the club have reached the knockout phase since the Champions League was created, which was somewhat surprising, so this group of players have already made history. They wont want it to end at the first hurdle though, but will be well aware of the challenge that awaits them in the shape of the German champions. Many had written them off in the group stage all the same, and looked how that turned out!
Bayern Munich v Besiktas Betting Tip
When they went down 3-0 in Paris during the group stage, most people would have drawn a line through Bayern’s chance of winning the competition – such as the gap between those two sides that evening. Only a few months later however and it’s a much changed tone of conversation when their name is mentioned. This excellent winning run in domestic football will have bolstered their confidence no end and the change in manager has obviously been a major catalyst in that. Besiktas have also went through some change between the end of the group stage and this match, particularly the loss of star striker Cenk Tosun to Everton in the January transfer window. Tosun enjoyed a very productive group stage scoring four goals and his absence obviously weakens Besiktas’ hopes of springing a shock in their tie against Bayern Munich.
Bayern are traditionally very strong at this stage of the competition, particularly at home. Only Real Madrid have managed to win in the Allianz in the last 21 Champions League games which is a remarkable record. This particular round has been extremely productive in terms of goals, too, having hit Arsenal for five, Juventus for four and Shakthar for seven in the last three seasons. Besiktas have done really well to get to this stage and in style as well, but they are not on the same level as their opponents who are on something of a roll just now. I fear the tie could be away from the visitors before a ball is kicked in the return leg, comfortable home win beckons for Bayern.
Bayern Munich -2 7/5 @ Betfair
