Football betting tips: Champions League

2pts Ibrahima Konate 1+ total shots at 6/4 (Coral, Ladbrokes)

1pt Ibrahima Konate to score anytime at 14/1 (General)

Sky Bet odds | Paddy Power | Betfair

Kick-off: 20:00 GMT, TuesdayTV: Amazon Prime Video

This is a fixture which has quickly established itself as one of Europe’s best.

Having faced off on five occasions across a nine-year period between 2009 and 2018, Liverpool meet Real Madrid for the seventh time since April 2021 on Tuesday night.

The Reds desperately needed the win over Aston Villa on Saturday. Not just to get their domestic season back on track but to also try and claw back some confidence ahead of the Spanish giants’ arrival at Anfield.

Real are on a six-game winning run. In fact they’ve won 13 of 14 across all competitions this season, the only game they didn’t being the surprise 5-2 defeat to Atletico Madrid at the end of September.

This thriving attack should more than fancy their chances of victory though. It’s a contest in which strong arguments can be made for all three outcomes.

One route to success for Liverpool though should be set-pieces. This is where they will hold a clear advantage.

For all of Real’s quality, corners and free-kicks have been a successful route for an opponent to find a way through their defence. A lack of physicality a factor behind this.

Looking into the aerial duels won statistic, Real sit 16th of 20 in Spain’s top-flight. From the ten goals they’ve conceded in the league, four of those have been from set-pieces. They’re also 26th of 36 for aerials won in the Champions League.

The prices have therefore impacted Virgil van Dijk‘s line in an attacking sense, but not so much on IBRAHIMA KONATE, with 6/4 on a single shot at 14/1 for a goal on offer.

The centre-back has become a regular in the shots market in recent weeks. He’s seen a shot coming in five of his last seven in the Premier League alongside each of the three Champions League outings.

He struck in the 5-1 thrashing of Eintracht Frankfurt on the last matchday. But then it’s hardly a surprise when we consider how aerially dominant he can be.

Across the previously mentioned seven-game league run, Konate‘s won at least six aerial duels in in four of those. The Real defence will struggle to contain both him and Van Dijk.

Both of them average around double the aerials won in league games compared to Éder Militão while Dean Huijsen‘s on 2.4. For comparison, Van Dijk’s returning 4.7 while Konate’s on 3.8.

The Real priority will potentially be on stopping Van Dijk in these situations too, giving Konate an ‘easier’ run at the weaker defender in the air.

The bookmakers are setting the Liverpool corners line at 5.5. Getting close to this and above would certainly be ideal for the picks.

Odds correct at 1145 GMT (03/11/25)

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