Real Madrid
Fresh off clinching the LaLiga title, Carlo Ancelotti’s men will be hungry to book their spot in the showpiece. The 14-time UCL winners have been a regular fixture in the latter stages of this competition for a long time and despite having no Karim Benzema anymore, they’ve remained an absolute force. Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo are the future of this attack, while Jude Bellingham is enjoying a marvelous debut campaign in Madrid.
Los Blancos haven’t tasted defeat in the Champions League in 2023-24, going a perfect 6-0-0 in the group stages before dispatching RB Leipzig and title-holders Manchester City in the knockout rounds. Vini has five goals and four assists in the UCL, while Bellingham has four goals and four assists. Rodrygo has also netted five times while setting up another two. The youth is making their presence felt at Real.
Ancelotti’s group is currently enjoying a 20-game unbeaten run. Their last loss came in the Copa del Rey on January 18th to Atletico Madrid. It’s also important to note Madrid hasn’t lost once at home all season across all competitions. That will have the hosts feeling extremely confident on Wednesday in front of their die-hard supporters. Los Blancos are a -115 favorite at Bodog.
Bayern Munich
To say the 2023-24 campaign has been a mixed bag for Bayern would be an understatement. After 10 years of dominance, they finally lost the Bundesliga title, with Bayer Leverkusen running away with the trophy under Xabi Alonso. Thomas Tuchel was informed early in the season that he won’t be back in 2024-25, but he’s still managed to guide the side to a deep run in the UCL.
Bayern finished atop their group before comfortably beating Lazio in the Round of 16. The quarterfinals were slightly more difficult, but the Germans still progressed past Arsenal, with Kane getting revenge on his former North London rivals. Speaking of the Englishman, he’s now bagged 44 goals in his first Bayern season, winning the Bundesliga Golden Boot and serving as an irreplaceable piece in their UCL pursuit.
Munich slipped up over the weekend, losing 3-1 to Stuttgart, who are now right on their heels in the Bundesliga table. Finishing in the top four is almost a foregone conclusion at this point, but Bayern will be shifting their focus to the only trophy they can still win, which happens to be the most prestigious one in European football. But, marching into the Bernabeu and handing Madrid a defeat on home turf will be very tough, hence why the visitors are an underdog at all soccer betting sites.
Injury news
Madrid finally has Thibaut Courtois back, which is huge news. He’ll be in between the sticks on Wednesday. Dani Carvajal is also available after serving a suspension, so David Alaba is the only absence for the Spanish giants. As for Bayern, they’re without Kingsley Coman, Bouna Sarr, Sacha Boey, and Tarek Buchmann. Matthijs de Ligt could return for the second leg as well.
