Inter Milan vs. Benfica Champions League Soccer Odds

The 2023 Champions League chugs on with the second leg of the quarter final tie between Inter Milan and Benfica set to take place on Wednesday, April 19th at the iconic San Siro in Milan, Italy.

The Italian side has already taken a commanding lead in the tie and will now have the chance to secure their spot in the semi final with a result in front of a raucous home crowd. Not only are Inter a huge favorite to advance considering their 2-0 advantage in the tie, but sports betting sites also have them as pretty big moneyline favorites to win the second leg as well.

Inter Milan vs. Benfica Champions League Odds

Often when you see one team go up big in the first leg of a cup tie, the team that lost that first leg will be given better betting odds to win the second leg because their opponents are expected to be more passive. Nonetheless, Benfica remain underdogs here both on the moneyline and in terms of qualifying. All odds provided by Sports Interaction.

Inter Milan Odds

Talk about compartmentalizing. Inter Milan is making their best run to the Champions League title since 2010 when they won the trophy, the only time they’ve ever done so in the last 60 years. It’s also their first appearance in the Champions League quarter finals since 2011.

Based on their Champions League credentials this season, one would never guess that they’re having their worst showing in Serie A in about half a decade. They currently sit back in fifth position in the table and are in serious danger of falling out of the European places altogether.

Their current league standing has a lot to do with their very recent form, which is what makes their recent Champions League success all the more puzzling. Their 2-0 away win against Benfica represents their only triumph in their last seven matches in all competitions. They have taken just one point from their past five league matches, including three 1-0 defeats.

They’re not getting the breaks beaten off of them, but they are clearly having an issue finding the back of the net recently. They have also shown a lack of composure and discipline, as their recent run also includes a 1-0 loss to Juventus in the league that saw both teams pick up a red and a 1-1 draw with Juventus in the first leg of their Coppa Italia semi final tie in which both teams were shown red again.

Inter head coach Simone Inzaghi has not been able to get his players up for league matches, possibly because Napoli has put the Serie A title so far out of reach, but he has clearly been able to get a reaction from them in cup competition situations. They’ve reached the semi-final in the top domestic cup and are likely to reach that same level in the Champions League.

Benfica Odds

Unfortunately for Benfica, they are currently in arguably their worst run of form in this entire campaign, having lost three matches on the bounce in all competitions. They were sitting pretty atop the Primeira Liga a couple of weeks ago with a 10 point lead over Porto, but after back-to-back defeats to Porto and Chaves that lead has dwindled to just four points.

Sandwiched in between those league defeats was their disappointing showing in the home leg of their Champions League tie against Inter Milan. The Italians were always going to be the preferred choice to emerge from this quarter final, but Benfica’s season up until April had been so flawless it was thought that they could put up a fight.

If they were down 0-2 coming back to Lisbon for the second leg they would have a great chance of evening the score, but going into a fortress like the San Siro having everything to do is a very tough position to play from. However, they do have enough firepower to be able to pull out any kind of result at any time.

Midfielder Joao Mario is having the season of his life right now, tying teammate Goncalo Ramos for the league lead in goals with 17 while also sitting third in assists with 6. Left back Alex Grimaldo is second in the Primeira Liga with eight assists.

This shows how well Benfica’s quality is spread across the pitch, with goal contributions coming from all three levels of their 4-5-1 formation. All Benfica needs is one goal to put that seed of doubt in the minds of Inter players and coaches, and after that, anything can happen.

Benfica’s odds to win the leg and the tie are not great, and for good reason considering Inter’s performance in the first leg. However, the Italian giants have been far from convincing in every other competition, so if Benfica can get a bit of that uncertainty to creep in with some early chances, they have a real shot to pay out on massive odds here.