Manchester United host Benfica at Old Trafford on Tuesday evening in the second part of their Champions League group stage double-header.
After Marcus Rashford’s free-kick secured a 0-1 win for the Red Devils at the Estadio da Luz two weeks ago, Jose Mourinho’s side will secure their place in the knockout stages if they continue their 100 per cent start to the competition and beat the Portuguese giants tomorrow night.
Here are some betting tips ahead of the game.
All betting odds correct at time of writing.
Romelu Lukaku to score first (11/5)
United’s top scorer hasn’t scored for the Red Devils in October. Can he change that on Halloween? Lukaku has scored an impressive 11 goals in his first 15 games for United, but is currently experiencing a mini-drought. His last goal came in the 4-1 win over Crystal Palace on September 30 (though he did find the net for Belgium during the October international games). Manager Jose Mourinho has been doing his bit to try to bring back his summer signing’s golden streak that by calling Lukaku “untouchable” and criticising the Old Trafford crowd for not being supportive enough of the striker when he hasn’t scored. You can get odds of 11/5 on Mourinho’s words having an immediate impact and Lukaku opening the scoring tomorrow evening. A £10 stake will return £32.
Under 2.5 goals (Evens)
Like Lukaku personally, free-scoring United have seen the goals dry up in recent weeks. In the early weeks of the season, the Red Devils were regularly scoring four goals per game. They have only managed five goals in total in the whole of October so far, and only scored more than one goal in the Carabao Cup win over Swansea City. The suspension of Benfica’s most experienced defender Luisao could be a complicating factor, but you can get decent odds on another tight United game. A £10 stake will return £20.
Manchester United to win with -1.50 Asian Handicap (2.1)
If you want to hedge your bets with that prediction of a tight match, this is a decent option. There is no value in backing the United win, but you can find better odds in the Asian handicap market. Back United win a handicap of -1.50. If the Red Devils beat their Portuguese opponents by two goals or more, you will win your bet. A £10 stake will return £21.
The Man Utd vs Benfica match kicks off at 7.45pm on Tuesday evening at Old Trafford.
