Borussia Dortmund might argue that this should be the first leg of the last-eight tie given that there was only a 24-hour delay for the home fixture following the bus bombing.
Not surprisingly, Dortmund looked a team still in shock when they went down 3-2 to the French principality team. It is possible that on Wednesday they might, just might, be happier to play.
The bookies certainly seem to think so. Dortmund are a shorter price to win the tie but, obviously, Monaco are favourites to progress.
Dortmund are 2.3 with Betfred and Betway to win in 90 minutes. Monaco are no better than 3.06 with Marathon. The draw is 4.1 with the same firm. Monaco are 1.36 with Betfred to qualify, Dortmund are 3.7 (Marathon).
It might make you feel a little uncomfortable betting on the outcome of this contest given the intended outcome of the lunatic that planted the bomb. After all, Dortmund are likely to feel that football is coming a distant second to everything at the moment.
Still, they had a calming 3-1 success over E Frankfurt in the Bundesliga last time out so it is possible they are in a better place. Indeed, they could be so carefree that they produce something special.
Any sports psychologist will tell you that the team or player who takes to the stage without feeling pressure will perform well.
But if that’s not your bag, fair enough. You could instead side with the Germans for victory in the 90 minutes because they are the better team. They are disciplined and mighty hard to beat.
The problem is Monaco are so exciting going forward that they are almost certainly going to have to score twice. Monaco’s games average 3.5 goals per season.
And a goals bet looks the safest option of all. Over 3.5 is 1.97 with Marathon while over 4.5 is 3.25 with Bet365. We fancy a punt on the later just because we think this one is going to be wide open. It could be a real ding-dong affair with both sides trading punches.
It\’s not as crazy a wager as it sounds. Monaco average two goals a game in the competition, Dortmund three. So all we are asking is that both teams perform no better or worse than they have so far – in terms of attack at least.
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