UEFA Champions League Predictions, Odds & Best Bets (1/21)

Published: Tue Jan 21, 2025, 8:50 am ET

Read Time: 5 minutes

UEFA

The UEFA Champions League returns today with nine matches all across Europe. There are just two games remaining in league phase play, but plenty of movement can still happen on the table. Let's dive into our best bets for the UEFA Champions League today!

Remember, following 8 games of league phase, teams will need to be in the Top 24 of the table to avoid elimination. The Top 8 will receive a bye week, while teams ranked 9th through 16th, will be randomly drawn to face a team ranked 17th-24th in a two leg knockout round matchup. So far, only Liverpool and Barcelona have stamped their tickets to the next round, while Young Boys, Slovan Bratislava, and RB Leipzig have all been eliminated after earning 0 points in their first six matches. But never mind that, let's talk about today!

Here are today's matches, so let's take a look and see if we can find any spots worth betting in the UEFA Champions League today.

I've got a couple angles I am looking at, so below are my best bets in the UCL today. For our expert's soccer picks, go to this page here!

UEFA Champions League: Tuesday's Soccer Action

Bologna vs Borussia Dortmund Best Bets

Back Borussia Dortmund to win on the road today

Julian Brandt has 2 goals and 4 assists for Dortmund this season

Best Bet: Borussia Dortmund ML (+123) BetOnline

We are backing Dortmund on the road in this matchup. They currently sit in 9th place of the UCL table with two matches remaining, just one point behind 8th place, and also 3rd place, as 6 teams are all tied at 13 points a piece. Dortmund has 12 of their own, and a win today could propel them into the crucial Top 8 and earn them a bye during the knockout round. I expect them to come out firing, especially hosting Shakhtar Donetsk next week, Dortmund could end with six huge points in the league phase part of the competition. Although they haven't been playing great recently, on paper they are much more talented than Bologna.

Bologna has not quite been mathematically eliminated, but they would need two wins and plenty of other miracles from around the pitches of Europe. Despite being high up in the Serie A tables, Bologna has not faired well when facing REAL competition, and they've only successfully played to a couple nil-nil draws in the UCL so far. I don't see them getting up for this game and rather turning their full focus on the Italian League, in order to finish Top 4 and earn a spot back in the Champions League next season.

Prediction: Borussia Dortmund Wins 2-0 (+900)

Atlético Madrid vs Bayer Leverkusen Best Bets

Bayer Leverkusen face Atlético Madrid in the UEFA Champions League

Will Bayer Leverkusen take down Atlético Madrid on the road?

Best Bet: Atlético/Leverkusen 1H Draw (+120) Bovada

In and out. A quick 45 minute sweat, and hopefully we will walk away with a winner.

If you're up for it, feel free to take 1H Under 0.5 or 1H Correct Score 0-0 for around (+190) as I see this being a scoreless first half. But +120 on the draw is fine for me.

For starters, both of these teams are in a great place on the table. Bayer Leverkusen is tied for 3rd with 13 points, while Atlético Madrid is tied for 9th place with 12 points. Getting a win would significantly help both teams out, but in the end they will both be happy with just one.

While I could see Atlético coming out extra aggressive at home, I trust the Leverkusen backline to hold them in check, at least for the first half. The hosts have found themselves in some very low scoring matches recently, and ultimately I see that continuing tonight. Leverkusen has been very dominate, whether it be at home or on the road, but they should have plenty of respect for Atlético's attack, and will more than likely wait for the 2nd half to make a strong push on goal. Give me a quick 45 minute sweat and let's get out with a winner!

Prediction: 1H Draw 0-0 (+190)

Still Want More Soccer Content?

Here at Betting News, we offer Free Expert Picks for every major sports league. We also host daily streams on our Twitch Channel with our best bets, as well as sweat out games on Playback! Be sure to tune into everything we have going on at our Youtube, TikTok, and X pages as well.

Get FREE Picks and Props Weekly

Sign up for
THE WEEKENDER NEWSLETTER

Get FREE Picks

Nate Hornung

Nate has been a recreational sports bettor for about 5 years. In that time, he has grown to love the pursuit of winners and sticking it to The Man. Nate loves data and uses his understanding of numbers to help him be a more profitable sports gambler, however he will be the first to tell you this game is about more than just stats.

This site contains commercial content. We may be compensated for the links provided on this page. The content on this page is for informational purposes only. Betting News makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the information given or the outcome of any game or event.