Rangers face arguably their biggest match of the season less than a month into the new campaign as they bid to reach the group stages of the Champions League in their play-off second leg at PSV Eindhoven.
Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s men have a tough task in his homeland after a 2-2 first-leg draw at Ibrox handed the initiative to the Dutch giants.
Rangers have given themselves a mountain to climb after losing 2-0 in the first leg of their Champions League qualifier versus Union Saint Gilloise. However, Ibrox will be jumping for the return fixture and we haven’t given up hope of the Glasgow outfit progressing.
The last four UEFA Super Cup contests have all gone to extra time and we’re backing that trend to continue when Real Madrid meet Eintracht Frankfurt. Real are rated a class apart but Frankfurt should strip fitter due to an earlier start to their domestic season.
PSV held their own throughout the opening encounter with Monaco at Stade Louis II and are fancied to finish the job off on home turf. There was little to choose between these sides in that 1-1 Champions League draw but the Dutch outfit returned to Eindhoven happier.
Rangers have already knocked two German clubs out of the Europa League and are rated a value bet to beat Eintracht Frankfurt in the final. Borussia Dortmund and RB Leipzig both finished well ahead of Frankfurt in the Bundesliga this term, so the Glasgow outfit have little to fear.
Juventus go into Wednesday’s Coppa Italia final as underdogs but may just have an edge over Inter Milan in hunger and desire to lift this trophy. The Bianconeri are the holders and fully focused on this contest, whereas their opponents still have the Serie A title as their top priority.
West Ham’s first-leg clash with Eintracht Frankfurt was an absolute cracker and they are not without hope despite going down 2-1 in London. Both teams hit the woodwork in an end-to-end thriller and more excitement is expected in Germany in this Europa League semi-final tie.
Rangers showed great defensive resolve when only breached late on in a 1-0 loss at RB Leipzig in the first leg of their Europa League semi-final. However, they will now have to come out more at Ibrox and that could leave them open against the German outfit, who do look a class above.
Leicester and Roma played out an entertaining 1-1 draw at King Power Stadium and another close encounter is on the cards in their rematch. However, if the Foxes can cope with a hostile atmosphere at Olimpico, we reckon they have an edge in energy which can see them through.
Marseille trail Feyenoord 3-2 from the first leg in Holland but showed enough to suggest they can turn things around on home turf in France. Les Phoceens have won at Stade Velodrome in each of the past three rounds and look to have the creative flair to come through this tricky test.
Liverpool didn’t quite fully sink the Yellow Submarine at Anfield but it is hard to see Villarreal overcoming a 2-0 deficit in the second leg. In fact, such was the Reds’ dominance on Merseyside, they are expected to oblige again in Spain in this Champions League semi-final.
Manchester City claimed a slender advantage to take to Madrid as Kevin De Bruyne’s second-half goal put them 1-0 up against Atletico. It was not perhaps the margin of victory that Pep Guardiola’s side would have liked heading to the Spanish capital but they remain firm favourites to make the semi-finals.
Liverpool’s dominant first-leg performance in the Estadio da Luz means Jurgen Klopp’s side have one foot in the semi-finals, with Benfica a massive 26.00 to progress to the last four. January signing Luis Diaz, signed from Benfica’s rivals Porto, returned to haunt the Portuguese giants with a starring role for the Reds as he netted a late third to put Liverpool in full control of the tie.
Bayern Munich have it all to do to reach the Champions League semi-finals. The German champions lost 1-0 to Villarreal after an early goal from Arnaut Danjuma. However, Julian Nagelsmann’s side have a strong record in front of their own fans at Allianz Arena.