Date: 19/02/2008

The Champions League is back, with the first legs of the knockout stages starting tonight!

Four matches are being played this evening, including Liverpool's clash with Inter Milan and Chelsea's away trip to Olympiacos.

The full set of tonight's fixtures is below - including the best current match odds available...

LIVERPOOL v INTER MILAN

Kick off 7.45pm
Live on ITV1

Match odds:

Liverpool	Draw	Inter Milan
7/4 (2.75)	11/5 (3.2)	39/20 (2.95)

We've used our unique Head-2-Head feature, to provide a summary of the best betting opportunities...

Goals: Liverpool's average Goals For rating of 4 is rather misleading - thanks to their 8-0 demolition of Besiktas in the group stages. As you can see, neither team concedes many Goals (0.66 v 0.33) suggesting a tight match.

Corners: Both these sides look closely matched when it come to corner winning and conceding. Liverpool averaged 6.6 Corners For and 3 Corners Against. While Inter Milan averaged 7 Corners For and 3.33 Against. With both teams ability to restrict opponents corners, a low corner count might be seen in tonight's match.

The Stats say: Under 10 Corners (with a saver on Exactly 10) @ 10/11 Bet365

Bookings: The bookies' marker of around 35 looks to be about right when you take a look at the averages For and Against of these two sides.

OLYMPIACOS v CHELSEA

Kick off 7.45pm
Live on ITV4

Match odds:

Olympiacos	Draw	Chelsea
10/3 (4.33)	9/4 (3.25)	Evens (2.0)

Goals: Although Chelsea take a strong Goal rating into this match (2), Olympiacos concede very little in Home matches (just 0.33 so far) - with all producing 2 Goals or less so far. Chelsea too have an impressive Away defensive record (just 0.33 conceded), so we shouldn't expect a high scoring match.

The Stats say: Under 2.5 Goals @ 4/7 Stan James

Corners: No particular trend to follow here - Olympiacos look to win slightly more (5.33 v 3.66) and concede slightly less (5 v 6.33). But Under or Over 10 is anyone's guess.

Bookings: Couldn't be more different. Olympiacos average 20 Points (2 Yellow Cards) per game For and Against. While Chelsea get less than 1 Card in either directions - all of their Away games going Under 35 so far. Suggesting it is likely to be on the low side.

Scorers: Chelsea's Didier Drogba has netted 3 Away Goals already (9/2 First Scorer, 5/4 at Anytime) but may face competition for a starting place.

ROMA v REAL MADRID

Kick off 7.45pm
Live on Sky Sports 2

Match odds:

Roma	Draw	Real Madrid
31/20 (2.55)	9/4 (3.25)	11/5 (3.2)

Goals: Matching Roma's and Madrid's Goals For stats (1.66 v 1.33) shows us both teams are capable of scoring. With Roma's For and Madrid's Against figures matching perfectly (both 1.66), making Madrid perhaps looking more likely to concede. The spread between Over and Under 2.5 matches is even though, making it difficult to call.

Corners: Roma are massive Corner winners and conceders - all their Home matches so far have produced 11 or more. All Madrid's have had 10 or Less so far - but they average around 4 Corners For and Against, and their very high Possession figures (61%) indicate they are capable of contributing to a high total.

The Stats say: Over 10 Corners (with a saver on 10 Exactly) @ Evens Stan James, Roma -2 Handicap @ 6/5 Stan James

Bookings: Both teams' stats are quite closely matched - picking up an average of between 10 - 20 each (1 to 2 Yellow Cards). With Madrid perhaps a little more likely to get More Cards and the First Card, but a tough call.

The Stats say: Between 31-56 Booking Points @ 7/4 Stan James Under 4.5 Cards @ 10/11

Scorers: Bit of a lottery bet, but Madrid's Van Nistelrooy has already bagged 3 Away Goals (4 in total) this season. He is 5/1 to be First Scorer, 11/8 to score at Anytime.

SCHALKE 04 v PORTO

Kick off 7.45pm
Live on Sky Sports Xtra

Match odds:

Schalke	Draw	Porto
5/4 (2.25)	9/4 (3.25)	11/4 (3.75)

Goals: Both teams' For stats match exactly (1 v 1), with Porto conceding 1 Goal more (0.66 v 1.66). Both teams' also show 66% of matches producing Under 2.5 Goals.

The Stats say: Under 2.5 Goals @ 8/15 Bet365 Corners: Another good 'low' match-up. Schalke give away very few Corners (averaging just 1), while Porto win very few (3) - which should keep the totals down. Schalke usually win about 5, while Porto usually give away around 7. This indicates a Home team supremacy.

The Stats say: Under 10 Corners (with a saver on 10 Exactly) @ Evens Bet365 Schalke -2 Handicap @ 21/20 Bet365

Bookings: Both teams' are capable of picking up a couple of Booking each, with Schalke looking good value to get the First Card.

The Stats say: Schalke First Card @ 21/20 Bet365

Check out the Head-2-Head for yourself and see what bets you find - www.ChampionsLeagueBet.co.uk

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These are the current odds for this year's Champions League Winners market:

Barcelona 4/1
Manchester United 11/2
Chelsea 15/2
Inter Milan 9/1
Real Madrid 10/1
Arsenal 12/1
AC Milan 12/1

The other remaining British teams are available at:

Liverpool 16/1
Celtic 150/1

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All of tonight and tomorrow's matches are sure to be tight affairs. But 12 of the 16 teams were in action at the same stage last year, so that might give us some general indication as to what we can expect. Let's take a look...

Match Results: 4 out of 8 (50%) matches were drawn. 2 (25%) were home wins and 2 (25%) were away wins.

Goals: 62.5% (5 out of 8) of games were 'Under 2.5 Goals'. 37.5% (3 out of 8) of matches were 'Under 2.5 Goals'.

Bookings: 62.5% (5 out of 8) of games were 'Over 35 Booking Points'. 37.5% (3 out of 8) of matches were 'Under 35 Booking Points'.

Corners: 100% (8 out of 8) of games were 'Under 10.5 Corners'.

First Card: In 75% (6 out of 8) the away team received the First Card. In 25% (2 out of 8) the home team received the First Card.

Time of First Goal: In 66.7% (4 out of 6) of games were a goal was scored, the First Goal came before the 28th minute. In 33.3% (2 out of 6) of games the First Goal was scored after the 28th minute.

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If you're placing a bet on any Champions League match tonight keep up-to-date live online at:
www.ChampionsLeagueBet.co.uk

The only place to settle all your Champions League bets!

That's all for today we'll be back tomorrow to preview Wednesday night's action.

Best wishes,

Matt Nesbitt
Champions League Bet
www.ChampionsLeagueBet.co.uk