Champions League Madrid Derby Semifinal: Atletico Madrid vs Real Madrid
Published May 10, 2017 by Sol FH
The second leg of the Champions League semifinal between Atletico and Real gets underway tonight at 19:45 GMT.
Real Madrid are in a great position to advance to the Champions League Final against Juventus. After winning the first leg at Santiago Bernabéu Stadium, 3-0, after Christiano Ronaldo scored an incredible hat-trick and led his team to a huge lead going into tonight's match. Atletico have a huge mountain to climb and without a miracle, it does not look like they will be advancing to face Juventus in the Final.
Real have been the Achilles heal for Atletico for the last three years in the Champions League, ousting them each time, including twice in the Finals in 2014 and in 2016 respectively. Real are poised to complete their first double since 1958. Although they are even with Barcelona on points in the league right now, Real still have one match to play so they could easily find themselves in control of their own destiny in the last week of league play.
Many critics think that Real doesn't want to win the European championship as much as other teams. Some have blamed the fact that Real has the biggest budget of any soccer team in the world and the money means more to the players than the hardware does. Sergio Ramos, Real Captain had this to say, "It seems like here we have grown up in Beverly Hills. Here there are people from humble backgrounds too." "The sacrifice is what fills you with desire to win," he continued.
Atletico will have a relatively healthy squad tonight at Vicente Calderón Stadium with Fernandez still out due to a knee injury.
Champions League Betting Markets
There are multiple betting markets available tonight for bettors interested in getting in on the pre-game odds at bet365 Sports. The odds for outright winner are very tight with Atletico in the lead by the slightest percentage at 2.62, whilst Real are at 2.70. A draw will bring a bit more profit at 3.60, but a bet on Correct Score, combined with the live betting markets will net the most winnings.
