Porto vs Inter Milan – Betting Preview
Tuesday’s second leg of Porto and Inter Milan’s last-16 match will determine which team advances to the Champions League quarterfinals.
Inter won the teams’ first match in Italy by the narrowest of margins, but they have subsequently continued to play in erratic fashion while their hosts have resumed their winning ways.
Porto Preview
Last month, Porto’s 10-man team lost their first match of their most recent journey in the Champions League knockout stage after a tough night at San Siro, with Inter replacement Romelu Lukaku scored the only goal.
With 85 minutes gone, Lukaku scored the rebound after hitting the post, defying his recent luck in front of goal. This came shortly after Otavio was expelled for a second card for a foul on Hakan Calhanoglu after receiving his first for dissent.
The reigning Primeira League champions of Portugal had already been thwarted by Inter goalkeeper Andre Onana on a few times, but after failing to score in Milan, they now have a game they must win on Tuesday.
For the Dragoes this season, losing has become an unaccustomed experience. Before to the winter break, they had won 10 straight games and finished top in Group B after winning their last four games.
Inter Milan Preview
Inter lost to Liverpool in the second consecutive Champions League knockout round last season, but Simone Inzaghi’s team defeated Barcelona in the group’s final match of the summer to finish second, and they are now 90 minutes away from a spot in the round of eight.
The Italian juggernauts will try to continue a trend of finishing the job in Europe’s top club competition; they have won four of their last seven away games in the elimination stage, with all four coming in second legs.
After Inzaghi’s team suffered their eighth league loss of the year at the hands of lowly Spezia, they now trail Serie A leaders Napoli by an enormous 18 points. As a result, they now have the seventh-worst away record in Italy’s top division.
The Nerazzurri have a poor track record against Portuguese opposition in European tournaments, having lost each of their last two visits and only triumphed once since September 2006 against Sporting.
1×2 Betting Odds
Let’s begin analysing the 1×2 market
Even though Porto have made a few mistakes recently, Inter’s defensive issues and road woes are serious concerns going into this second-leg decider. The home team can score goals in a variety of ways, but because they are behind before the game even starts, this might require extra time and penalties to win!
A look at the betting market fails to give us any proper insight with dead even odds!
Porto to win this one stands @ 2.75, meanwhile Inter is evenly matched @ 2.76.
As you can see there is no clear favourite.
The market odds of a draw, which will see the away side qualify, stands @ 3.53.
Total goals over/under
Let’s check the over/under scenario
The odds that the total number of goals scored will be over 2.5, stands @ 2.06.
While the odds that the total number of goals will be under 2.5, stands @ 1.89.
Inter played ten under 2.5 goals matches in Serie A this season with three coming in the last five outings. Porto had eleven in their league.
Porto played the way they wanted to, not allowing their opponent who had a superior attacking advantage to get enough goals and feel comfortable for the return match.
So expect a similar defensive theme to follow even in this one!
