Champions League picks, predictions, odds: experts think Real Madrid will take Chelsea down, AC Milan keep Napoli close

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By Webdesk


There are eight teams left in the UEFA Champions League. The quarterfinals kicked off on Tuesday on Paramount+ and CBS and will conclude with the second legs in the middle of next week. Manchester City vs. Bayern Munich marked Tuesday’s lead with Pep Guardiola’s side taking a dominant 3-0 lead in the draw Benfica fell 2-0 at Inter in Portugal. RealMadrid and Chelsea meet on Wednesday, while it is an all-Italy draw on the same day Napoli take on AC Milan.

Italy has had a resurgence on the continental stage, leading the way with three of eight teams in the quarter-finals, while England are second with two teams. You can also check out our ranking of the top 50 best remaining players in the league.

Here’s everything you need to know about the games, our expert picks and more:

Wednesday’s broadcast schedule

  • UEFA Champions League Today, 2pm, Paramount+
  • Milan vs. Napoli, 3 p.m., Paramount+
  • Real Madrid vs. Chelsea, 3 p.m., CBS and Paramount+
  • Tactical Camera: Real Madrid vs. Chelsea, 3 p.m., CBS Sports Golazo Network
  • UEFA Champions League Post-Match Show, 5pm, Paramount+
  • CBS Sports Golazo Network Post-Match Show, 5 p.m., CBS Sports Golazo Network
  • CBS Sports Golazo Network will also have network-exclusive postgame coverage

Match choices

CBS Sports has the football podcast for you with everything you need to know about the beautiful game. Make sure to follow House of Champions for coverage of the biggest games, stories, transfer news with Fabrizio Romano and everything else happening in the world’s most popular sport.

AC Milan against Naples

Recommended game | AC Milan against Naples

One match to watch: Rafael Leao vs. John Di Lorenzo – In the last Serie A match between AC Milan and Napoli, Rafael Leao dominated Di Lorenzo’s defense and captain Di Lorenzo. In fact, the Portuguese striker scored a brace and was nominated for Man of the Match. However, it is likely that it will be a different game this time, with Napoli being much more careful when defending. The matchup between these two will probably tell us a lot about the result of this first leg.

Most likely goal: Olivier Giroud – The Rossoneri need to score at San Siro in the first leg as the second leg will be much more difficult and Olivier Giroud is the man Stefano Pioli needs for such a match. The French striker scored four goals in eight Champions League matches and must score again against Spalletti’s team.

Pick man of the match: Khvicha Kvaratskhelia – The Georgian talent comes from two games in which he did not score or assist. For Quaradona, this is something strange this season. Therefore, I expect him to be back to his usual level against AC Milan in the quarter-finals, as all eyes will be on him.

Match Prediction: AC Milan 1, Naples 1. AC Milan won 4-0 ten days ago in the last Serie A match between the two sides and despite Napoli being close to victory over the Scudetto, the feeling is that the Champions League match between these sides will be much closer than we expected a few weeks ago. It is likely that the first leg will not decide who qualifies for the semi-finals and I predict a draw. Francis Porzio

Real Madrid vs. Chelsea

Recommended game | Real Madrid vs. Chelsea

One match to watch: Vinicius Junior vs. Reece James – The flying Brazilian from Real Madrid has been in sensational form since the turn of the year. He again found the net against Villarreal and scored 11 goals in 2023. come up with James, which has the further advantage that his punches and punches in attack can ask questions of Vinicius. The England international is likely to be much more defensive in the first leg, but he and Mason Mount deliver a highly effective combination on the right with and without the ball. They can ask as many questions to the Madrid left as Vinicius asks them.

Most Likely Goal: Karim Benzema – It’s the Champions League. It’s Real Madrid. It’s Benzema.

Man of the Match Pick: N’Golo Kante – The Frenchman may have only played one game since August, but it was a superb performance, 59 minutes of action-packed football that brought back memories of the superstar running through the pitch in the spring of 2021. level he showed that year in demolishing Real Madrid, but in all honesty he could be a lot worse two years later and still be the consensus man of the game.

Match Prediction: Real Madrid 1, Chelsea 1 – Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali may have been in a hurry to sack Graham Potter (who would probably never get Chelsea where they want to be), but the second manager of the season forged a team better defensively than their goalscoring record would suggest. The Blues have averaged almost exactly one expected goal over their last 15 games, it doesn’t seem beyond the imagination that they could score one at the Santiago Bernabeu and keep the tie alive. James Benge





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