Champions League 2017: Odds, Live Stream for Tuesday's Round-of-16 Fixtures
The UEFA Champions League knockout stages kick off on Tuesday, as Paris Saint-Germain play host to Barcelona and Borussia Dortmund visit Benfica.
All four teams are regulars at this stage of the competition and will like their chances of advancing. Per the oddsmakers, Barcelona and BVB are the favourites, but both PSG and Benfica carry more momentum into the tie.
Here's a look at the odds, courtesy of OddsShark.com:
TOP NEWS
Madrid Fines Players $590K 😲
'Mbappé Out' Petition Gaining Steam 😳
Star-Studded World Cup Ad 🤩
| PSG: 13-5 | 5-2 | Barcelona: 19-20 |
| Benfica: 13-5 | 53-20 | BVB: 26-25 |
The schedule for Tuesday:
| 7:45 p.m. BST | PSG | Barcelona | BT Sport Live, Fox Soccer 2Go |
| 7:45 p.m. BST | Benfica | BVB | BT Sport Live, Fox Soccer 2Go |
PSG have won 11 of their last 12 matches across all competitions and enter Tuesday's clash fresh off a 3-0 drubbing of Bordeaux at the Matmut Atlantique. Les Parisiens are firing on all cylinders and have closed the gap to AS Monaco to just three points in Ligue 1.
Uruguayan hitman Edinson Cavani has been in fantastic form of late, and as shared by ESPN FC's Jonathan Johnson, he has an extra reason to play well on Tuesday:
Barcelona cruised to a routine 6-0 win over Alaves in their last La Liga outing, but the Catalans lost Aleix Vidal in the process. The right-back suffered a gruesome ankle injury, and he won't be in action again this season, per sports writer Sid Lowe.
The Catalans trail Real Madrid by just a single point in La Liga, but Los Blancos have two matches in hand and have been in fine form of late. While the Spanish title race isn't over, Barcelona's chances of catching their rivals seem slim.
The Champions League appears to be the club's main objective at this point, but winning that will be easier said than done.
An over-reliance on Lionel Messi's creative abilities has been an issue in the last few months, and while smaller teams like Alaves can be brushed aside, the Blaugrana have struggled against stronger outfits.
PSG's defensive prowess―they've conceded just 18 goals in 25 matches in Ligue 1 so far―and the form of the duo of Cavani and Julian Draxler make the French champions a dangerous side. Per L'Equipe (h/t Johnson), it sounds as if they'll draw inspiration from Atletico Madrid:
Dortmund slumped to an embarrassing defeat at the hands of Darmstadt on Saturday, a dreadful result against the last-placed team in the Bundesliga. With Benfica still clinging to the lead in the Portuguese league, it's clear which team has the better form in this tie.
BVB are not a club in crisis, but a defeat on Tuesday is the last thing manager Thomas Tuchel's young side needs.
Per football writer Lars Pollmann, the team will be without one of their key experienced forwards on Tuesday:
Benfica will be without Alex Grimaldo, who wasn't registered to play in the Champions League and veteran forward Jonas is a doubt, according to The Telegraph. Greek striker Kostas Mitroglou has been the team's main danger man this season, however, and he should feast on Dortmund's shaky defence.
