Champions League Second Leg Play Off Tips
The make-up for the last-16 of the Champions League will be decided this week as the eight play-off round ties are completed.
The likes of Newcastle and Galatasaray have one foot in the next stage with handsome first leg wins, but elsewhere it is all to play for.
Our best bets for this week's eight Champions League Knockout Phase Playoff 2nd leg games are below.
Bet 1: Atletico Madrid to beat Club Brugge & both teams to score @ 11/8
Six goals were shared when these two sides tussled in Belgium last week as Club Brugge recovered from 0-2 and 2-3 down to salvage a draw.
Both teams have scored in nine of their last 13 league and cup outings, while for Atleti both sides have found the net in eight of their nine Champions League games and they are without a clean sheet in that sequence.
Diego Simeone's side have, though, scored eight goals in their last two games at the Metropolitano and they haven't lost a home Champions League knockout match since March 1997. Ivan Leko's visiting side can net in Madrid, but Brugge have won just one of their last 15 away games against Spanish opposition (D6, L8) and they may well come up short again.
Bet 2: Inter Milan vs Bodo/Glimt Over 3.5 goals @ 7/10
"As a club, I think we're still fairly unknown to many in Europe," was the verdict offered by Bodo/Glimt midfielder Patrick Berg as he looked forward to visiting the San Siro for the second leg Inter Milan.
The Norwegian side hold a 3-1 lead and could well be good enough to convert their advantage and break new ground in the last-16. They are underestimated at 19/2 to win the second leg.
Bodo/Glimt are going for four straight Champions League wins and it was Manchester City and Atletico Madrid they dispatched before Inter.
Both teams have scored in all three of those games and Bodo have scored two or more goals in seven of their nine games from Matchday 1 onwards including the last five. Two of their last three have gone over 3.5 goals.
Previous to their loss in Norway, Inter's Serie A wins over Sassuolo and Juventus both featured five goals. Boss Cristian Chivu suggests the second leg 'will be an attacking match, our approach will be front-footed' and it could be a night of fireworks at the San Siro.
Bet 3: Borussia Dortmund to beat Atalanta @ 11/5
Atalanta have seven wins and two draws in nine Serie A games so far in the 2026, but it's a different story for La Dea in the Champions League where they have lost to Athletic Club, Union Saint Gilloise and Borussia Dortmund since the turn of the year.
In four home games in Europe only Slavia Prague have failed to score at their Bergamo home.
Dortmund have scored in 17 of their 18 away games this season in all competitions, their only exception coming at Tottenham last month when they played three quarters of the game with 10 men.
Atalanta are perhaps not as strong since Gian Piero Gasperini departed. They averaged 2.05 goals per game in Serie A last season, but that has dropped to 1.38 this term and Dortmund can put them away in style with a second-leg success in Italy.
First Play-Off Leg Tips
The Champions League knockout stages begin this week with eight ties in the play-off round set to reduce the field down to 16 contenders for Europe's premier prize.
Defending champs Paris Saint-Germain and Champions League aristocrats Real Madrid both find themselves in the play-off round after suffering mixed fortunes in the league phase and they'll be eager to avoid the chance of any shocks.
Our best bets for this week's eight Champions League Knockout Phase Playoff 1st Leg ties are below.
- Real Madrid to Beat Benfica & Kylian Mbappe to score
- Paris Saint-Germain to beat AS Monaco & Over 3.5 Goals
- Bodo/Glimt Double Chance Vs Inter Milan
- Qarabag & Newcastle United to Draw
ADD OUR SELECTIONS TO YOUR BETSLIP @ 71/1
Bet 1: Real Madrid to beat Benfica & Kylian Mbappe to score @ 29/20](https://www.leovegas.com/en-row/betting#event/1026467777)
Real lost 4-2 at Benfica last month in the concluding game of the league phase, the Eagles soaring into this play-off round courtesy of goalkeeper Anatoliy Trubin's 98th-minute goal.
The sides meet again now and the outcome may be different. Madrid have won three from three domestically since, scoring eight goals, while Benfica have landed two wins and one draw but scored just four times.
Los Blancos led here last month through Kylian Mbappe before they succumbed and they'll have eyes on redemption now.
Mbappe has 13 Champions League goals this season in seven games and the French ace also has 13 in his last nine outings in all competitions.
Benfica got to this stage despite losing five of their league phase games and Jose Mourinho may find his former side dish out some retribution now, with Madrid likely to prove a different animal in the knockout environment that has witnessed five Champions League titles in the last 10 years.
Bet 2: Paris Saint-Germain to beat Monaco & Over 3.5 goals @ 37/20
Paris Saint-Germain finally landed this coveted title last year, thumping Inter Milan 5-0 in the final.
Luis Enrique's side started their defence by scoring 19 times in five games but they stuttered afterwards, failing to win their final three games, and must come through a play-off against fellow Ligue 1 side Monaco.
It's a repeat of last season, with an all-French tie in the opening knockout round, when the Parisians ousted Brest 10-0 on aggregate.
They lost at the Stade Luis II in November on Ligue 1 duty but had won four of the previous five clashes with Monaco, three of those games producing five or more goals. Indeed, seven of Monaco's previous 10 games in all competitions have gone over 3.5 goals, while eight of PSG's last 10 in continental action have featured at least three goals. The Parisians can win an entertaining contest in Monaco.
Bet 3: Bodo/Glimt or draw double chance vs Inter Milan @ 59/50
Gloves at the ready for Inter Milan as they travel to northern Norway to face Bodo/Glimt.
They may have surrendered their Eliteserien crown in the season that ended in late November but last season's Europa League semi-finalists showed few ill-effects as they took seven points from nine in the Champions League in their final three games.
They drew 2-2 at Borussia Dortmund, swatted aside Manchester City 3-1 here and then won 2-1 against Atletico Madrid at the Metropolitano.
Those wins over Pep Guardiola and Diego Simeone's sides were fully merited and Inter are unlikely to get things easy here.
Kjetil Knutsen's team are appearing at this stage for the first time and can serve it up to the Serie A opponents in the first leg, though Inter, finalists in two of the last three seasons, should come good at the San Siro.
Bet 4: [Qarabag to draw with Newcastle United @ 15/4](
Newcastle United have strung together back to back away victories for the first time since April and the Magpies tend to find momentum around this stage of the season.
A late Harvey Barnes’ miss against Paris-Saint Germain prevented Eddie Howe’s side from qualifying automatically after a hit-and-miss campaign, let down by their away form.
Qarabag scored nine goals across their four Champions League ties in Baku, including two against fellow-English side Chelsea in a 2-2 draw.
While Newcastle could have done without extra fixtures in the Champions League and despite an improvement in form, they will know the home leg is where they win this tie. They’ll feel comfortable avoiding defeat in Baku.