Champions League Soccer Picks

There are several important Champions League soccer games tonight:  Napoli hosts Benfica.  Napoli were the only Group B winners on matchday 1, and therefore, will be seeking to further strengthen their position in the Group when they take on Benfica at home. Thus, I take SSC Napoli to win the game on the Money Line (ML), with the option "Draw No Bet", and if the game is tied after 90 mins. of play, the Bet is Void.  Barcelona will play in Germany against Gladbach. Barsa will be without Lionel Messi and Samuel Umtiti. Messi injured his groin last week and remains out of action. Meanwhile, Gladbach could be missing Raffael because of a groin problem. Mamadou Doucoure, Joel Mero, Marvin Schulz, and Alvaro Dominguez are also definitely out. With that, I take the same bet option as the game above - Barcelona to win the game on the Money Line (ML), with the option "Draw No Bet", and if the game is tied after 90 mins. of play, the Bet is Void. The last game I selected is Celtic-Manchester City. If Celtic is to provide any competition to Manchester City in Group C, they need to hit their stride. City won 4-0 their Champions League opener, so I expect them to win tonight in Scotland vs. Celtic. Therefore, I pick (again) the option "Draw No Bet", i.e. Manchester City to win the game on the Money Line (ML), and if the game is tied after 90 mins. of play, the Bet is Void.

UPDATE September 29, 2016 - FINAL Results: SSC Napoli  4-2  Benfica, Borussia Mönchengladbach 1-2 Barcelona, Celtic 3-3 Manchester City.  Let's summarize the results:  Milik struck his 3rd Champ. League goal and Dries Mertens hit a brace as Napoli completed a 4-2 win against Benfica. Napoli players were tired in the final five minutes and Benfica scored 2 goals, but might not be enough to rescue a group campaign [and move to the 2nd round], which started with a 1-1 draw at home to Besiktas. Barcelona proved they can win away in Europe even without Lionel Messi as they posted a 2-1 comeback victory at Moenchengladbach. Thorgan Hazard, the younger brother of Chelsea midfielder Eden, gave Gladbach a first-half 1-0 lead; But goals in the final 25 minutes, from Arda Turan and Gerard Pique, sealed Barcelona's second Group C win after their 7-0 hammering of Celtic at the Camp Nou a fortnight ago. Manchester City came from behind 3 times to draw 3-3 at Celtic, which basically ended the English team's 100% start to the season under new coach Pep Guardiola.  City's winning run stopped at 10 games, one short of matching the English record, and Guardiola will be relieved at earning a point after his team's terrible defensive display at Parkhead. As a result of that draw, this Bet is VOID [I selected a victory for Manchester City with an option - "Draw No Bet"].