Champions League Round of 16: FC Porto vs Arsenal Odds
Showdown at the Dragao
Arsenal on a Roll
Arsenal have outscored their opponents in their last two road matches by a combined 11-0. That’ll strike fear into Porto ahead of Wednesday’s Champions League round of 16 first leg. This is Arsenal’s first appearance in the Champions League knockout stage since 2017, while Porto are back in the knockout stage for the third time in the last four seasons. Porto will host at the Dragao on Wednesday and the second leg is at the Emirates Stadium in London on March 12th. Ahead of the first leg, we’ll check out the FC Porto vs Arsenal odds.
FC Porto vs. Arsenal
Date, time:
Location: Estadio do Dragao, Porto, Portugal
Porto vs Arsenal Head-to-Head
This is the first match between Porto and Arsenal since 2010. That year, Arsenal advanced to the Quarter-final over Porto with a 5-0 win and 2-1 loss in the UCL round of 16. In six UEFA Champions League fixtures, Arsenal lead the series 3-2, with one draw.
Porto Keep Another Home Clean Sheet
Heading into last weekend, Porto failed to win their previous two Primeira Liga matches. Still, Porto managed to pick up all three points when they took down Estrela Amadora 2-0. Porto scored goals on either side of halftime, as Galeno and Joao Mario got on the scoresheet. With the win, Porto improved to 8-2-1 at the Dragao in the Portuguese league this season. Porto are currently in third place in the league, with a 15-3-4 record.
In the Champions League group stage, Porto went 4-2 and both of their losses were vs. Barcelona. They finished second in Group H and they’re back in the round of 16 for a second straight season. Galeno was joint-leader in the Champions League stats, with four assists. The Brazilian forward also added four goals and led Porto in both goals and assists. Fellow Brazilian forward Evanilson also scored four goals in the group stage and is Porto’s leading scorer, in all competitions.
For Wednesday’s match, defenders Ivan Marcano and Zaidu Sanusi are out. Porto signed center back Otavio in the Winter transfer market and the former Familicao man made his debut on Saturday in the shutout victory. Porto haven’t lost a home match since November and have kept clean sheets in each of their last five matches at the Dragao. Still, the Porto vs Arsenal odds price Porto as +440 underdogs for this one.
Arsenal Dominating on the Road
A couple of Sundays ago, Arsenal got their biggest-ever road win in the Premier League when they destroyed West Ham 6-0. The Gunners followed it up by taking down Burnley 5-0 last Saturday at Turf Moor. Bukayo Saka scored twice in each match and the English international winger is in fine form. Arsenal have won five matches in a row heading into Wednesday’s game, while averaging 4.2 goals per game during that time. They’ve been an excellent recent pick for soccer betting and the Gunners show +550 outright Champions League odds.
Saka also scored three goals and provided four assists in the group stage, where Arsenal went 4-1-1. The Gunners won Group B ahead of PSV, Lens and Sevilla and are in the knockout stage for the first time since 2017. Incredibly, the Gunners have been eliminated in the round of 16 in each of their last seven UCL appearances. Still, they have one of their strongest sides in the past two decades this season.
Arsenal have a few players who are nearing returns from injury. Gabriel Jesus led Arsenal with four goals in the group stage, but he’s missed the last couple of matches with a knee problem. Oleksandr Zinchenko, Takehiro Tomiyasu, Thomas Partey and Fabio Vieira are also doubtful and it remains to be seen whether any will be involved on Wednesday. Either Leandro Trossard or Kai Havertz should start up top for Arsenal if Jesus can’t play again.
Porto vs Arsenal Match Analysis & Odds
Arsenal don’t have much Champions League experience on their roster, even if they are favored here. The Gunners (-150) need to make sure they don’t get overwhelmed by the moment and keep playing the way they have been recently. When Arsenal press their opposition, it tends to cause a lot of mistakes and open up opportunities for the Gunners. Expect Arsenal to have a good number of chances on Wednesday.
It’s certainly not a foregone conclusion that Arsenal will rock up and grab a win here. Porto (+440) are a difficult team to defeat and they’re in the knockout stages of European competitions year in and year out. The Porto vs Arsenal odds list a draw at +275 odds and it’d do more good for Arsenal than Porto, with the second leg coming up in London.
Bettors can take Porto +0.5, +1 at -105 odds, while Arsenal -0.5, -1 sits at -115. The oddsmakers are giving Arsenal a lot of credit but they did draw twice vs. Portuguese side Sporting last season in the Europa League round of 16. The Gunners ended up losing on penalties and they can’t afford to take Porto lightly here. Even though the Gunners have been scoring at ease recently, under 2.5 goals come in at -120 odds here.
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