The Daily bets, Banter & Accumulators thread

Great news regarding Atletico's star player. Costa is fit and will start for sure in this game. I hope Turan will make it too but not that much of a problem if he's still out. Atletico is in the form of their lives at the moment and they sit at the top of the table in the Primera division with a gap of 3 points with their arch rivals Real. Will be an awesome ending this year if they can make it. In the CL they almost wrote history knocking out Barca in the quarter finals. They showed they are no one day flies but even more important they are capable of isolating the worlds best player. Their teamwork is immense and as a collective they really fight as a unit with the right timing and mentality. Simeone might seem crazy to many of us but he succeeded pretty well with this team. They are having a superb season and I have to be honest with you all, didn't think they would make it this far. Hard to predict pre-game if this is the right draw for them as Chelsea is also known for their defensive tactics and this encounter might go out as a candle light. But, I think Atletico has a decent chance here and in my eyes they are in a better shape than Chelsea at the moment. Especially in their home game I expect them to dominate and we all know that Chelsea is much weaker away from home. Atletico will be sharper than ever to nick 1 or 2 in over the first 90 minutes and hopefully keep things tight at the back but since this is one of their main strengths, I'm confident this won't be much of a problem. They know they have to get a result here cause the 2th tie at Stamford Bridge is never easy. Same like last round I will back the home side against Chelsea cause I feel they have many things in their favor. Pressure is an important factor in football, it often effects a team in a positive or negative way. We can look at it both ways but I think this Atletico side can play without much pressure since they surely already achieved what they had in mind for this year. Ofcourse this won't affect their motivation or concentration in a bad way, I think this is a positive feeling their players have, just go out there and enjoy. Chelsea is the bigger club, bigger name, "bigger players", Atletico is again the underdog [not for the bookies] when it comes to CL experience etc so this might be an advantage for them. One thing is for sure the players of Atletico will surely not underestimate Chelsea here and I think they will feel they are the underdogs overall, but that's a good thing imo.

Ofcourse Chelsea has Jose Mourinho and I'm a big fan when it comes to his coaching skills and tactics. This guy can work miracles and maybe he will qualify again but I do think they will come up short here in the first leg. Like I already wrote, they often deliver a flat performance away from home, a bit scared maybe too scared too concede goals and we saw against PSG that this tactic struck them as lightning. They always have quality players in their squad like Eto'o, Hazard, Oscar who can score goals out of nowhere but if your team doesn't move forward as a collective the support is small upfront and I think Atletico in their current form are well capable of defending their clean sheet. Ivanovic is suspended for this game which is a major blow for their defensive line but he is also strong going forward and a real danger from setpieces. Hazard is also a major doubts for this game, he still hasn't trained with the group so we will have to wait and see how things develope in the upcoming days but he won't be 100% fit that's for sure. And if there is one thing Chelsea needs, than it's surely an away goal and it often comes from the flanks [goal or assist]. Chelsea's overall record this season away from home is surely not great. 14-5-11 in all competitions including cup games. If we take a quick look at Atletico's home record this season than some people might fall off their chair. 22-4-1 is impressive and surely no gaurantee they will win here but I just have a feeling that they atleast can win this first leg against Chelsea due many factors I wrote earlier.

We have to wait and see which players will start in this game but I like the odds and the home win and I will make a bet on it with medium stakes quite early cause if Hazard is also out for Chelsea the odds might drop down a bit before Kick-off.

Atletico needs a better game than they played against Milan at home but they showed enough in the last couple of months to convince me.

Goodluck guys!

I can see Torres having the game of his life tonight!