Celtic v Juventus – Match Preview and Betting Tip
Celtic will forever have a rich pedigree in Europe’s premier competition, having been the first British club to lift the European Cup in 1967. The Lisbon Lions are still the finest and proudest wearers of the hooped shirt, and ensure that Celtic fans will always have a boast over English clubs and their Old Firm rivals Rangers that they are never likely to allow anyone to forget.
This season has also been an excellent European campaign for the Scottish underdogs, with the Glasgow club having pulled off numerous excellent results, most notably nearly securing a draw in the Nou Camp, but for an injury time winner by Jordi Alba, and then memorably beating Barcelona in the return fixture at Celtic Park. The magnitude of this achievement should not be underestimated, considering that Barcelona have won 21, drawn two and lost just one of their league fixtures this season.
The reward for Celtic traversing a very tricky group was a last sixteen tie with Juventus; the Serie A outfit that went through last season’s campaign completely unbeaten, and whom top the table again this term. The big challenge for the home side in this fixture will be getting a grip on midfield, where the vastly talented Andrea Pirlo will be pulling the strings for Juventus. Celtic will field a fluid 4-3-3, which will become a 4-5-1 when Juventus have the ball, and try to deny the Italians the space to play their patient game.
Celtic (possible 4-3-3): Forster; Matthews, Lustig, Wilson, Izaguirre; Brown, Wanyama, Mulgrew; Samara, Hooper, Forrest
Juventus (possible 3-1-4-2): Buffon; Bonucci, Barzagli, Caceres; Pirlo; Lichtsteiner, Marchisio, Vidal, Asamoah; Vucinic, Giovinco
Betting Prediction: Despite the fact that Scottish teams are always outsiders in the Champions League, Celtic actually have a phenomenal home record in the competition, having won 21 of their last 23 home Champions League matches. Of course, the Glasgow club have already seen off the mighty Barcelona on home turf during this campaign. Another interesting statistic regarding this fixture is that on the four previous occasions that the two sides have clashed, the home side has always won. So there are some portents pointing toward a Celtic victory this evening, despite the fact that the bookies make this the outsider of the three possible outcomes.
However, my head says that Celtic will find it extremely difficult to beat a determined Juventus side, even with the roar of Celtic Park behind them. Juventus top Serie A, rarely lose to anyone, and gave an indication of their ability earlier this season, when they largely outplayed Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, and then walloped them 3-0 in the Stadio delle Alpi. So I don’t think Juventus will lose this game, but I think a combination of Celtic’s excellent home record, spirit, home support, and the fact that their incredibly dominant league position has given them the opportunity to rest players going into this fixture (surely a factor in their run so far) will be enough to secure the home side a draw. So my tip for this market is for a score draw, if I had to plump for a precise scoreline, I’d pick 1-1.
