-
Bayern in strong form at home
-
Olympiakos have twice needed penalties to get this far
-
Goals galore and home win the way to go
Bayern Munich U19 v Olympiakos U19
Tuesday 12 March, 15:00
Our Roman holiday became something of a nightmare last night, as Lazio crumbled to a 2-1 defeat against relegation-threatened Udinese. As Maurizio Sarri smokes furiously, we swiftly move on.
We'll do something a little different today, and take in a game from the prestigious UEFA Youth League. Bayern Munich are up against Greek giants Olympiakos in the quarter-finals, and I think the German side can make it through to the last four.
Such are the vagaries of youth football that Bayern are only eighth in their region of the U19 Bundesliga, 24 points behind the leaders Hoffenheim, but in the Youth League they have been flying. After losing two of their first three group games, the Bavarians have put together a five-match winning streak, including knockout wins over Basel (2-0 away) and Galatasaray (3-2 at home).
Midfielder Lovro Zvonarek has been in Bayern's senior team, while Adam Aznou has been a regular on the bench. Striker Robert Ramsak's regular goalscoring has seen RB Leipzig swoop in to sign him for next season. Ramsak was part of the German U17 squad that became world champions.
Olympiakos have pulled off penalty shootout heroics to dispose of Inter and Lens in the knockout rounds, and against the French side they had to come back from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 and force a penalty contest. In their domestic competition they are only being kept off top spot by virtue of goal difference, with PAOK the leaders.
Bayern have never previously got this far in the Youth League, but coach Rene Maric is a very smart operator, and I think Bayern have the firepower to progress here. We can use the Bet Builder to back Bayern to win in 90 minutes, Over 2.5 Goals and a goal in both halves at 2.0421/20.
Bayern have looked more convincing than Olympiakos in this competition, and 18 of their last 21 matches have featured at least three goals. They have also won six of their last nine games at the Bayern Campus.