Champions League: Slumping Bayern Eager to Get Back on Track in Greece

Olympiacos vs Bayern Munich

Bayern Munich are in the midst of their first real rough patch of the season. After entering the international break on the back of a stunning 2-1 home defeat to Hoffenheim, the German champions suffered a dramatic 2-2 draw against Bundesliga strugglers Augsburg on the weekend.

The Bavarians will look to get back to winning ways in the Champions League, where they have won their first two matches in impressive fashion.

Standing in their way are Olympiacos, who are in desperate need of a win after picking up just one point in their first two matches. The Champions League 2019 betting odds are heavily against the Greeks, but they will be hoping their fine home form can help them pick up a positive result.

Talking Points

Olympiacos need home support

Olympiacos’ Champions League campaign started somewhat promisingly enough as they drew 2-2 at home against last year’s beaten finalists, Tottenham Hotspur. After going down 2-0, they valiantly fought their way back to earn a precious point.

However, they suffered a significant setback in their next match as they fell 3-1 away to Red Star Belgrade. After going ahead 1-0, they had a man sent off and proceeded to concede three goals in the last 30 minutes.

Olympiacos have since bounced back from that disappointing result by recording back-to-back 2-1 wins in the league over Aris and OFI.

Algerian striker Hillal Soudani, who got both goals in the win against OFI, has been in fine form of late. He’s now scored four goals in his last four appearances. The Greeks will need another strong performance from Soudani to stand any chance against Bayern.

Moreover, Olympiacos will need to continue the competent play they’ve displayed at home. They’ve won all four of their home games thus far in the league, conceding only one goal.

They’ve impressed in the Champions League as well. Prior to their draw against Spurs, they won the home legs of their three qualifying ties by a combined score of 10-0.

Robert Lewandowski's helped Bayern Munich win against Tottenham Hotspur in Champions League — Robert Lewandowski celebrating one of his goals against Tottenham Hotspur

Bayern’s back-to-back stumbles

The last time Bayern were in action in the Champions League, they handed Tottenham a historic 7-2 thrashing. That was Bayern’s fourth win in a row, which began with a 3-0 win over Red Star Belgrade.

But since that Spurs match, Bayern have had a bit of a wobble. They suffered a shock 2-1 defeat at home to Hoffenheim. And this weekend, they drew 2-2 to lowly Augsburg as they conceded in the first and the 91st minute.

That result saw them drop down to third in the table, now level on points with fellow title rivals Borussia Dortmund and RB Leipzig.

But on the bright side for Bayern, Robert Lewandowski is still in sensational form. The Polish striker bagged a hat-trick against Latvia during international duty and also found the net against Augsburg. He’s now scored in each of his last seven games for Bayern, picking up nine goals in total.

Serge Gnabry, who famously made numerous Champions league 2019 highlights when he scored four goals in their Tottenham thrashing, also continued his excellent form of late. After scoring in Germany’s 2-2 friendly draw against Argentina, he picked up a goal and an assist against Augsburg.

With those two forwards banging in the goals, Bayern should still like their chances of coming away from Greece with all three points.

History

Bayern and Olympiacos have met four times previously in European competition, and the Germans have come out on top on all four occasions. Their most recent meetings came in the 2015-16 group stage. Bayern won in their trip to Greece, 3-0, before battering them 4-0 back in Munich.

Their first encounters came back in the 1980-81 European Champion Clubs’ Cup first round, with Bayern ending up 7-2 winners on aggregate.

Betting Tip

	Olympiacos vs Bayern Munich	Bayern Munich Asian Handicap -1.50 @ 2.06
	October 23, 03:00 (GMT+8)

Despite being at home, SBOBET odds don’t give the Greeks much of a shot at beating Bayern. They are big 7.60 underdogs, while the Bavarians are heavy favourites at 1.36.

I agree that Bayern will win this game. And after their recent setbacks, I expect them to go out and send a bit of a message in Piraeus.

That’s why I’m going with Bayern on the Asian Handicap. With the attacking brilliance of Lewandowski and Gnabry leading the way, they should roll to a comfortable away victory of at least two goals against Olympiacos.