Football betting tips: Champions League
1pt Florian Wirtz 2+ shots on target at 13/5 (Coral, Ladbrokes)
It feels as if Liverpool's season so far hasn't gathered the wider attention at a level we've come to expect for a club of their stature.
Andoni Iraola has them placed roughly where we'd expect them to be and while their attack has been operating at an average level, defensively the Reds have a structure which has been somewhat unlucky to concede as many as they have.
That isn't a great amount though. Eight have been allowed in seven Premier League outings and the three conceded at LASK in their last European game must be viewed with the context that the game was already clearly won by that stage.
It's two wins from two in the Champions League with Atletico Madrid beaten in their previous Anfield encounter. As the 1/2 odds on a home victory suggest, any less than three points will be viewed in a disappointing manner for the large majority in attendance.
Villarreal's own campaign has enjoyed a recent resurgence with just one defeat from their last five, three of which have been wins, following a start which failed to deliver victory across their opening six outings.
The 3-1 victory over Napoli in their last Champions League contest couldn't be viewed as a huge surprise considering they were slight odds against favourites but we could look towards the schedule as being the reason behind the upturn in their LaLiga form - three of those games coming against sides in the bottom four.
Liverpool should see a fair few opportunities to score here and the one player who is worth focusing on in this attack is FLORIAN WIRTZ. Focus is certainly a word to use with him given how analysed his performances are carrying such a significant price tag.
But from a betting perspective, he's not been a bad one to look at. He's returned assists in back-to-back outings but is yet to score a club goal this season. He's certainly been trying though.
The 13/5 price for Wirtz to see 2+ SHOTS ON TARGET here is a good enough one to get involved with, as is the 2/1 and above available everywhere else.
Six of his seven Premier League games have delivered at least two shots, with six in that win over LASK in Austria. More should have been on target but I'm happy siding with volume in a game where they're so fancied to win.
While some firms do offer the super sub 'safety net', Wirtz has still played 90 minutes in both of their European outings, while the same can be said on four occasions in England's top-flight.
Some bookmakers are going as short as 6/5 on Wirtz having at least four total shots in the game, and while his ratio of shots to those on target hasn't been quite where we'd like it so far, there's still value in backing a couple of those efforts to test the goalkeeper.
Odds correct at 12:30 BST (19/10/26)
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