Atletico Madrid vs Arsenal Prediction and Champions League Preview | April 28

Atletico Madrid vs Arsenal Betting Preview

With the World Cup heading to North America this summer, GoldSheet will be ramping up its soccer coverage over the next few weeks. WagerTalk handicapper and GoldSheet’s featured writer Bruce Marshall shares his thoughts on how Wednesday’s Atletico Madrid vs Arsenal clash in the UEFA Champions League will shake out.

Daily Betting Analysis from GoldSheet

GoldSheet is the country’s longest-running sports betting newsletter providing weekly coverage of the NFL and college football, plus daily coverage of the NBA and college basketball, for nearly seven decades. Subscribe to The Basketball GoldSheet newsletter where we provide a detailed write-up on every NBA game from Opening Night through the NBA Finals for less than $3 per day.

Atletico Madrid’s Current Form

“This is Atleti.” So said manager Diego Simeone earlier this spring about his Atletico de Madrid after seeing off Barcelona in the Copa del Rey, hanging on after taking a 4-0 lead into the second leg. Simeone could have said the same after the Champions League quarterfinal vs. the same Barca, when Atleti made a 2-0 lead after the first leg (only this time, the first leg was at the Camp Nou) stand up in a nervous reverse fixture at the Metropolitano.

“Suffering” is the unofficial motto of Simeone’s Atleti, which has achieved much in his dozen years at the helm but also come agonizingly close to achieving much, much more, especially in the Champions League. Where, perhaps in a sign of changing fortunes this season, Simeone doesn’t have to face crosstown nemesis Real Madrid, which has sent so many daggers into the heart of Atleti supporters in this competition, most recently last March in a controversial knockout round shootout.

Simeone’s side has its customary scrap, and the winter transfer addition of Ademola Lookman from Atalanta has added another sharp edge to the attack that has also found a consistent source of goals in Norwegian frontliner Alexander Sorloth, a bit slow-moving but often in the right place as last Saturday vs. Athletic Bilbao when scoring a brace in a much-needed 3-2 win, breaking a four-match slump partly due to Simeone changing his lineups frequently to make sure he has a full-strength 11 for the Champions league assault. The recent return of GK Jan Oblak should be another plus for Simeone.

Arsenal’s Current Form

Now, Simeone gets Arsenal and a first leg semi at the Metropolitano, but it’s not the same Gunners who looked so swashbuckling in the fall, and put four goals past Atleti in a short 13-minute span last October 21 at the Emirates in a group phase match when Mikel Arteta’s side was running roughshod.

Not so much lately, however, even though technically still clinging to the top spot in the EPL (2nd-place Man City has a match-in-hand), as the set-piece goals have mostly dried up since the first half of the season.

Never looking all that smooth from the run-of-play to begin with, it’s the Gunners fans who are now doing the suffering as they watch their team. The much-needed 1-0 win over Newcastle last weekend hardly impressed and came with a price, as both Kai Havertz and Eberechi Eze (who combined have scored Arsenal’s only two goals across their past three matches) were forced off, their statuses for Wednesday up in the air.

Absent creative elements, and lacking ambition the past month, Arteta is running out of time to get the Gunners, who have only won two of their last seven, back to pre-New Year’s form.

Atletico Madrid vs Arsenal Prediction

Atleti have been involved in various wild affairs lately, with scorelines featuring at least three goals in eight of the last nine, though “the same old Arsenal” and its recently-dreary style might suggest otherwise on Wednesday.

Perhaps; still, we think Simeone might be able to steal a first-leg result here, as Atleti have been doing in recent knockout-round competitions, and the Gunners look ripe for the taking.

The safer call, at a less-appealing price, is Atleti on the Asian Line +0.25 goals at -140 or so, though we’re feeling a bit more brave here with the Simeone vibe and would rather roll the dice with Atleti on the win at +210, as no manager is better at instilling belief in his squad against the odds than Diego.

Considering Atleti’s recent scorelines, we could also see the “over” 2.5 goals at +120, while Atleti livewire Julian Alvarez and Arsenal’s Viktor Gyökeres, both at +210 to score, might be worth supplemental positions.

For a real walk on the wild side with a flyer, a 2-1 Atleti scoreline would return +1100.

More Soccer Picks and Predictions Today at WagerTalk

WagerTalk is the largest picks site online offering soccer FREE PICKS every week as well as premium paid soccer picks from expert professional sports bettors.

WagerTalk Live Odds Screen

WagerTalk’s live odds screen features up-to-the-minute lines from a variety of offshore and domestic sports books. Track moneylines, runlines, totals and betting percentages for a variety of domestic and international leagues.

**************************************************

Looking for more free sports picks and sports betting tips? Go beyond the anytime touchdown scorer picks!

• Latest Betting Odds and Public Action: Vegas lines updated in real time, including who the public is betting on and anytime touchdown scorer odds.
• Last Minute Handicapping Advice: Check out our extensive library of handicapping tips and advice from professional Vegas handicappers (we also recommend taking the time to look over our sports betting tips video library)
• Want an expert opinion?Check out the latest Free Sports Picks and Best Bets from our team of expert sports handicappers.

Make sure to bookmark all the above!