Dan Fitch previews the midweek ICC action, which includes outings for Arsenal, Manchester United, Tottenham and an interesting Manchester City v Liverpool fixture…
International Champions Cup, Thursday 26th July
Second ICC win for Bayern
Juventus [3.15] v Bayern Munich [2.36]; The Draw [3.75]
Kick off 00:05, Live on Premier Sports
Bayern got off to a winning start when they came back from a goal down to beat PSG 3-1 in their first ICC match. A big issue for many clubs at this stage of pre-season when so many players are unavailable is fielding a balanced side, but Bayern were able to field a decent team.
Juventus may struggle to find that balance, with forwards Paulo Dybala, Gonzalo Higuain, Mario Mandzukic and new signing Cristiano Ronaldo all missing. With that in mind, back Bayern in the Draw No Bet market at [1.72].
Strong Dortmund and Benfica sides will keep unbeaten records intact
Borussia Dortmund [2.24] v Benfica [3.35]; The Draw [3.7]
Kick off 01:05, Live on Premier Sports
Borussia Dortmund are currently top of the ICC table having won both of their games so far. A 1-0 victory over Manchester City was followed by a 3-1 win against Liverpool, despite the two fixtures giving Dortmund very little room for recovery.
Benfica may give Dortmund their sternest test yet. Unlike Dortmund’s previous two opponents they have a near full strength team available and come into this match off the back of a victory against Sevilla. Back both teams to keep their unbeaten pre-season records intact, with a draw at [3.7].
Liverpool to claim another win against Man City
Manchester City [3.8] v Liverpool [1.93]; The Draw [4.2]
Kick off 01:05, Live on Premier Sports
These teams both lost their opening ICC games to Dortmund. Neither fielded strong sides, but it is Liverpool that have the stronger squad and the potential to name the better balanced team when the Premier League rivals meet on Thursday.
Jurgen Klopp will surely be keen to gain another victory over City and further assert Liverpool’s recent dominance, ahead of the new season. It’s likely that he’ll name the best team possible, so back Liverpool to win and both teams to score at [3.1].
Italian job too tough for understrength Spurs
Roma [2.34] v Tottenham [3.05]; The Draw [3.85]
Kick off 03:05, Live on Premier Sports
Spurs suffered more than most from the World Cup, with nine of their players being involved in the semi-final stage and playing the maximum amount of games. They are currently looking very short of numbers in central midfield, with Dele Alli, Mousa Dembele, Eric Dier and Christian Eriksen yet to return from holiday and Josh Onomah and Harry Winks injured.
Roma are the worthy favourites then, with Eusebio Di Francesco having a strong squad available to him in America. Back the Italians to win at [2.34].
Man Utd can win first match of pre-season
AC Milan [2.98] v Manchester United [2.44]; The Draw [3.7]
Kick off 04:05, Live on Premier Sports
Manchester United also have plenty of players unavailable to their manager Jose Mourinho, such as Paul Pogba and Romelu Lukaku, but the depth of their squad means that they can still select a good side featuring plenty of experienced names.
They have already played two non-ICC friendlies in America and should be more acclimatised than Milan, who flew out this week. The Serie A side were much improved once Genaro Gattuso took over last season, but they still have a long way to get back to the top and the price of [1.83] for United in the Draw No Bet market is too big to be ignored.
Defences on top in semi-final repeat
Atletico Madrid [3.05] v Arsenal [2.32]; The Draw [3.75]
Kick off 12:35, Live on Premier Sports
Atletico Madrid may have got the better of Arsenal in the Europa League semi-finals last season, but it is the Gunners that are the favourites, having had relatively few players involved at the World Cup.
Though Atletico will be missing several key players, it’s likely that they will remain organised and difficult for Arsenal to break down. With Arsenal possibly less gung-ho under their new manager Unai Emery than they were under Arsene Wenger, under 2.5 goals looks big at [2.06]
Source: Betfair Premier League