FC Rostov v PSV Eindhoven Betting Tip

With giants Bayern Munich and Atletico Madrid accompanying these two sides in Group D, this duo will more than likely be fighting out for third place and passage to the Europa League knockout stages rather than progress in the Champions League. If this is to be the case then this fixture is absolutely vital for both clubs.

Rostov got a real lesson in European football a fortnight ago when they were thrashed 5-0 by Bayern Munich in Germany. However, this is Selmashi’s first ever home Champions League ‘proper’ match and so we can expect a great atmosphere at Olimp-2 – something which the players will surely rise to.

Results have been mixed for Rostov since their thrashing at the Allianz Arena, firstly they lost 2-1 to Krasnodar – although that was through a last minute penalty – but then recovered to beat Lokomotiv Moscow 1-0 to put them back on track in the league. Rostov have lost a bit of their solidity from last season as the impressive defensive players were sold to help the club’s financial burden

You get the feeling that Dmitri Kirichenko’s side have to win this match if they want to realistically clinch that third spot so the pressure is really on.

Although PSV will of course have been disappointed to lose to Atletico Madrid on match-day one, there is a lot to be said for the small 1-0 scoreline. This means they are currently four goals up on Rostov which puts them in the driving seat for that third spot. A win away in Russia will likely ensure that the Dutch side at least qualify for the Europa League knockout rounds.

Phillip Cocu’s men won the Eredivisie last season for the second year in a row. However, their title defence has so far got off to a pretty poor start and the Red Whites currently sit third in the table behind historic rivals Ajax Amsterdam as well as Feyenoord who have made a terrific start to the season.

When you first look at the Eredivisie table, you notice that PSV score a lot of goals – unsurprising given their attacking talent in the likes of Luuk De Jong and Oleksandr Zinchenko. However, as pointed out on a previous winning Eredivisie tip, punters should not pay too much attention to this. Outside of the top three in Holland, teams are pretty poor sides and so big scorelines are expected, once the top teams from the Eredivisie either come up against each other or quality European opposition, it is a different story and the scorelines are usually a lot lower.

PSV have a lot more experience than Rostov and so will be confident of going to Russia and getting a result. However, we saw in the Champions League qualification rounds that last season’s Russian Premier League runners-up do well against teams of PSV’s ilk. Firstly they turned over Belgian side Anderlecht before dispatching Ajax in the final qualifier.

The atmosphere on Wednesday night should be something special and will be unlike anything that PSV have experienced before. Add the travel time from Eindhoven to south Russia in that and you can see Rostov pulling off at least a draw here.

With this in mind, I would look at favouring Rostov in the ‘Draw No Bet’ market. Kirichenko’s side are generally very good at home and they should provide a very stern test for the Dutch opponents. A famous win will get you a nice return at 5/4, whilst a draw would see the return of your stake.

If you factor in that 888Sport, who offer the best odds on this stake, currently have a bonus of trebling odds for new customers then you could find yourself quids in on a fairly safe bet.

See all of our Champions League tips here.