CHELSEA have charged into the Champions League knockout stages with one game to spare but they will be looking to keep the feelgood factor flowing when Krasnodar come calling on Tuesday night.
The big-spending Blues made a shaky start to the season, however, the west Londoners now find themselves in the midst of an eye-catching 13-match unbeaten run.
Last time out Frank Lampard's star-studded side completed a 3-1 comeback win over Leeds in front of a small Stamford Bridge audience, helping bring up both of my recommended Bet Builders.
Chelsea's improved defensive displays has been the catalyst for the capital clubs upturn in fortunes and they exerted their dominance over Champions League Group E by brilliantly dismantling Sevilla to win the section in style last midweek.
Krasnodar, meanwhile, made history last week by grabbing their first group win at the fifth attempt, as Marcus Berg's strike squeezed out Rennes in Southern Russia.
Consequently, Murad Musayev's men have secured third-place in Group E and the Black-Greens are now set to parachute into the Europa League round of 32 next Spring.
Outright Betting
Chelsea are big favourites at 3/10 with Bet 365 on Tuesday night as Lampard's charges look to chalk up five Champions League wins on the spin.
Krasnodar have lost each of their last four away matches and the bookies expect that sequence to continue after pricing the visitors up at a towering 10/1 with PaddyPower, while the draw is an unfancied 9/2 with the same firm.
Betting Angles
Chelsea have little to play for on Tuesday night and Lampard will almost certainly shuffle his pack with the view to managing the frantic fixture schedule.
However, the Chelsea chief has an embarrassment of riches at his disposal and this fixture will represent a good opportunity for some fringe players to stake a first-team claim.
With that in mind, I fully expect Chelsea to have enough in reserve to overcome the Russians but there is little value in backing the Blues to prevail at 3/10 with Bet 365.
Instead I'll head to the Bet Builder market where I like the look of over one Chelsea goal and over one Krasnodar card, a 21/20 punt with Bet 365.
Chelsea have notched up two or more strikes in each of their last four Champions League assignments and the Blues have made the net bulge at least twice in seven of their last eight outings across all competitions.
It's also worth noting that Krasnodar have collected two or more cards in four or their five group fixtures so far and the above-mentioned combination has clicked in six of Chelsea's last seven matches.
I'll also dip into the to score in both halves market and back the Stamford Bridge side to score either side of the interval on Tuesday night at 21/20 with William Hill.
Frank Lampard's free-scoring side have scored in both halves in all but one of their last nine matches and this betting angle looks like a nice way of trying to squeeze some value out of what should be a home success.
This UEFA Champions League match between Chelsea and FK Krasnodar will be played on Dec 8, 2020 and kick off at 20:00. Check below for our tipsters best Chelsea vs FK Krasnodar prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
