RANGERS and Liverpool reconvene in Champions League Group A at Ibrox on Wednesday night, as the two cross-border rivals battle it out just eight days after last week's meeting at Anfield.
Jurgen Klopp's Reds ran out 2-0 winners in a one-sided affair on Merseyside last midweek, on a night where both of my recommended bets banked.
That victory saw the six-time European Champions tighten their grip on second place in the section and another victory here would see them put one foot in the knockout round of the competition.
While Liverpool are fairing reasonably well on the continent, they don't have their problems to seek domestically, with their latest setback a 3-2 loss at Arsenal on Sunday, a loss that left the Reds 14 points behind the table-topping Gunners.
As for Rangers, they have made a meek return to Europe's premier club competition, as they remain both pointless and goalless at the halfway stage in Group A.
Closer to home, Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s side have clicked into top gear in recent weeks, scoring four goals in successive Scottish Premiership victories, the most recent of which was a 4-0 win against St Mirren at Ibrox on Saturday.
Outright Betting
Despite avoiding defeat in nine of their last 11 European matches on home turf, Rangers head into Matchday Four as 15/2 (UniBet) underdogs while a share of the spoils is an unfancied 17/4 (UniBet).
After cruising to victory at Anfield last week, Liverpool are red-hot 4/11 favourites with Unibet to repeat the trick north of the border.
Betting Angles
It's difficult to have much faith in Liverpool at such short odds given their recent form but throwing together over one Liverpool goal and over one Rangers card will bring about an attractive 10/11 Bet Builder with Bet 365.
While Liverpool have struggled for consistency this season, scoring goals hasn't been a major issue, with the Reds netting at least once in 10 of their 11 outings across all competitions thus far.
What's more, Jurgen Klopp's star-studded side have racked up multiple goals in a sizeable seven matches from that sample, and doesn't bode well for a Rangers rearguard that have been leaking goals at an alarming rate in Group A.
Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s hosts have shipped nine strikes across their opening three group games so far, conceding at least twice on each separate occasion, and I suspect that trend will continue against a Liverpool team that have struck twice in 13 of their last 16 Champions League matches.
As such, I'm happy to back the Merseysiders to make the net bulge twice at Ibrox, but to conclude the selection, I'll also go with Rangers to pick up at least a couple of bookings in what should be an intense contest in front of a passionate Ibrox crowd.
The Teddy Bears totted up four yellows and one red card in their home game against Napoli, not to mention Slovenian whistler Slavko Vincic was averaging a share under five cards per-game in European club competitions last season.
Two Rangers players who could be worth considering to have their names taken are James Sands and John Lundstram, who have been priced up at 3/1 (Bet 365) and 13/5 (William Hill) respectively.
The above-mentioned pair have accumulated three yellows and one red card between them collectively across Rangers' last two Champions League games so they look like prime candidates to add their tallies here, and they could also worth a speculative punt in a double at a best 13/1 with BetVictor.
This UEFA Champions League match between Rangers and Liverpool will be played on Oct 12, 2022 and kick off at 20:00. Check below for our tipsters best Rangers vs Liverpool prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
I’m the same, going to focus mainly on the card markets. I agree with the above selections but have also found better odds. I’m going for Tavernier to be booked @ 6/1 and Lundstram to be booked @ 9/2. I like the look of Sands to be booked but the odds of 3/1 are too short for me. Instead I’ll go with a speculative punt on Sands to be the first player booked @ 17/1.
Recommended Bets
TAVERNIER TO BE BOOKED @ 6/1 (Unibet)
LUNDSTRAM TO BE BOOKED @ 9/2 (Unibet)
SANDS FIRST PLAYER BOOKED @ 17/1 (BetVictor)
Good luck everyone