Real Madrid vs Salzburg Prediction: Champions League Betting Picks & Real Madrid Match Odds
Real Madrid vs Salzburg picks
Real Madrid's Champions League campaign hasn't gone to plan so far, but Wednesday's visit of Salzburg should give them the opportunity to boost their hopes of automatic qualification to the last 16 (3pm ET, DAZN).
Real are as short as -2000 with some betting sites to collect their fourth win of the league phase and the reigning champions can't afford any mistakes as they enter the penultimate round of games in the league stage four points off the top eight after mixing three wins with three defeats.
Only the top eight qualify automatically for the Champions League round of 16, but Carlo Ancelotti's men are way down in 20th place and facing an uphill climb to avoid going into the play-off round, along with the other sides that finish from ninth to 24th.
They could miss out on the next round entirety if they aren't careful, which would be a huge shock given they are second in the outright market with Ontario sportsbooks to win a 16th European crown.
Los Blancos should eliminate that possibility of an early exit by beating Salzburg, a side that's lost five out of six Champions League games so far this season.
Given the disparity between the two sides, finding value on established and new betting sites alike is tricky for those wanting to bet on this latest Real Madrid Champions League game. But we've got two betting picks that return at plus odds.
Real Madrid vs Salzburg Champions League prediction: Roar on Rodrygo
Real have been full of goals since their 5-2 Super Cup humbling by Barcelona in Saudi Arabia earlier this month.
They beat Celta Vigo 5-2 - albeit they needed extra-time to run up the score in that Copa del Rey tie - and then eased past Las Palmas 4-1 at the weekend, a win that took them top of La Liga.
Kylian Mbappe has four goals in his last three games and is now on a team-best 18 for the season. It's no surprise then that he's favorite on soccer betting sites to score against a Salzburg side that's conceded at least twice in each of their five UCL defeats this season.
This will be the Austrian's first competitive game in over a month with their domestic league currently on a winter break, and it will be the first match in as head coach for Thomas Letsch after he replaced Pep Lijnders last month.
Salzburg could still sneak through to the knockout phase of the competition, but nothing about their previous performances against the competition's big dogs says they'll case an upset at the Bernabeu.
They shipped five in their last UCL away game at Bayer Leverkusen and some punters might be interested in taking them on on the handicap. However, sportsbooks expect a big win and the odds on handicap markets aren't all that appealing.
There are other way to approach a big Real win though with a wager on a goalscorer another option.
Rodrygo is a strong contender and while he's odds-on with certain sportsbooks, BetRivers offer him at +125 to score against Salzburg.
The Brazilian has scored six goals in his last eight appearances, including finding the back of the net at the weekend and his underlying statistics suggest he probably should have more goals to his name than his current tally of eight.
He's yet to score in the Champions League this season but netted five times in this competition last term and the forgotten man of Real's fearsome front three shouldn't be overlooked in this spot.
Real Madrid vs Salzburg Pick 1: Rodrygo to score (+125 BetRivers)
Real Madrid vs Salzburg Prediction: Penalty Bet May Prove Spot on
A penalty has been awarded in each of Real's last three matches in all competitions and various betting apps are offering odds on another spot kick on Wednesday.
Bet365 offer the best price of +200 and its worth consideration given no team in La Liga has been awarded more penalties than Real (9) this season.
The front three of Mbappe, Vinicius Jr and Rodrygo, backed up by Jude Bellingham, are enough to give any defense nightmares, let alone one as leaky as Salzburg's.
The Austrian's give away an average of just over 12 fouls per game in Champions League matches this season, the sixth most in the competition, just ahead of Real.
Although we don't expect Salzburg to do too much attacking, this bet has the potential to go both ways with the Spaniards having proven rash this season, giving away two penalties in the Champions League.
Real Madrid vs Salzburg Pick 2: A penalty to be awarded (+200 Bet365)
