football | Tuesday, May 9, 2023 10:48 AM (Revised at: Wednesday, May 10, 2023 6:55 AM)

Forza Serie A: Backing Italian Success in 25/1 European Treble

Sam Ingram

Will We See European Success On Italy’s Shores?

Take a quick glance at those lining the semi-final stage of European competition, and you’d be forgiven for thinking we had transported back to the 90s. Football Italia once again Channel 4’s offering on a Sunday afternoon, as the world’s best struts their stuff from Milan in the north to Naples in the south.

Is Batistuta, Inzaghi, Ronaldo and Del Piero, to name just a handful of Serie A poster boys, now amongst those vying at the business end of UEFA’s domestic competitions? Of course, Italian football has moved on since its hay-day a generation ago, although the five sides scrapping for a right to be heard on the continent harks back to a fonder time of Italian football for anyone with a retro Italian shirt in the wardrobe, which has been gathering dust for over 20 years.

The two Milan clubs, Roma, Juventus, and Fiorentina, all have a shot at silverware in the three competitions on offer this season – the UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, and the UEFA Europa Conference League. But do any have a realistic shot at silverware? Let’s have a look.

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Derby della Madonnina Winner to Go All The Way?
Mourinho To Win European Quintuple?
Joint-Favourites to Complete The Treble?

Derby della Madonnina Winner to Go All The Way?

There will be an Italian side in the UEFA Champions League final. That’s impressive in itself, given the standard of competition and the eye-watering sums of money they’re up against to deliver such a feat.

Anything can happen in a European final. This is football; it’s not played on paper or Excel spreadsheets. As Manchester City fans know all too well, mistakes can prove costly on the pitch and in the dugout.

Of course, neither Milan club will be a favourite for the showpiece event. They’ll likely start the game at odds-against, whether it be Real Madrid or City’s riches in the opposing dressing room.

You only need to look at the outright betting to confirm such suspicions. Erling Haaland’s City leads the way at 1.66, with Real Madrid as 4.33 second-favourites. The Italians come in at 7.00 and 9.50, respectively, with AC Milan the rank outsiders to lift big ears in Istanbul.

Again, I wouldn’t be overly surprised to see someone upset the odds in a European final. However, considering the two teams in the other semi-final, I would advise steering clear from taking an Italian team to win the competition.

That being said, if you have a strong fancy for either Milan club to progress, then to have a 7.00 or greater shot in a two-horse race, likely against a team that has never won a Champions League title, if the bookmaker’s odds are to be correct, then it wouldn’t be the worst position in the world to find yourself in.

For me, though, neither outfit from Milan has enough for pip one or the other.

bet with bet365Odds via bet365 as at 08:00 May 9th 2023. Odds may now differ.

Mourinho To Win European Quintuple?

Away from the likes of Real Madrid and Manchester City is where Italy has its best shot of joy on the European stage. As he has already proved in Rome, Young be unwise to back against José Mourinho once he has found his way to the final four of any competition, let alone in Europe. The former Chelsea and Real gaffer takes on Xabi Alonso’s Bayer Leverkusen.

The Germans are potent this season. Alonso has them playing in a way which has attracted a swarm of admirers in the head coach – most notably Bayern Munich and Real Madrid, his former employers. If Roma can blunt an attack that produces so many opportunities in Germany and in Europe, then they’d have a shot at progressing, although it certainly won’t be easy, and they’re unlikely to force my hand in terms of backing the Romans with my hard-earned.

If I had to decide one way or the other, then the Mourinho factor edges this for me, suggesting we may have an all-Italian European final on our hands.

In the black and white corner, after an up-and-down season for Max Allegri’s Juventus, the Italian head honcho has a chance to put his wits against Europa League royalty in Sevilla.

Juve leads the outright market at 3.00, Leverkusen comes just behind at 3.50, with the less fancied Roma (4.00) and Sevilla (4.50) next up. As you can see, there are no massive favourites, and no one is running away with the potential of lifting silverware here, according to the bookmakers.

Although Sevilla has experienced an uplift of form in recent weeks, enough to discard Manchester United to the wolves in the quarter-final, this is a side which has been fighting the prospect of relegation in Spain. I’d expect Juventus to come good in the first leg in Turin at 1.75, and have enough with their squad to deflect the onslaught that will come their way in sunny Spain.

If the Old Lady can make it through past Sevilla, you’d have to say they have an excellent chance of heading back to Italy with European silverware. Since landing in the competition after an early exit from the Champions League, Juve are unbeaten in six knockout matches against Nantes, SC Freiburg and Sporting Lisbon, winning on four occasions and drawing 1-1 in their two winless 90 minutes.

Juventus are my pick to win the lot, but the rest aren’t a million miles away.

Odds via bet365 as at 08:00 May 9th 2023. Odds may now differ.

Joint-Favourites to Complete The Treble?

And now, last but not least, a competition that wasn’t available back in the 90s. It may be a competition in its infancy, but that doesn’t mean that reaching the summit of the competition and doing enough to prove triumphant isn’t any less special – just ask those in Rome.

Il Viola makes up the Italian contingent in the UEFA Europa Conference League. They welcome Basel in Florence, who will travel from Switzerland for the contest. At 1.40 in the first leg, it’s safe to assume that the feeling is that Fiorentina will do enough at home to put the tie to bed. Basel will have other ideas, but the Florence natives have enough firepower in their arsenal to hand them the advantage ahead of the second leg, that’s for sure.

Since reaching the knockout stages of the competition, Fiorentina have scored 4, 3, 1, 4, 4, and 2 goals in their respective matches. The capacity to notch four in Portugal against Sporting Braga, four against Sivasspor in Turkey, and four against Lech Poznan is a glowing indictment of how they’ll show no fear in the final if they get there.

See off Basel, which they’re more than capable of, and Fiorentina have a real chance at glory here. Premier League muscle in West Ham will pose the biggest task, but they’re not exactly accustomed to games of such magnitude in Europe. Yes, they’ve been nothing short of excellent in the competition and rightly deserve to be 2.62 favourites off the back of it, but Fiorentina aren’t too far away.

If you’re looking to take a position in the outright markets, the 2.87 for Fiorentina to outdo West Ham in the final – if they both make it – looks an inviting way in. AZ Alkmaar at 4.50 and Basel at 6.50 complete the outright betting.

Selection: An Italian Team to Win the 2023 Champions League, Europa League and Conference League
Odds: 26.00

Odds via bet365 as at 10:45 May 9th 2023. Odds may now differ.

WHAT IS A FOOTBALL ACCA?

A football acca is an accumulator bet, a type of bet that consists of several selections across different matches that are combined together into one single bet. An acca usually. consists of at least four selections but many more can be included. There will be odds for the single bet as a whole which is calculated by multiplying the odds of all of the selections. A football acca is one of the most popular ways to bet. This is the case because they can create potentially massive odds for a small stake. Many punters choose to create football accas which is what we have created here. If one of these selections loses then the football acca will lose. This type of bet needs every selection to win in order to succeed.

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