Manchester United and Chelsea are preparing for the Soccer Betting Champions League Final in Moscow next Wednesday with Chelsea hoping to win and Manchester United expecting to win.

Chelsea Midfielder Claude Makelele believes that Chelsea would earn a lot of respect by winning the Champions League. “People look at winners and say: ‘This is a big team.’ I remember all the teams who came to play Real Madrid in the Champions League were scared. They knew that they would lose but they might lose by four or maybe six goals. It would be good to see Chelsea have this power. It is difficult winning it but it would be so good for the players as well as the club.”

Soccer Betting at SBG Global: Champions League Final Manchester United vs Chelsea

Nicolas Anelka was part of the Madrid team that won eight years ago and he also believes Chelsea can win. Anelka was signed by Chelsea in January but may start on the bench in the Champions League final with Didier Drogba as the main striker. “It is not frustrating, I am new in the club,” said Anelka. “The manager wants to play 4-5-1 and I have to stay on the bench. I don’t know if I will start. You need to ask the manager. Even if I am on the bench, I will have a chance to play and I will do my best.

Read more on Soccer Betting Preview: United and Chelsea Prepare for Champions League Final

Chelsea won 2-0 at Newcastle on Monday to keep their Soccer Betting Premier League title hopes alive. With the win they drew even with Manchester United in the standings although Man U holds the goal difference advantage. Chelsea will now need to win their final game at home against Bolton and hope that United either loses or ties at Wigan.

Soccer Betting at SBG Global

Chelsea didn’t score the first goal of the game against Newcastle until the 61st minute as a foul was called on Newcastle’s Abdoulaye Faye. Didier Drogba was able to put the ball into position for Michael Ballack who put a header past Steve Harper. The Blues scored their second goal as Florent Malouda took a pass from Frank Lampard and scored in the 81st minute.

Read more on Soccer Betting Preview: Chelsea Keeps Title Hopes Alive

Chelsea defeated Liverpool 3-2 in extra time on Wednesday in a thrilling game that sends the Blues into the Champions League Final against Manchester United. Chelsea advanced 4-3 on aggregate goals. The game was an emotional one for the Blues after they squandered a 1-0 lead in the second half but Frank Lampard scored the go-ahead goal in extra time. It was the first match for Lampard since his mother died last Thursday.

Frank Lampard scored the penalty spot in the 98th minute. Didier Drogba added his second goal of the match in the 105th minute. “What a character Lamps is to come in on Sunday and train and try and block out what has been a terrible week for him and his family and everyone close to Frank,” Chelsea captain John Terry said. “I’m sure Frank will dedicate the goal to his mum tonight.”

Soccer Betting at SBG Global

Fernando Torres and Ryan Babel scored for Liverpool. “I thought we were very close. We played well in the second half, but the third goal killed it,” Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez said. “We had control of the game. We had two chances in extra time and we were in control and we were preventing them from creating.” Drogba scored the game’s first goal in the 33rd minute after nearly scoring a minute earlier. Torres scored the tying goal in the 64th minute for Liverpool.

Read more on Manchester United and Chelsea Advance to Champions League Final

On Tuesday Soccer Betting Premier League, Manchester United hosts Barcelona and a win will put them into the Champions League final. Chelsea is in even better position as they host Liverpool on Wednesday, as either a win or a draw will have them advancing. Manchester United is a half goal favorite with a total of 2.5 under at SBG Global against Barcelona. The three-way line has United at -105, Barcelona at +300 at the draw at +220.

Soccer Betting at SBG Global

Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson rolled the dice and took a huge gamble on Saturday by resting stars Cristiano Ronaldo and Carlos Tevez for Tuesday’s match. He had better hope that his team wins its next two Premier League games and that decision doesn’t come back to haunt him. He also better hope his team wins on Tuesday at home against Barcelona. United is facing injuries to striker Wayne Rooney (hip) and defender Nemanja Vidic (face). “We’ve got to pick ourselves up,” said winger Ryan Giggs, “There’s no bigger game than Barcelona. We want to win the league and we want to reach the Champions League final, and it’s still in our hands.” United is expected to take out Barcelona and advance to the final. Ronaldo was just recently named player of the year for the second straight season and he will be playing with a vengeance on Tuesday after missing a penalty kick in the first leg against Barcelona last week. “I look forward to Tuesday against Barcelona; it is the biggest game of the season in my opinion. If you win, you are in the final,” Ronaldo said, “It is a good motivation for me, for my colleagues, for my friends, everyone. I hope to win and the two league games are very important as well.”

Read more on Champions League Second Leg Soccer Betting Preview

Chelsea pulled even in points with Manchester United atop the Premier League standings after Saturday’s 2-1 win. A late penalty against Michael Carrick gave Chelsea a chance for the lead and Michael Ballack didn’t disappoint, scoring the game winner. United manager Alex Ferguson was furious over the penalty call that cost his team a probable tie and a chance to wrap up the Premier League title. “It was absolutely diabolical,” Ferguson said, “It is a major decision. Granted, it hit his hand. But he has not lifted his hand above his shoulders, above his head, anything like that. It is going straight to Rio Ferdinand. The referee should have seen that rather than the linesman. If we’re not going to get those decisions then we are under pressure.”

Soccer Betting at SBG Global

Manchester United and Chelsea are now tied at the top of the Premier League standings but United has a big goal differential which means that if the two teams remain tied, United wins the title. For Chelsea to win, United must not win their final two games. They are home against West Ham next Saturday and then travel to Wigan on May 11th. If they win both games the title is theirs. If they lose or tie either game the door is open for Chelsea. The Blues finish at Newcastle and home against Bolton. “It’s still in our hands.” Ferguson said, “The players and the support are really fired up for the next game. Hopefully we can get the result we want.” Chelsea definitely believes that United could slip up in one of their final two games.

Read more on Soccer News: Late Penalty Gives Chelsea 2-1 Win over United

Chelsea got a very fortunate 1-1 draw at Liverpool in the first leg of the Soccer Betting Champions League semifinals on Tuesday as John Arne Riise scored an injury-time own-goal. Riise’s header went into his own net in the fifth minute of added time. It was a crushing blow for Liverpool who was just minutes away from a 1-0 win. Now Chelsea is the definite favorite to advance to the Champions League Final since they will host the second leg against Liverpool. “At the end, you must be really disappointed,” Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez said. “One minute in the first half, four minutes in the second half. Everyone was really disappointed. In these situations the only think you can do is try to be positive and try to think about the next game and be ready.”

Soccer Betting at SBG Global

This is the third time in the last four years that Chelsea and Liverpool have met in the Champions League semifinals. “I think we deserved definitely to get the draw at the end,” Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard said. “They had chances, we had chances. It was a battle and we carried on to the end.” Liverpool actually played better for most of the game and had a number of quality chances. Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech had to turn away Fernando Torres in the 31st minute but Liverpool got their goal in the 42nd minute as Dirk Kuyt was able to get one by Cech. It was the only goal Liverpool was able to get though as Cech denied Torres again in the second half and later stopped Steven Gerrard with a great save to keep it 1-0. “We had the better chances and we know we must play another 90 minutes,” Benitez said. “The team today was working really hard, especially creating chances, and we must do the same away.”

Read more on Soccer News: Chelsea Gets Lucky Draw in Champions League

The Soccer Betting Champions League semifinals begin on Tuesday with first leg action as Liverpool hosts Chelsea. Barcelona plays hosts to Manchester United on Wednesday. Liverpool is led by Fernando Torres who has 30 goals this season including five in the Champions League. He was rested in Saturday’s Premier League win at Fulham so he would be fully fit for Tuesday’s match against Chelsea. “People ask me if I am getting tired now because I am coming to the end of my first season in England,” Torres said. “Of course it is a hard league, but I do not feel tired at all. When you are scoring goals and the team is winning games, you have more energy. It is only when the team is struggling and you are not playing well or scoring goals, that you don’t feel your best.”

Soccer Betting at SBG Global

Liverpool has yet to lose in Champions League action. They defeated Arsenal in the quarterfinals. “The emotion I felt after the Arsenal game was very, very strong,” Torres said. “I have never felt like that before. I was almost in tears at the end of the match when the crowd were singing. If that was a quarterfinal, I can’t imagine what it will be like playing Chelsea.”

Soccer Betting Preview: Champions League Semifinals Begin Tuesday

Manchester United effectively eliminated Arsenal from the Soccer Betting Premier League title race with a 2-1 win at Old Trafford on Sunday. United is now six points ahead of Chelsea although that will probably change on Monday as Chelsea is expected to win at home against Wigan to pull back within three points. United is now nine points clear of Arsenal.

Soccer Betting at SBG Global

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger said his team’s title hopes are now gone. “Yes we are out,” he said, “We played with quality and spirit, and I’m very proud of our performance. What can you do? We had plenty of chances and we were really unlucky not to win.” Arsenal actually led 1-0 on a goal by Emmanuel Adebayor. It was a mistake by United’s defense that led to the goal. Rio Ferdinand said, “I heard a shout of ‘keeper’, but Edwin said he didn’t say it, so I’ve left it and it’s gone in. It was on my head really.” United tied the game on Ronaldo’s 38th goal of the season in the 54th minute. William Gallas was given a penalty for handling a shot by Carrick and Ronaldo scored into the top corner to tie the game. Owen Hargreaves scored in the 72nd minute on a great free kick to give United the win. That kick was a surprise to Arsenal as they thought Ronaldo would take the kick but Hargreaves said he was the first choice. “That’s a good distance for me so I didn’t ask him,” he said.

Read more on Manchester United Gets Big Win over Arsenal

Two of the semifinal spots in the Soccer Betting Champions League look to be going to Manchester United and FC Barcelona as both teams won on the road in the first legs last week and now are at home. The other two spots are up for grabs with Liverpool facing Arsenal and Chelsea hosting Fenerbahce on Tuesday.

Soccer Betting at SBG Global

Chelsea lost 2-1 on the road at Fenerbahce in the first leg but they are heavily favored to win at home and advance. The game between Liverpool and Arsenal is a definite toss-up. The teams played to a 1-1 draw in their first leg and they also played to a 1-1 draw in league action on Saturday. This will be their third meeting within a week’s time. Arsenal has played a lot of draws lately. They have seven draws and two losses in their last 11 games. They have now fallen out of the title chase in the Premier League as they are now six points back of United and three back of Chelsea. “We will play our own game on Tuesday night and try to win, give absolutely everything,” Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger said. “Now we need to recover physically and mentally because the players gave everything against Liverpool on Saturday. However, we have enough resources to qualify on Tuesday night.” Arsenal and Liverpool both rested a lot of starters in Saturday’s league match, instead putting the focus on Tuesday’s huge Champions League match.

Read more on Champions League Semifinal Spots on the Line

Soccer Betting Preview - Ferdinand Injury Not Serious

Manchester United breathed a huge sigh of relief as a scan on defender Rio Ferdinand revealed that his left foot is not broken. Ferdinand left Middlesbrough on Sunday with his foot in a protective boot but the club said he did not suffer a break. With huge games upcoming for United in the next few weeks they will need a healthy Ferdinand.

Soccer Betting at SBG Global

Manchester United plays AS Roma on Wednesday in the Soccer Betting Champions League quarterfinals but they already have a 2-0 lead and are in good shape to advance. They will definitely want Ferdinand back this month though as they have key Premier League matches against Arsenal and Chelsea. United was able to get excellent play out of 21-year-old Pique as a replacement for Ferdinand against Middlesbrough but they can’t always assume that will be the case. “Pique came on and did brilliantly. He was marvelous.” Manager Alex Ferguson said, “The lad’s a terrific player and I think that actually helped us. We’ve got great confidence in the lad and he’s come through very well.” United is already missing defender Nemanja Vidic, who has been out for three weeks with a knee injury. Goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar said that missing Vidic has hurt recently. “Of course we miss him, he is a very important player for us.

Read more on Manchester United Defender Rio Ferdinand Injury Not Serious