Champions Cup Betting Tips: How Will The Quarter Finals Go?
Following the novelty of two-legged ties in the previous rounds, the Heineken Champions Cup returns to a more familiar straight knockout format this coming weekend.
The best betting sites for rugby union are offering their odds on who will make it out of this weekend’s European quarter-finals and into the next phase of the competition a matter of days later.
Here’s a closer look at what will take place across Saturday and Sunday in three different nations:
Saturday May 7
3pm Munster v Toulouse
For the second season running, Munster face Top 14 giants Toulouse on Irish soil in the knockout rounds of the Champions Cup. However – like their Round of 16 meeting in 2020/21 – there is a caveat to their forthcoming clash with Ugo Mola’s side.
Instead of experiencing the famous Munster roar in Thomond Park 13 months ago, Toulouse faced the Reds behind closed doors at the Limerick venue. This arguably worked to their advantage with the half-back pairing of Antoine Dupont and Romain Ntamack helping them overcome a shaky start and seal an eventual 40-33 triumph.
Munster’s results to date in the current campaign secured them a home quarter-final, but Ed Sheeran’s two-night residency in Thomond on Thursday and Friday of this week immediately ruled it out of the equation.
As a consequence, Johann van Graan’s charges will host defending champions Toulouse at the Aviva Stadium this Saturday. Even though this is likely to allow more Munster fans to see their side in the flesh, Toulouse will be quietly happy not to be playing in front of a packed out Thomond Park.
Given they only narrowly squeezed past Ulster over two legs in the Round of 16, Toulouse are far from impenetrable and have already recorded three defeats in Europe this term.
Nevertheless, they will believe their quest for back-to-back Champions Cups can continue into the penultimate round at the very least. The French outfit are available at 8/1 with betting sites to win the entire competition again this season.
Tip: Toulouse to win at 2/5 with Paddy Power.
5.30pm La Rochelle v Montpellier
While Ronan O’Gara will be keeping an eye on the progress of his former club Munster, his main focus will be on ensuring his current employers La Rochelle keep on course for a second consecutive final appearance in this competition.
Whereas he was working in unison with a Director of Rugby in the shape of Jono Gibbes last season, this year has seen the ex-Ireland out-half taking on dual responsibilities with the French outfit.
He had the measure of Bordeaux – home and away – in the previous round and now another Top 14 adversary stands between them and a semi-final spot.
As things stand, Montpellier are top in the French league with La Rochelle just outside the play-off spots in seventh.
Yet, while their domestic form has been far from flawless, O’Gara’s troops have been extremely impressive throughout their European campaign.
Their December 18 pool stage meeting with Bath was ultimately cancelled and declared a scoreless draw, but the five games they have played in the competition all ended in La Rochelle victories.
This includes home wins over Glasgow Warriors, Bath and Bordeaux, and there will be a confidence within the camp ahead of Montpellier’s impending trip to Stade Marcel-Deflandre.
Despite a topsy-turvy Champions Cup campaign, Montpellier are a rejuvenated force in the Top 14 under former French head coach Philippe Saint-André.
Even though there is a suspicion that Les Cistes may be placing a greater emphasis on the Top 14, they won’t go down to their league rivals without a fight.
Tip: La Rochelle To Win By 6-10 Points At 5/1 with BoyleSports.
5.30pm Leicester Tigers v Leinster
Thanks largely to the 28-0 walkover they were forced to give Montpellier in the pool stages, Leinster are travelling away to an English club at the quarter-final stage for a second year running.
At Sandy Park in April of last year, 17 points from the boot of replacement Ross Byrne helped them to dethrone 2019/20 champions Exeter Chiefs.
The gauntlet was thrown down to Leo Cullen’s Irishmen in advance of this game following successive defeats to Saracens in the previous two seasons, but they delivered the goods to book a semi-final date with La Rochelle.
Although the latter contest didn’t go their way, Leinster are still viewed as one of the main contenders for top honours in Europe.
Still, Leicester are reinvigorated under Steve Borthwick’s watch and while Leinster are on top of the United Rugby Championship, the Tigers are the current pace-setters in the Gallagher Premiership.
Both sides have twice defeated Connacht over the course of this year’s competition, with Leinster entering Saturday’s contest on the back of an 82-41 aggregate triumph against their fellow Irish province in the Round of 16.
Evenly matched on paper, this is a game that is expected to go down to the wire.
Tip: Leinster To Win By 1-5 Points At 5/1 with William Hill.
Sunday May 8
3pm Racing 92 v Sale Sharks
As they prepare to welcome England’s Sale Sharks to Paris La Défense Arena on Sunday, Racing 92 will be hoping to maintain their trend of reaching Champions Cup finals every two years.
The Parisienne outfit have competed in the 2016, 2018 and 2020 deciders, and stand every chance of doing so again in 2022.
The winners of La Rochelle and Montpellier will await them in the last four should they find a way past Sale Sharks, who turned over Bristol Bears on their own turf in the Round of 16 second leg.
Whereas Sale had just five points to spare on aggregate over Bristol (44-39), Racing were 55-31 winners over two legs against Stade Français.
Victorious margins of 13 and 11 points proved they were a cut above their neighbouring side, and they will be overwhelming favourites to progress against Sale.
While their temperament when approaching the final hurdle is often questioned, there is no denying their ability to negotiate tricky knockout fixtures. This makes them a very hard team to bet against, despite the inarguable quality within the Sale ranks.
Tip: Sale Sharks To Lead At Half-Time/Racing 92 To Lead At Full-Time At 11/2 with William Hill.