5 teams to back amid major change in Champions League goal data

With an average of 3.70 goals per game this season, it’s worth backing the bigger teams to aim for decisive victories in the Champions League.

Teams to score more than twiceOddsArsenal2.26Chelsea2.23Barcelona2.07Newcastle 3.05PSV4.90

Odds courtesy of Betway. Correct at time of publishing and subject to change.

Slavia Prague vs Arsenal: Unbeaten defence meets the Martinelli goal rush

Arsenal’s season so far has been characterised by defensive strength. They’ve only conceded three goals across 13 fixtures in all competitions. Moreover, David Raya is yet to concede in the Champions League,

The Gunners, though, boast a powerful front line led by Viktor Gyokeres, who scored a brace against Atletico Madrid on Matchday 2. With Bukayo Saka to his right and Gabriel Martinelli to his left, the Londoners can break through the home defence more than twice.

Martinelli seems to be thriving in this competition, as he is the club’s top goalscorer in Europe this season with three goals.

Mikel Arteta’s men finished with the same number of points as Inter Milan and Barcelona last season, but were placed below the Catalan club based on goal difference. However, they had a three-goal advantage over Inter, which is why they finished third in the league.. It’s an example of why goals matter in this phase of the competition.

While it may seem that Arsenal still haven’t started playing at their best, they put four past Atleti in their last match. Additionally, the Gunners have already scored eight goals in three games, which is half of their total from last season’s eight games. With five more matches remaining, Arsenal could exceed 16 goals, especially against weaker teams.

Qarabag vs Chelsea: The Blues to repeat history

Despite losing in the Premier League at home last weekend, Chelsea are still the joint top scorers in the division. Enzo Maresca’s men scored 17 goals in nine league games, which is an average of almost two goals per match.

The Blues netted seven in their three Champions League games. They demonstrated what they’re capable of, dominating Ajax 5-1 in their last match. Qarabag were on the receiving end of a 3-1 beating on Matchday 3.

Everything points toward another high-scoring match, especially since Chelsea are in a group of seven clubs tied with six points. Because of their inferior goal difference, the Blues find themselves outside of the top eight, meaning they urgently need to score more goals.

Furthermore, the previous two meetings between these clubs occurred in 2017. Chelsea won 6-0 and 4-0 at home and away, respectively, suggesting they are very capable of scoring more than two goals again.

Club Brugge vs Barcelona: The Spanish champions are relentless in attack

Barcelona showed their excellent form to the rest of the Champions League when they easily defeated Olympiacos on Matchday 3.The Catalan club scored six goals, bringing their total in this competition this season to nine.

Hansi Flick’s side have an average of three goals per game in Europe this term, which doesn’t inspire confidence for the Belgian outfit. Brugge have been regulars in Champions League football over the years.

However, last season the hosts barely got past the league phase, finishing 24th, with 11 conceded goals in eight fixtures. This season, after only three games played, Brugge have already conceded seven, which is only four fewer than their total from last season.

On Matchday 3, Brugge showed their weakness against top teams in this competition, when they were soundly defeated 4-0 at Bayern Munich. While playing at home could be an advantage, Barca’s attack is just too powerful.

With 25 goals in 10 La Liga games, the Blaugrana are the leading goal scorers in that division. With an average of 2.5 goals domestically and three in Europe, backing the Spanish champions to score plenty of goals in this match is a good idea.

Newcastle vs Bilbao: A raucous St James’ Park is difficult for even the best of teams

European nights on Tyneside are intense and loud. The atmosphere that the Geordies generate is electric and can be difficult for any opposing team. Barcelona struggled at this venue on Matchday 1.

Newcastle scored eight goals in three games, netting three in their last Champions League fixture against Benfica. Before that, the Magpies put four past the current Belgian champions, Union Saint-Gilloise.

Eddie Howe’s men have been more reserved in the Premier League, so they could express themselves more against Bilbao. The visitors have a poor record against English clubs, especially when playing in the UK.

Bilbao have travelled to the UK 10 times, winning just once and losing eight times with a goal difference of -14. Those statistics clearly show that the visitors are not comfortable playing in England.

Anthony Gordon will also be aiming to add to his tally, as the former Everton man has already scored four goals in the Champions League this term. It’s worth noting that the only competitive meeting between the clubs on Tyneside resulted in a 3-2 victory for the hosts.

Olympiacos vs PSV: PSV's attack poised to exploit Olympiacos' poor form

It hasn’t been a great European campaign for Olympiacos. After three games, their best result was a point against newcomers Pafos. The Greek side have conceded eight goals so far in the competition.

Their last match saw them concede six goals to Barcelona, although they managed to restrict Arsenal to just two. For perspective, they scored nine goals and conceded three in eight Europa League games last term.

However, there is a clear gulf in class between the two competitions. Europe’s second-tier competition has seen only 138 goals over three matchdays, which is an average of just 2.56 goals per game.

Meanwhile, the premier European competition has seen 200 goals in the same number of games at an average of 3.70 goals per game. It’s evident that clubs that lost out on higher rankings last season based on goals are now aiming to improve their goal difference.

PSV have scored eight goals in three games. The Dutch outfit put six past Italian champions Napoli on Matchday 3, which is a commendable achievement on its own. Additionally, the Eredivisie champions have scored more than two goals in 60% of their last five outings.

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