The Champions League play-offs are here as Sporting CP prepare to take on Borussia Dortmund.
Sporting CP vs Borussia Dortmund best bets
- Sporting CP to win – 9/4 with SBK
- Under 2.5 goals – 11/10 with Betfred
- Viktor Gyokeres to score any time – 21/10 with Casumo
Sporting CP vs Borussia Dortmund odds
Find the latest match odds for Sporting CP vs Borussia Dortmund. All odds are provided by our best football betting sites. Odds are subject to change.
Sporting CP vs Borussia Dortmund predictions
Given how badly most things have gone for Borussia Dortmund this season, it is easy to forget that the German club were Champions League runners-up in 2024.
Dortmund were actually the better team for periods of that Wembley game against Real Madrid, but a combination of their own profligacy and their opponents’ ruthlessness brought a 2-0 defeat.
Fast forward to February 2025 and Dortmund’s chances of advancing to another final are slim. Yet in some ways they have saved the best version of themselves this term for the Champions League.
BVB came close to finishing in the top eight of the league phase, a placing which would have seen them advance automatically to the last 16. In the end they missed out by just one point.
Defeats by Real Madrid and Barcelona were to be expected, but a 2-1 loss to Bologna on matchday seven proved costly. Still, Dortmund won five matches and scored 22 goals, a tally that only Barca bettered.
There has not been as much to cheer about back home. A 2-1 defeat by Stuttgart at the weekend bumped Dortmund down to 11th place in the Bundesliga. A first bottom-half finish since 2007/08 is starting to look like a genuine possibility.
The board lost patience with Nuri Sahin last month, hiring the more experienced Niko Kovac as his replacement. But the former Bayern Munich boss has inherited a difficult situation, with confidence in the camp at rock-bottom.
Dortmund fans hope that the players are somehow able to lift themselves ahead of Tuesday’s tussle with Sporting CP. Equally, though, the Portuguese outfit doubtless feel this is the perfect time to face BVB.
“We just need to do a little something here and there, small tweaks. Otherwise we need to stay true to what we’ve shown,” Kovac said when asked what Dortmund needed to change from the Stuttgart defeat to the meeting with Sporting.
It is true that Dortmund were mildly unfortunate to be beaten at the weekend, but an improvement is needed if they are to reach the last 16 of the Champions League.
Sporting CP vs Borussia Dortmund betting tips
Will one of Sporting CP or Borussia Dortmund establish a first-leg advantage in this Champions League play-off?
Sporting CP to win
It initially looked like Ruben Amorim’s defection to Manchester United in November would derail Sporting CP’s season.
Joao Pereira was promoted from within to succeed Amorim, but his brief tenure was a disaster and the club replaced him with Rui Borges shortly after Christmas.
Since then Sporting have stabilised, qualifying for the Champions League play-offs (albeit unconvincingly) and opening up a four-point lead at the top of the Primeira Liga.
Although Borussia Dortmund were beaten, Kovac was pleased with how the team played against Stuttgart. But he has had very little time to work with his players since taking charge last week.
Bear in mind, too, that Dortmund’s away record this term leaves a lot to be desired, with just five wins in 16 matches at opposition grounds.
Choose a Sporting CP victory at 9/4 with SBK
Under 2.5 goals
Sporting CP took 10 points from a possible 12 in the first half of the league phase, but Amorim’s exit induced a significant dip in form.
They stumbled over the line in the end, losing three and drawing one of their final four matches to secure a 23rd-place finish.
Sporting’s recent form in the Champions League is poor and Borussia Dortmund are struggling more broadly, so this could be a cagey affair.
That is especially true as there is a second leg still to come. First and foremost, Sporting and Dortmund will want the tie to be alive going into next week’s return fixture.
Dortmund’s games are usually high-scoring, but they did not give up many chances to Stuttgart in their first outing under Kovac.
Back under 2.5 goals at 11/10 with Betfred
Viktor Gyokeres to score any time
Viktor Gyokeres was linked with a move away from Sporting CP in the January window, but the Portuguese giants managed to keep hold of the striker.
However, Gyokores will surely be on his way out of the Estadio Jose Alvalade in the summer, with Arsenal and Manchester United among those keeping close tabs on the Sweden international.
Gyokores has found the back of the net 34 times in the same number of appearances in 2024/25.
Six of his goals have come in the Champions League, which means he has been outscored by only Serhou Guirassy, Robert Lewandowski, Raphinha and Vinicius Junior.
At the odds available, Gyokores is the standout choice in the anytime goalscorer market.
Tip Viktor Gyokeres to score any time at 21/10 with Casumo
How to watch Sporting CP vs Borussia Dortmund
- Location: Estadio Jose Alvalade, Lisbon, Portugal.
- Date and time: Tuesday 11th February, 8pm.
- How to watch: TNT Sports 2.
Read more about the 2024/25 football season
- Premier League winner predictions
- Premier League top scorer odds
- Premier League relegation odds
- Champions League winner odds
- Championship promotion odds
About the author
Greg Lea
Greg Lea is a freelance football writer from London. He predominantly covers the Premier League and has had work published by the Guardian, FourFourTwo, ESPN and others.
Follow Greg on X: @GregLeaFootball
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