Kompany confident of cleaning up Ajax

Manchester City captain Vincent Kompany insists his side can win all their remaining Champions League matches to qualify for the last 16 of Europe’s elite club competition (City 10/11 To Qualify with bet365).

The Premier League champions have not enjoyed the best start to their European campaign, with a last-minute defeat to Real Madrid at the Bernabeu and a 1-1 home draw with Borussia Dortmund.

Roberto Mancini’s men are in Amsterdam on Wednesday night to play Dutch giants Ajax, who have yet to register a point in this season’s competition and sit below City in the table (Ajax 15/4, City 8/11, draw 11/4 – Match Prices with bet365).

The Etihad Stadium outfit have garnered just one point to date and defeat in Holland would leave them with the proverbial mountain to climb to reach the knockout stage, with Real taking on Dortmund at the Westfalenstadion.

But Kompany is refusing to be too downbeat about the situation and believes that they have the resources to beat any side in the competition.

“We look at the competition thinking we have a big chance and are capable of winning every game,” he said. “We go into the game with a very good positive attitude and we feel we have had a good start to the season.

“All of the games will be very important but I don’t think we are looking at any and thinking we can’t win.”

City will be without influential midfielder David Silva, who has yet to recover from a hamstring injury and has not travelled to the Netherlands.

Pellegrini wary of wounded Milan

Malaga manager Manuel Pellegrini has warned his men not to read too much into AC Milan’s poor domestic start to the season and expects a “difficult” Champions League clash on Wednesday (Malaga Evens, Milan 11/4, draw 5/2 – Match Prices with bet365).

The two sides will do battle at La Rosaleda Stadium in midweek with the La Liga outfit top of the Group C table after back-to-back victories over Zenit St Petersburg and Anderlecht (Malaga 10/11 – Group C Winner with bet365).

But things are about to get a lot tougher as they welcome the Serie A giants to Spain for the third match in Europe’s elite club competition.

Malaga have enjoyed an excellent first couple of months of the new campaign and are riding high in third place in the Spanish top flight with 17 points from eight games played.

Conversely, the Rossoneri are still reeling from the loss of so many big players in the summer and have won only twice and lost five games to sit in 15th place in the Serie A standings.

But they have performed better in Europe and are still unbeaten heading into the Malaga match-up and sit second in the table.

Pellegrini is aware of this fact and insists he will be taking nothing for granted against a side that will give little away throughout the 90 minutes.

“It is not for me to talk of Milan,” he said. “They are not going well in the Italian League, but in the Champions League they have won four of six possible points.

“They are going to be very difficult to beat. Milan are undergoing a major cyclical change and that has taken its toll in the League, but they have been better in the Champions League.”

Kidd eyes Silva return

Manchester City assistant manager Brian Kidd believes playmaker David Silva could be able to shake off an injury in time for their Champions League clash with Ajax on Wednesday (Ajax 15/4, draw 11/4, City 8/11 Match Betting – bet365).

The Spaniard picked up a hamstring problem whilst on international duty last week and was forced to miss City’s dramatic 2-1 victory over West Brom on Saturday.

Having bagged another three points in the Premier League, the English champions now turn their attentions to their European campaign, as they prepare to make the trip to Amsterdam in midweek.

City (18/1 Champions League outright – bet365) have injury doubts concerning midfielder Javi Garcia and defender Maicon but Silva could be back for the clash with Ajax according to Kidd.

The assistant to manager Roberto Mancini told the Manchester Evening News: “We’re having a roll call today (Monday), with scans and everything. With David in particular, we don’t know how long he will be out for.

“I think they are looking at him thinking he might be in with a chance of playing on Wednesday against Ajax. With a couple of days for it to settle down, we will get a better picture.”

Wenger – Chelsea lead ‘unpleasant’

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has admitted Chelsea’s 10-point lead over the Gunners at the top of the Premier League is “very unpleasant” as his side’s title aspirations suffered a potentially-damaging blow on Saturday (Arsenal – 14/1 Outright – bet365).

Saturday’s 1-0 defeat at lowly Norwich means Arsenal are already trailing early pace-setters Chelsea by a considerable margin as we edge towards November.

While it is too early to write off their chances of overcoming the gap and muscling in on the title race in 2013 yet, already it looks like it will take something really special from the north Londoners if they are to win their first top flight crown since 2004.

“The gap is very unpleasant,” Wenger said. “We had an opportunity that Tottenham could win and we could win, and we both lost. That of course makes the gap a lot bigger.

“You cannot say you do not worry about that, but what is more disappointing is that we could not score. After we went 1-0 down we had the ball for 70 minutes and could not score a goal.”

Arsenal now turn their attention to Wednesday’s home Champions League tie with German side Schalke (Arsenal – 16/1 Champions League Outright – bet365) with Wenger aware a victory will move them to the brink of the knockout stage once again in Europe’s leading club competition.

Carrick calls for early CL progression

Michael Carrick has called on his Manchester United team-mates to get the job done and secure qualification for the knock-out stage of the Champions League (United – 10/1 Outright with bet365) as soon as possible ahead of an upcoming double header against Braga.

United have won their opening two group games this season and know if they can take maximum points off the Portuguese outfit over two games then they can book their place in the last 16 with two matches to spare.

This is in stark contrast to 12 months ago when they stumbled through their opening clashes in Europe and eventually crashed out on the final group matchday following a defeat in Basel.

Ahead of Tuesday’s home clash with Braga, Carrick wants United to secure their qualification with plenty to spare – even if it only means boss Sir Alex Ferguson can make use of his full squad and give some regulars a rest (United 1/3, Braga 8/1, draw 17/4 – bet365 match prices).

“It does help the league form if you can get through early,” he said. “The manager can change things around. He can rest players. He can use the squad and give players game time.

“The pressure is off. He can start planning ahead knowing the next stage is already secure. It is not always possible. Sometimes it can go down to the last game, which in itself is not always a bad thing.”

He added: “Overall though, it is better to get it done and dusted.”

Wenger wants Gunners reaction

Arsene Wenger has admitted Arsenal’s performance in the shock 1-0 defeat at Norwich was “not good enough” and has urged them to show a big improvement in Wednesday’s Champions League clash at home to Schalke (Arsenal – 16/1 Champions League Outright with bet365).

The Gunners went down to the narrow defeat at Carrow Road when Grant Holt struck in the first half for Chris Hughton’s Canaries and Wenger admitted afterwards it was his side’s worst display of the season.

“We have to put that performance behind us and realise that is not good enough,” he said. “The attitude of the team has been excellent, but that was not at the level of what we have produced until now, it was the first time of the season we were way below par.”

Arsenal are now in ninth place in the Premier League following the loss and are 10 points behind leaders Chelsea.

Wenger will want his side to bounce back when they host QPR next weekend, but it is the Champions League he now must focus on in midweek when German outfit Schalke come to the Emirates (Arsenal 10/11, Schalke 3/1, draw 12/5 – Match prices with bet365).

“We have to come out with a difference performance in the Champions League game (against Schalke) on Wednesday night,” the Frenchman insisted.

Toure urges City focus

Yaya Toure has urged his Manchester City team-mates to learn from the mistakes of their defeat to Real Madrid in Wednesday’s Champions League clash with Borussia Dortmund (City 5/6, Dortmund 100/30, draw 13//5 Match Prices – bet365).

The Premier League champions looked like making a winning start to their campaign in Europe’s elite club competition after taking a 2-1 lead into the last five minutes of their opening clash at the Bernabeu. But a lack of concentration by the Etihad Stadium side saw Jose Mourinho’s men score two late goals to take all three points and send City home with nothing to show for their efforts.

While Roberto Mancini’s men will have the comfort of playing in front of their own fans in mid-week, the opposition will be no less tough to beat with the Bundesliga champions desperate to atone for last year’s failure in the competition.

City are favourites but Toure feels that, even at this early stage of the event, nothing less than a victory will do against one of the toughest teams around (City 4/1 Group D Winners – bet365).

“This is a must-win game,” he said. “Borussia Dortmund are a fantastic team, they work very hard in attack and defence and it is a very important game.”

And the Ivory Coast international feels it is vital that they do not make the same errors that cost them so dearly in the Spanish capital.”We made some mistakes in Madrid and the most important thing is not to repeat them,” he added. “The Champions League is a tough competition.”

Allegri issues rallying cry

AC Milan coach Massimiliano Allegri insists his men must up their game if they are to beat Zenit St Petersburg in the Champions League on Wednesday (Zenit 11/10, Milan 5/2, draw 12/5 – Match Prices with bet365).

The Italian outfit endured a torrid off-season with 12 players leaving the club during the summer, including influential duo Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Thiago Silva, and things have not exactly started well on the pitch this term either.

The Rossoneri have failed to spark in Serie A and sit in 11th place in the table with just seven points to their name and three defeats already.

And they were unable to break down Belgian side Anderlecht at the San Siro two weeks ago, playing out a goalless draw in their opening Group C fixture in Europe’s top club competition.

Times are tough at the former giants of European football with many pundits feeling they will struggle to even make the knock-out stage of the Champions League this season.

And with Malaga beating the Russians last time out, victory at the Petrovsky Stadium is vital if the seven-time European champions are to keep pace with the Spaniards at the top of the group table (Milan 13/8 – Group C Winners with bet365).

But Allegri knows it will not be easy and has urged his charges to raise their level against a side he feels can cause them problems.

“We have to prove to be a good team on a technical level,” he said. “But we still have a lot to improve on. Zenit are a very good team.

“(Manager) Luciano Spalletti is an excellent coach. He won the Coppa Italia with Roma and has won the League here in Russia. His teams always play good football.”

Diaby blow for Gunners

Arsenal have been dealt a big blow with the news that midfielder Abou Diaby faces around three weeks on the sidelines (Premier League outright – Arsenal 10/1 with bet365).

Diaby hardly featured for the Gunners last season due to injury but had already established himself as a first-team regular prior to his latest blow, which occurred during the home defeat to Chelsea on Saturday.

The 26-year-old now faces around three weeks on the sidelines, although boss Arsene Wenger is hopeful he could return for the Champions League tie with Schalke later this month.

There is some positive injury news from the Emirates Stadium however, as Jack Wilshere featured for an hour in an under-21s match earlier this week as he steps up his return from a lengthy spell on the sidelined that saw him miss the entirety of last season.

Arsenal host Olympiakos in the Champions League on Wednesday and will be eager to build on their win over Montpellier to secure a spot in the knock out stages as soon as possible (match betting – Arsenal 1/3, draw 4/1, Olympiakos 9/1 with bet365).

Diaby and Wilshere will be missing for the Gunners, while Mikel Arteta is also a doubt with an ankle knock but should be available for the trip to West Ham at the weekend if he does miss the Greek side’s visit.

Goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny, defender Bacary Sagna and midfielder Tomas Rosicky all remain sidelined, although all three should be available for selection within the next month barring any setbacks in their respective recoveries.

Rooney out to fire Reds to qualification

Having returned to match action following a severe gash to the leg, Wayne Rooney is eager for Manchester United to take maximum points from Tuesday’s visit to Romania to face CFR Cluj (Match Betting – CFR Cluj 4/1, tie 11/4, Man Utd 7/10 – bet365).

Rooney missed United’s Group H opening win over Galatasaray as he continued his recovery from the wound inflicted by Fulham’s Hugo Rodallega in the Reds’ Premier League clash with the Cottagers at the end of August.

But the United hitman is now chasing a return to top form following his recovery, and is hoping to fire his team to a first Champions League triumph since 2008 (Man Utd 9/1 to win the Champions League – bet365).

“The game against Cluj is a big one for us. Hopefully we will get a win which will put us in a good position to go through so early on in the group,” said Rooney, who hopes to have qualification for the knock-out phase of the competition wrapped up sooner rather than later.

“The next two Champions League games are big ones for us. We are looking to get maximum points. It’s a competition I love playing in and love winning in.”

United’s last appearance in a Champions League Final came in 2011, when they were defeated in emphatic fashion by Barcelona.

The Catalan giants were unable to defend their crown the following year, but they’ve started their 2011/12 campaign at a frantic pace, and have already emerged as many people’s favourites for European glory this term (Barcelona 5/2 to win the Champions League – bet365).