Champions League news: 15 of 16 favourites win across Europe

Bookmakers dodged a bullet on Wednesday night as Sevilla became the only Champions League favourite to fail to win on matchday three.

The Spanish outfit played out a drab goalless draw with Lille which spared the blushes of the bookies, who were still left to count costs after 15 favourites obliged on Tuesday and Wednesday combined.

Sporting, Manchester City, Ajax, Porto, Inter, Paris St-Germain, Real Madrid and Liverpool were all victorious on Tuesday while Barcelona, Salzburg, Bayern Munich, Chelsea, Manchester United, Villarreal and Juventus all claimed maximum points a day later - a 15-fold which would've paid 2731-1 with bet365.

The same firm also reported significant in-play losses after United recovered from 2-0 down to beat Atalanta on Wednesday evening. The Red Devils lead Group F by two points.

Chelsea enjoyed a much more serene night, defeating Malmo 4-0, although Thomas Tuchel was left with a headache after both Romelu Lukaku and Timo Werner sustained injuries at Stamford Bridge.

On Tuesday, Liverpool maintained their 100 per cent record with a thrilling 3-2 victory over Atletico Madrid at the Wanda Metropolitano, where two goals from super Salah and a Naby Keita strike cancelled out a brace from Antoine Griezmann, who was later sent off.

Man City also recorded an emphatic 5-1 win against Club Brugge on Tuesday as all four English teams enhanced their European claims.

The Citizens are the 7-2 favourites for Champions League glory with Bayern Munich, who beat Benfica on Wednesday, next in the betting at 4-1. PSG, who defeated Leipzig 3-2 thanks to a Lionel Messi double, can be backed at 5-1.

Liverpool are 7-1 for European glory with defending champions Chelsea 9-1 and Manchester United the 16-1 outsiders of the English quartet.

Speaking to the Racing Post, bet365 PR representative Steve Freeth reflected on a tough week for bookmakers:

"We're still counting the losses. But I can tell you Ajax was a winner and Inter was flat, so silver linings and all that," he said on Tuesday.

"The worst result of the night was PSG followed by Liverpool – Messi and Salah have got a lot to answer for!"

After Wednesday's action, he added: "I suppose we should be grateful for Sevilla not landing the spoils, but that fixture was the most competitive betting heat over the two nights and was towards the bottom of our liabilities list.

"In-play was just as bad with 13-2 Manchester United doing their customary winning from behind trick to seal a great few nights for backers of the fancied teams."

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