Red Bull Salzburg vs Atletico Madrid Prediction: Alvarez to come up with another goal

Atletico Madrid will be hoping to secure their spot in the last 16 of the Uefa Champions League when they travel to face Red Bull Salzburg on Wednesday (20:00, discovery+). Diego Simeone's side are fifth in the standings and a victory would get the job done in Austria.

The hosts come into this game already knowing that their European adventure is at an end, so they have nothing but pride to play for. Read on for my Red Bull Salzburg vs Atletico Madrid prediction, where you will also find the latest match odds and team news.

Red Bull Salzburg vs Atletico Madrid Odds

RB Salzburg have lost all of their home games in Europe this term and have nothing meaningful to play for on Wednesday. They are 8/1 to win this clash. Neither side have experienced a stalemate in this competition so far, but the draw is available at 4/1 in Salzburg.

Atleti are the clear 4/11 favourites to take the three points because they have won five of their seven fixtures in this competition. Four of them have included both teams to score, so you can combine these two selections for an attractive 9/5 price, which has an implied probability of 35.7%.

The hosts have blanked in five of their seven outings in Europe, so there is also value to be had in Atletico Madrid keeping a clean sheet at 21/20 (48.8%).

Football Odds

Team News

Salzburg are still missing forward Karim Konate and midfielder Maurits Kjaergaard due to knee and ankle injuries respectively. Left-back Daouda Guindo is unlikely to feature in midweek after he was absent in the defeat to Real Madrid a week ago with a knee issue of his own.

The home team have acquired Maximiliano Caufriez and Karim Onisiwo on loan and permanent deals respectively this month, but both cannot play as they aren't registered in Die Roten Bullen's squad for the league phase.

For the visitors, Javi Galan is set to be out for around a month after sustaining an ankle injury in last week's victory over Bayer Leverkusen. Midfielder Pablo Barrios will miss this game due to the straight red card he picked up against the defending Bundesliga champions.

Simeone will be able to call upon the services of defender Clement Lenglet after the centre-back served his domestic one-match ban against Villarreal on Saturday.

Striker Alexander Sorloth made a return to the squad from injury at the weekend, but was not given any minutes. Simeone was perhaps saving him for a run out in Salzburg on Wednesday, which could lead to top scorer Julian Alvarez dropping down to the bench.

Atletico Madrid to win to nil @ 5/4

It's a well-known fact in football that Simeone's Atletico Madrid are a tough team to beat and anyone who faces them are aware of how strong they are defensively. I must admit that I thought they would have a few more clean sheets in the Champions League than the one they have so far, but I really fancy their chances to double that figure on Wednesday.

Out of the two teams, they are the only one who have anything to gain in Salzburg. Atleti are in an excellent position to go straight through to the round of 16, and they will be feeling confident against a side who will be wanting to get this match over and done with.

Rojiblancos are on a four-game winning streak in Europe, which has propelled them into the top five of the standings. They may have had a slight blip in La Liga in recent weeks but I'm not at all concerned for them here.

This should be a routine victory for Simeone's men and they could end up racking up quite a few goals against a team that has shipped 23 already in this competition. RB Salzburg have lost five matches to nil in Europe, so I think backing Atleti to inflict the same manner of defeat upon them is a smart play here.

Julian Alvarez anytime goalscorer @ 21/20

There is a chance this man is named on the bench to begin with in Austria, but this doesn't stray me away from my selection. Alvarez has been in fine form in Europe with six goals in seven Champions League appearances for the Spanish outfit.

Five have come in the latest three outings so the Argentina international heads to Red Bull Arena with an abundance of confidence. Whether he starts or makes a cameo from the bench, I'm confident we will see him add to his tally.

He will be coming up against one of the worst defences in this competition and potentially some very tired legs if he is subjected to a substitute's appearance.

Offers

Place an In-Play single bet of £10 or more at odds of 1/2+ on any Champions League game on Wednesday and get £5 in Free Bets to use In-Play on Thursday’s Europa League games. (Credited upon Bet Settlement)

Acca Flex: Place a pre-match 5+ leg Football accumulator and get a CASH bonus up to 100% if all of your selections win or your money back as CASH if one leg lets you down

Wednesday's Champions League Predictions:

The team here at Betfred Insights have you fully-covered for the final round of Champions League matches this Wednesday. You can check out all of our previews for the matches below:

Aston Villa vs Celtic Prediction: Hosts to win but no clean sheet
Barcelona vs Atalanta Prediction: Expect goals, goals, goals in the Catalan capital
Bayer Leverkusen vs Sparta Prague Prediction: Wirtz can secure qualification
Bayern Munich vs Slovan Bratislava Prediction: Kim to cash in for Kompany’s corner kings
Borussia Dortmund vs Shakhtar Donetsk Prediction: Hosts may have to dig in against the Miners
Brest vs Real Madrid Prediction: Mbappe can score for sixth straight match at Brest
Dinamo Zagreb vs AC Milan Prediction: Rossoneri to get the job done
Girona vs Arsenal Prediction: Gunners to keep another clean sheet
Inter Milan vs Monaco Prediction: Hosts to secure knockout place
Juventus vs Benfica Prediction: Two anytime scorer bets worth backing
Lille vs Feyenoord Prediction: Canadian to catch visitors cold in France
Manchester City vs Club Brugge: Citizens to dig deep for the result they need
PSV vs Liverpool Prediction: Hosts to overcome booking points handicap in Eindhoven
Sporting CP vs Bologna Prediction: Italians can halt Sporting’s Play-off progress
Sturm Graz vs RB Leipzig Prediction: Sesko can score in dead rubber
Stuttgart vs PSG Prediction: Barcola to rise to occasion again
Young Boys vs Red Star Belgrade Prediction: Red Star can sign off with a win