SOCCER FOOTBALL 24H

RB Leipzig v Hacken Thursday 26 July, 17:30 Swashbuckling Leipzig will leave a few gaps Our first setback of the week came courtesy of a bore draw between Ludogorets and MOL Vidi  last night,  a result that gives the Hungarians every chance of causing a big upset in the second leg, for all the good that does us. We'll pick ourselves up, dust ourselves down (do people really do that when they fall over?) and move across to the Europa League. Bundesliga big-hitters RB Leipzig are making a very early start to their season as they face Swedish side Hacken. It's already been a summer of change in Leipzig. Coach Ralph Hasenhuttl was ousted after a disappointing end to the season, and sporting director  Ralf Rangnick  has once again seized the coaching reins. Remember it was Rangnick who led them to promotion to the top flight in the first place, and although highly-rated Hoffenheim coach  Julian Nagelsmann  will take over coaching duties at the start...

Astana v Midtjylland Tuesday 24 July, 15:00 Astana to maintain strong home record Football tipping can be a fraught experience, but occasionally it's a lot more relaxing than usual. Our boys Hammarby were 4-0 up against Dalkurd by half time, and their eventual 4-1 victory comfortably covered the  Asian Handicap. We'll switch our attention to continental matters tonight, because the Champions League qualifiers continue apace. Tonight, Kazakh side Astana are up against Danish champions Midtjylland in the first leg. Astana did well to reach the last 32 of the Europa League last term, and although they had crashed out of the Champions League qualifiers that season to Celtic, they did at least manage a 4-3 win against the Scottish champions in the second leg of that tie. Astana are generally  very strong  at the Astana Arena, and they have won 11 of their last 12 games there in all competitions. Midtylland have made a  poor start  to the defence of th...

Dan Fitch previews the weekend International Champions Cup matches and thinks that Borussia Dortmund could struggle with a busy schedule that sees them take on Manchester City and Liverpool in swift succession... Young City side can find net Manchester City   2.98  v Borussia Dortmund  2.50 ; The Draw  3.75 Saturday, 21st June Kick off 02:00, Live on Premier Sports It's rare that you see  Manchester City  as the outsiders in a match these days, but that will be the case when they face Borussia Dortmund in Chicago in the early hours of Saturday morning. That's down to the number of first-team players still enjoying a rest after the rigours of the World Cup. With a number of his best players unavailable, Pep Guardiola is likely to give opportunities to a number of youngsters, alongside some more senior names such as Aymeric Laporte, Benjamin Mendy, Leroy Sane, Bernardo Silva and new signing  Riyad Mahrez . Dortmund will be fielding a team...

Andrew Hughes is back with another weekend treble and he's backing Atlanta to be too strong for Wayne Rooney's DC United in Saturday's MLS clash. Bet 1: Back Atlanta United to beat DC United at  1.36 If you're looking for a football fix to sustain you between the end of the World Cup and the start of the European seasons, it's worth checking out MLS, and you can get up to speed with the latest tips and previews on the  Betting.Betfair  MLS page. This has been a rare positive week for DC United fans, with the unveiling of their new stadium and the arrival of Wayne Rooney, and they were also able to celebrate a 3-1 victory over Vancouver, to mark the opening of Audi Field. But Saturday's challenge is altogether different. Atlanta United have made a big impact in just their second MLS season and are currently top of the Eastern Conference, thanks largely to the prolific form of Josef Martinez. Atlanta were held to a disappointing draw by Seattle in th...

Celtic v Alashkert Wednesday, 19:45 Live on Premier Sports Celtic kickstarted their quest for a place in the  Champions League  group stages with a comfortable win over Alashkert in the searing heat of Yerevan. The Scottish champions lacked match sharpness but had more than enough quality in their ranks to ease to a comfortable  3-0 first-leg  win thanks to goals from record-signing Edouard, Forrest and McGregor. It took The Hoops 46 minutes to break the deadlock and added the other two in the last 10 minutes of the match in testing conditions, but they're expected to tidy things up in front of their own fans on Wednesday evening at  Parkhead . 3-0 on aggregate  and the level of opposition suggests the job is done and manager Brendan Rodgers is expected to dip into his squad to give fringe players and youth a chance to pick-up vital Champions League experience. Traders can't see past a Celtic win meaning backers must work a bit harder to land a share...

France v Croatia Sunday, 16:00 Live on BBC One and ITV Les Bleus in clinical form Pre-tournament favourites for a decent chunk of punters, France are now just one step away from sealing their second World Cup title. And while one could still argue that Les Bleus have some spare capacity, especially as far as attacking fireworks go,  their progress to Sunday's showpiece has been undeniably impressive . The madcap 4-3 win over Argentina is the game that will probably live longest in the memory, but the two victories since - 2-0 against Uruguay and 1-0 vs Belgium - have been  feats of remarkable control . France held their opponents at arm's length throughout both matches, ensuring they got full value for their own incisive forays forward. With N'Golo Kanté protecting a durable, streetwise defence, they will take some breaking down in Moscow. Kylian Mbappé has taken most of the plaudits at the other end of the pitch, and understandably so. But Antoine Griezmann...