Brad's Euro Bankers: Back this 12/1 European football acca on Saturday

We are BACK for what is, technically, the second entry of my weekly European football betting column. 

However, we didn't have the snazzy graphic featuring my mug attached to last week's edition so, seeing as my selections didn't come in, I am going to live in ignorance and claim this week marks a fresh start in my continental predictions. 

How cruel is it that the first international break of the new season is almost upon us. Players will jet off to represent their nations in one of the many pointless interruptions of the campaign following this weekend's round of fixtures, so let's try and head into what is already guaranteed to be a miserable two weeks on a high. 

Brad Walker's best European football bets for Saturday, August 31, 2024

Atletico Madrid to beat Athletic Bilbao - 2 pts

Bayer Leverkusen to beat RB Leipzig - 2 pts

Lazio to beat AC Milan - 1 pt 

Atletico Madrid to beat Athletic Bilbao (7/5)

After picking up five points across their first three La Liga matches, Atletico Madrid face their sternest test yet when they travel to Estadio de San Mamés on Saturday. 

The visitors have endured a mixed bag of form so far, starting off the campaign with a 2-2 draw at Villarreal before rebounding with a 3-0 home victory against Girona on matchday two. 

Their most recent outing saw them frustrated by a stubborn Espanyol side, who held them to a 0-0 stalemate at the Estadio Civitas Metropolitano on Wednesday, despite the hosts having 25 shots and managing 2.71 xG across the 90 minutes. 

Wasteful finishing from new forwards Julian Alvarez and Alexander Sorloth - both of whom started ahead of Antoine Griezmann - saw Atletico fail to find a breakthrough in a match in which they retained 63% of possession.

Two disallowed goals hardly helped their cause but, with Diego Simeone’s men already trailing Barcelona by four points, Atletico can ill-afford more dropped points if they are to play a more prominent role in the La Liga title race this time around. 

Atletico signed attacking midfielder Julian Alvarez from Manchester City this summer. (Photo credit: Alamy Images)

They travel to face a stubborn Athletic Bilbao side who come into the new season hoping to mount another challenge for a spot in the Champions League. The hosts also have five points to their name and picked up their first win of the new campaign against Valencia (1-0) on Wednesday evening.

Keeping hold of young starlet Nico Williams has been a major coup - the 22-year-old recorded eight goals and 19 assists in all competitions last season - and was a vital cog in Los Leones ending their 40-year wait for a major trophy following their success in the Copa del Rey.

Despite their recent success, the added attacking quality of Atletico push me towards the away victory in this one. Sure, their finishing was sub-par to say the least against Espanyol but it would be near impossible for them to be equally as wasteful should they create even half that amount of chances on Saturday afternoon (famous last words).

Antoine Griezmann, who has 14 goals against Bilbao, should also return to the lineup to help his side to an important victory against a rugged Bilbao side.

Bayer Leverkusen to beat RB Leipzig (4/5)

It was impossible not to revel in the success of Xabi Alonso's Bayer Leverkusen side last season. Die Werkself enjoyed a remarkable campaign which not only saw them claim their first ever Bundesliga title, but also go down as the only team in the competition's history to do so without losing a single game. 

On top of their unfathomable achievements in the league, Leverkusen also claimed their first DFB-Pokal and came agonisingly close to winning the Europa League, in which they finished runners-up to eventual champions Atalanta. 

Their ability to score late goals was a staple of their incredible success. Alonso's men netted an astonishing 17 goals during stoppage time in all competitions, as well as 34 beyong the 80th-minute.

Remarkably, they've continued this trend into 2024-25. The opening match of their Bundesliga defence looked destined to end in a 2-2 draw at Borussia Monchengladbach, only for midfield maestro Florian Wirtz to secure all three points with a late winner in the 11th minute of stoppage time. 

RB Leipzig also enjoyed their fair share of success last season after securing a spot among the Bundesliga's top-four for the sixth year running. Their away record was solid, averaging 1.65 points on their travels, though five of their seven defeats did come on the road. One of those included a 3-2 loss at Leverkusen 12 months ago.

Wirtz celebrates his last-gasp winner at Monchengladbach last week. (Photo credit: Alamy Images)

In terms of picking a result here, I'm always cautious to back a side who soared at the heights enjoyed by Alonso and co last term. There's normally always a drop-off in form during the following campaign but, with Leverkusen having won all three of their matches in all competitions this season, I find it impossible to bet against them this weekend. 

Their home form last season was remarkable - they dropped just six points in the Bundesliga at the Bay Arena - and have also managed to keep hold of key men in the aforementioned Wirtz, Jeremie Frimpong and Victor Boniface. 

I'm sure Leipzig will be relishing the opportunity to end Leverkusen's incredible run on their own patch but, heading into the fixture, all roads point to another win for the home side in what I'm sure will be another thrilling watch for the neutral. 

Lazio to beat AC Milan (2/1)

Our final selection of the weekend takes place in the Italian capital as Lazio welcome last season's runners-up AC Milan in Serie A. 

I guess you're expecting me to wax lyrical about Lazio's incredible momentum coming into this one, eh? Not quite. They suffered a shock 2-1 defeat at Udinese last time out, despite the latter having to play the final 20 minutes with 10 men. Hardly ample preparation to playing the second-best team in the Italian top-flight last season, but the visitors are hardly in stellar form themselves. 

Milan have taken just one point from their opening two matches. A 2-2 home draw against Torino was followed by a disappointing 2-1 loss at Parma, already leaving Rossoneri five points behind leaders Juventus heading into matchday three. 

So, with both failing to hit the ground running in 2024-25, what makes me lean towards Lazio in this one? Home form. 

The hosts were unbeaten in eight league matches heading into the Udinese match. Marco Baroni's men are also on a six-match unbeaten run at Stadio Olimpico. Five of those matches ended in a Lazio win. 

Milan haven't got going yet and have also lost two of their last away outings against Saturday's opponents. Another defeat could spark a mini-crisis at San Siro but, given Lazio's recent strengths on home patch, I'm going to back the 2/1 underdogs to secure a surprise victory in this one.