Europa League Round Of 16 Preview
The Europa League Round Of 16 returns next week and we have the latest news and odds on the competition’s new format!
When football went on a break in early March the Europa League was halfway through the Round Of 16. Getafe vs Inter Milan and Roma vs Sevilla were both postponed.
With the Europa League having to go into a shortened down version, the two postponed games will be played as one-off legs in Germany. The rest of the competition will follow this format after the Round Of 16 games are finished.
So far, six games have been played and the second leg of them will be played next week from 5th August. All of these games will be behind closed doors and played at the grounds of the away sides from the first leg. In each of the games, teams can have 23 players on the match sheet and make a total of five substitutions. They can only be done in three stoppages of the game or at half time.
The draw for the quarterfinals has now been done as well, so teams already know who they’ll be playing should they get through.
Copenhagen vs İstanbul Başakşehir (5th August)
The first game in the Round Of 16, Istanbul Basaksehir with a 1-0 lead. Copenhagen are the favourites for this game on BoyleSports at 6/4. This is probably because they are the home side. They have it all to do in this game as they didn’t manage to get the all-important away goal.
Whoever gets through this round will most probably be facing Man united as they are 5-0 up. This would be a tough game for either side. Copenhagen are currently priced at 80/1 to go all the way with Istanbul at 66/1.
Shakhtar Donetsk vs Wolfsburg (5th August)
The Ukrainian side are leading 2-1 against Wolfsburg and one goal for them could be too much for the German side. Shakhtar are also favourites for the second leg also at 6/4. If Shakhtar scores one goal then Wolfburg will need to score twice just to be level on away goals.
Shakhtar are given a good chance of winning the competition at 16/1 with Wolfsburg at 50/1. The winner of this plays Basel or Frankfurt, a game in which they would both be confident of winning.
Man United vs LASK (5th August)
The only game that is as good as over in the Round of 16 is this one. Man United are 5-0 up in this one and will no doubt play an inexperienced side to give the rest of the team a break. United are the favourites for this leg anyway at 1/4 and LASK are at a huge 9/1.
Solskjaers side are the favourites for the whole competition at 2/1, whilst LASK aren’t given any chance at 1000/1! United have Champions League already next season after coming fourth, but will still want to win this competition and give Solskjaer his first trophy.
Leverkusen vs Rangers (6th August)
Gerrard’s side go into this fixture with it all to do. Leverkusen beat them 3-1 at The Ibrox and Rangers now need to score at least three goals to get through. Bayer at priced at 4/6 with Rangers at 15/4 to win the game. Rangers have had a lot of time off to prepare for this fixture as the Scottish league finished up early.
Leverkusen at priced at 11/2 to go win the Europa League whilst Rangers are at 250/1. The winner of this leg will most probably meet Inter Milan in the next round. They will be a very tough side to beat.
Basel vs Frankfurt (6th August)
The home side for this leg are 3-0 and played very well in the first leg. For the second leg though, they aren’t favourites surprisingly. Basel are priced at 13/8 and Frankfurt at 6/4. Neither side are given much chance of winning the competition. Even though Basel are 3-0 and nearly in the next leg, they are at 25/1. Frankfurt are at 200/1 with BoyleSports.
The winner goes on to play Shakhtar or Wolfsburg, a tough game for either team.
Wolves vs Olympiacos (6th August)
This game finished all square 1-1, which is in Wolves’ benefit. They now have the away goal meaning Olympiacos need to score to get through. Wolves aren’t in the Europa League next season yet. They finished seventh, and if Arsenal win the FA Cup on Saturday they take Wolves’ place. This means they need to win this competition to get into Europe next season.
The winner of this leg will go onto play either Sevilla or Roma. That will be a very tough game for whoever wins this one and wolves are the favourites for the Round of 16-second leg at 5/6.
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