What happens this Thursday will determine which two teams meet in the Europa League Final in Lyon, France on Wednesday, May 16. After the first leg’s results, Atletico Madrid and Olympique Marseille are the favorites to meet in the final. However, neither club has an insurmountable lead and there is still a chance that both Arsenal and Red Bull Salzburg make it through. The latter two clubs need to be at their best this week in order to make it though.
Don't miss the Europa League Semifinals action this Thursday on May 3, at 3:05 p.m. ET. Atletico Madrid will host Arsenal at the Wanda Metropolitano with the match being broadcast in the United States on FS1, while RB Salzburg will host Olympique Marseille at Red Bull Arena Salzburg with the match being broadcast on FS2. Check out all the action this week at BookMaker.
Europa League Semifinals Second Leg Betting Odds at BookMaker.eu
Arsenal +412
Atletico Madrid -142
Draw +275
Over/Under 2.5
Arsene Wenger couldn’t have dreamt a better start for Arsenal last Thursday. Atletico right back Sime Vrsaljko was sent off within 10 minutes after a very dubious second yellow card, allowing the hosts to play up a man for the last 80-plus minutes of the match. The Gunners poked and prodded against Atletico’s back line, racking up an incredible 28 shots and controlling the ball for 76 percent of the match, but all they could muster was a 1-1 draw at the end.
Atletico proved why they are considered to be one of the best defensive teams in the world in this match. Arsenal had a number of decent chances, but many were snuffed out at the last moment. Atletico goalkeeper Jan Oblak came up big a number of times too, making some incredible saves in only allowing one goal.
It was an incredibly disappointing result for Arsenal who had been hoping for a multiple-goal victory after Vrsaljko was dismissed. Now, the Gunners are going to have to either pick up a win or secure a high-scoring draw in the return leg in order to make the finals.
The news got worse for Arsenal after this weekend’s match with Manchester United. Midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan and forward Alex Iwobi both suffered injuries and are unlikely to play against Atletico. Additionally, David Ospina is a little banged up and that might affect him in this match. If Ospina cannot play, that’s a big concern as Petr Cech has not been great in net this year.
Things are much better for Atletico Madrid on the injury front. Diego Costa looks set to return to the line-up, and that will give the club the dynamic 1-2 punch they have had with he and Antoine Griezmann. Arsenal collapsed on Griezmann often in the first leg, but the French national was still able to find the back of the net and he should be even deadlier with Costa.
Atletico will need to figure out how to replace Vrsaljko though, who will miss this match after picking up the red last week.
Olympique Marseille +247
Red Bull Salzburg +106
Draw +261
Over/Under 2.5 and 3
Marseille is in a good spot after beating RB Salzburg 2-0 in the first leg of their Europa League tie. Winning by two goals is huge, and that means scoring just once will make RB Salzburg have to pour in four goals in order to advance.
However, you can’t count Salzburg out of it just yet. The club looked like the better side for much of the match, and they were very unfortunate to not pick up a goal. There were three or four near-misses for the visitors who won the possession battle, had more shots, and more shots on net in the first leg.
On the injury front, Marseille will be without goalkeeper Steve Mandanda, defensive midfielder Boubacar Kamara, and right back Hiroki Sakai. In particular, the loss of Sakai continues to loom large as he is the lynchpin of Marseille’s back line. Salzburg has no such issues on this end and looks to have everyone ready for the second leg.
The challenge for Salzburg is immense, but this club has surprised throughout the tournament. They are a very live dog heading into this match.
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