Europa League glory and a spot in next year’s Champions League is on the line this week in the first leg of the semifinals. This competition has been dominated by Spanish teams in recent years with Atletico Madrid and Sevilla combining to win six of the last nine titles. Valencia will be looking to continue that tradition, but English teams Arsenal and Chelsea are looking to use the competition to get back into the Champions League, and Eintracht Frankfurt are looking to become the first German side to win the tournament in 22 seasons.
Europa League Semifinals Betting Odds at BookMaker.eu
Eintracht Frankfurt +178
Chelsea FC +156
Draw +233
Over/Under 2.5
Eintracht Frankfurt are the biggest underdog left at this point, but this is a team that quickly proved it belonged. The Eagles ripped apart all of their group stage opponents, including last year’s runner-up Marseille, and they had no problem with Shakhtar Donetsk in the Round of 32. They beat Inter Milan in a defensive slugfest in the Round of 16, and then they overcame a 4-2 first leg defeat at the hands of Benfica to make it to the semifinals.
Chelsea have had the easiest draw you could imagine. The Blues were drawn into a group with three minnows and had no problem wiping the floor with all three of them. The draw has been incredibly fortuitous as well, and they have not faltered. Chelsea beat Malmo 5-1 on aggregate, then they crushed Dynamo Kyiv 8-0 on aggregate, and last round they cruised past Slavia Prague. This is by far their toughest opponent to date.
It’s going to be important for Eintracht to grab a couple goals at home and keep Chelsea from notching more than a single road goal. The German club has a brilliant young striker in Luka Jovic, and they will be counting on him to lead the way. He has eight goals and an assist in 12 Europa League matches this year. Unfortunately, they will be without Ante Rebic after he picked up a yellow card in the second leg with Benfica.
The Blues are in good position to make it back into the Champions League due to their position in the Premier League table, but they would like to ensure themselves of a spot by winning the Europa League since they are so deep into the competition. Chelsea won’t have Antonio Rudiger available and might not have Willian because of injury.
Prediction: Eintracht Frankfurt 2, Chelsea 1
Arsenal FC -106
Valencia CF +296
Draw +254
Over/Under 2.5
Arsenal had no trouble in the group stage of this competition, but the Gunners were forced to overcome first leg defeats against both BATE Borisov and Rennes in order to advance through the knockout rounds. They put together their most complete performance of the competition against Napoli in the quarterfinals, but they will be tested by Valencia.
Valencia are the one team left in the competition that dropped down into the knockout rounds after being eliminated from the Champions League. They cruised past Celtic in the Round of 32, and they withstood a game effort from Krasnodar in the Round of 16. In the quarterfinals, Valencia were pitted against league rivals Villarreal, but they were able to best the Yellow Submarine 5-1 on aggregate.
These two teams are moving in different directions, and both likely need to win the Europa League to make it to the Champions League next year. Neither team has been in great form recently with Valencia losing their last two league games, and Arsenal losing three straight.
I think Valencia have a good chance to get a result in this game. Arsenal are going to be without Aaron Ramsey and could be without Mesut Ozil and Nacho Monreal too, and those losses will hurt.
Prediction: Valencia 1, Arsenal 1
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