Alongside the return of the UEFA Champions League this week is the return of the other two major European competitions in the Europa League and the Europa Conference League.
Unlike the Champions League, this is the playoff round of the Europa League where the group runners-up are drawn against those that finished third in their Champions League groups with the winner advancing on to the round of 16. With this we see some huge European sides dropping into the Europa League such as SL Benfica and AC Milan.
With drama sure to take place in this playoff round we’ve picked out our top tips and booking codes for the upcoming action:
Feyenoord vs Roma
Santiago Gimenez has been on top form for Feyenoord this season which has seen the striker be linked to clubs such as Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur. Gimenez’s 19 goals in 20 games in the Eredivisie leaves him as the second top scorer in the league, while also having the best goals per minute ratio of any player to have scored more than 10 goals.
With Feyenoord also flying in recent weeks, winning four of their last five, we expect that they will create chances for Gimenez against a Roma side who have been surprisingly leaky at the back with 30 goals conceded in their 24 Serie A games. If Gimenez is given these chances then his record this season suggests he’ll finish it off, and we expect him to score at least once in this one.
Santiago Gimenez to score anytime, 2.60
Shakhtar Donetsk vs Marseille
Marseille and Shakhtar Donetsk are both coming into this game in rather shaky form, with Marseille not winning in their last five and Shakhtar winning just once. For Shakhtar this will also be their first competitive match in over eight weeks, meaning they are extremely likely to show some rustiness as they look to get back up to speed over the course of this game.
While we do expect this to be a tough game between two sides who appear to be struggling in recent times, Marseille’s squad should be much more match ready than their opponents thanks to their two month hiatus and for this reason we believe Marseille will win.
Marseille to win, 2.25
AC Milan vs Stade Rennes
Despite now being 37-years-old, Olivier Giroud is still one of AC Milan’s top performers with the Frenchman currently leading their goalscoring charts in the Serie A with 11 goals from 21 appearances.
The striker comes into this one having played well in the past few weeks too, with two goals and three assists in his last five games. This coincides with Milan’s current five match unbeaten run, and with them playing well we expect that they’ll be able to create chances for the Frenchman. For this reason, we believe Giroud will score yet another goal for Milan in this one.
Olivier Giroud to score anytime, 2.30
Booking Codes:
67DQ5TR
67DQ6Q3
1 Comment
by Isaac Nuhu
Thank you