The excitement of European football continues this week as the UEFA Europa League returns for matchday three of the 2024/25 league phase campaign.
As teams look to build on their early momentum or start to correct their form after a disappointing start, fans can expect plenty of drama, intense moments and standout performances.
In this article, we will be taking a closer look at a selection of the matches scheduled for Thursday, picking out our top tips and best booking code (at time of writing):
Fenerbahce Istanbul vs Manchester United
In arguably the standout fixture of the Europa League third matchday in the league phase, Manchester United will travel to Turkey to take on former manager Jose Mourinho’s Fenerbahce side.
Fenerbahce have enjoyed a strong start under their new boss, losing just two of the opening 14 games this season, eight wins and four draws in that time.
Manchester United, on the other hand, have had a disappointing start, winning just four of their first 12 matches this season, losing four and drawing four, including both of their two Europa League games thus far.
We, therefore, expect this to be an extremely tight game, and while Fenerbahce boast the home advantage, where they have lost just one of their last 11 games, we ultimately believe Man United’s quality will lead them to a victory.
Manchester United to win, 2.36
Tottenham vs AZ Alkmaar
Tottenham have been in fantastic form recently, losing just one of their last seven matches with wins in all of the remaining six, scoring an incredible 19 goals in that time.
They now come up against an AZ Alkmaar side that have suffered four consecutive defeats heading into this match, conceding seven goals in that time, and that leads us to believe that Tottenham will win this one fairly comfortably.
Tottenham to win & over 3.5 goals, 2.59
Lyon vs Besiktas
Malick Fofana, who joined Lyon in January of 2024 from Gent, has had a positive start to his first full season at the club, scoring four times in 10 appearances across all competitions, with only five of those being starts.
The forward has netted in three of Lyon’s last four games, including netting a double in the 4-1 battering of Rangers in the last matchday in this competition. With Fofana likely to start here, having played from the beginning in each of the last two Europa League outings, we believe the forward will continue his strong form with another goal.
Malick Fofana to score anytime, 3.00
Roma vs Dynamo Kiev
Another player who has had a good start to the season at a new club is Artem Dovbyk, who joined Roma after having a stellar season at Girona last term.
The Ukrainian striker netted 24 times in 39 appearances for Girona last year, in his first season at a club in Europe’s major leagues, and he has started his time at Roma with four goals in his first 10 games across all competitions.
Dovbyk will be aiming to continue that positive start to life at his new club with another goal on Thursday, and with Roma coming up against Ukrainian side Dynamo Kiev, there will be more incentive for Dovbyk to impress. The striker has a good chance of a fifth goal for the club in this one.
Artem Dovbyk to score anytime, 2.15
Best Booking Code @36.37:
3JQQB3 – Book Here
