Eight teams have made it to this stage of the 2023 UEFA Europa League quarter-finals, and only four will advance to the next round. This year, the Europa League features some big names like Juventus, Manchester United, and Jose Mourinho’s Roma. This might be Europe’s second-tier club football competition, but it hasn’t failed to deliver over the years. The winner of the competition earns automatic qualification to UEFA Champions League the following season. Let’s look at how these top European teams match up as we preview the games of the first leg of the Europa League.
Europa League 2023 Quarter-Final Venue And Kick-Off Time
Match: Feyenoord Vs AS Roma
Date: Thursday, April 13, 2023
Venue: De Kuip, Rotterdam, Netherlands.
Time: 12:45 pm E.T, 18:45 Central European Summer Time (CEST)
Match: Juventus Vs Sporting CP
Date: Thursday, April 13, 2023
Venue: Allianz Stadium, Turin, Juventus
Time: 3:00 pm E.T, 21:00 Central European Summer Time (CEST)
Match: Manchester United Vs Sevilla
Date: Thursday, April 13, 2023
Venue: Old Trafford, Manchester, United Kingdom
Time: 3:00 pm E.T, 20:00 British Summer Time (BST)
Match: Bayer 04 Leverkusen Vs Union Saint-Gilloise
Date: Thursday, April 13, 2023
Venue: Bay Arena, Leverkusen, Germany
Time:3:00 pm E.T, 21:00 Central European Summer Time (CEST)
Europa League Quarter Final First Leg Match Preview
Feyenoord Vs Roma
Feyenoord has not been particularly impressive in European football this season until their most recent matchup in the second leg of the round of sixteen clashes against Shakhtar Donetsk. The Dutch side hammered Donetsk seven goals to one as they ran riot. In addition, Feyenoord is first in the Eredivisie, miles ahead of second-placed Ajax. Roma, on the other hand, has become a different team under the tutorship of Jose Mourinho. The Special One’s team is third in the Serie A, and we are familiar with Mourinho’s achievements in European competitions, even when he didn’t have the best resources. This will be one interesting matchup.
Juventus Vs Sporting CP
Juventus has been through it this season. They had fifteen points deducted from their tally in the league earlier in the season and have had quite a number of internal issues. However, they have fought through all these to be seventh in the Serie A and the Europa League quarter-finals. On the other hand, Sporting CP is fifth in the Primeira Liga, and they have impressed in the Europa League so far this year. Sporting did the unexpected by dumping current EPL leaders Arsenal out of the Europa League to the footballing world’s awe. Juventus has quite the team to play, which will be a very close game.
Manchester United Vs Sevilla
Juventus are the front runners as favorites to win the Europa League this season. They already won the Carabao Cup this season and are only hungry to add more titles with Erik Ten Hag in charge. The Red Devils dumped Barcelona out of the Europa League in the round of sixteen, and since then, they have been the team to dread in the competition. Regardless of what they have achieved so far in the competition, they are up against Sevilla, a team that has won the competition six times since it began, setting the record for most titles. Sevilla is a big name in the competition, and Manchester United has another huge task ahead in this matchup.
Bayer 04 Leverkusen Vs Union Saint-Gilloise
Xabi Alonso’s Bayer Leverkusen has definitely leveled up this season after a poor start to his spell as head coach. Leverkusen is sixth in the Bundesliga and the Europa League quarter-final; they have turned their season around after a poor start. Union Saint-Gilloise is the only Belgian team left in the competition; they are second in their domestic league, two points behind league leaders Genk. Leverkusen and Union Saint-Gilloise are equally matched teams, so this will be a game to watch.
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Europa League Quarter Final First Leg Match Predictions
Feyenoord Vs Roma
These teams have a history. Having faced each other three times in total, Feyenoord has never won a game against AS Roma, while Roma has won two of three, with one ending in a draw. Their last encounter saw Roma beat Feyenoord 1-0 in the maiden edition of the UEFA Conference League final. Feyenoord is the highest goal-scoring team in Europa League, while Roma has kept a clean sheet in their last three games in European competition. We have to back Roma’s backline here and predict a low-scoring game. One thing any Jose Mourinho’s side can do is defend.
- The pick here is under two total goals scored. The odds for this pick, according to Stake.com, are 2.75 (decimal), +175 (American).
Juventus Vs Sporting CP
These teams have only two previous encounters between them. It was in the UEFA Champions League group stage, where Juventus were victorious by two goals to one in the first, and the second ended in a draw. Sporting has never won away from home against any Italian team, which will come into play here. Although Sporting took down Premier League giants Arsenal, it was perceived that Arsenal underrated them, one thing Juventus won’t do. Juventus are backed to win this matchup.
- The pick here is Juventus to win. The odds for this pick, according to Stake.com, are 1.86 (decimal), -116 (American).
Manchester United Vs Sevilla
This is one matchup we can not afford to miss in this draw. Sevilla is seasoned in the Europa League, and their experience is unmatched by any other team in the competition. The last time they faced off was in the Europa League quarter-final, played in a single leg because of the pandemic. Sevilla won the game 2-1 and proceeded to win the Europa League that year. Sevilla is having a difficult spell in La Liga this season, as they are 13th in the league. Winning the Europa League is their only chance of participating in any European competition next season; they are desperate.
It’s challenging to pick an obvious winner here, so we are backing both teams to score. The odds for this pick, according to Stake.com, are 2.04 (decimal), +104 (American).
Bayer 04 Leverkusen Vs Union Saint-Gilloise
These two teams have never faced off before. Leverkusen has won three straight games in Europe, and they have a chance to make it four straight in this game. However, this might prove a difficulty as they play a Union Saint-Gilloise side that is yet to suffer an away defeat in the UEFA Europa League this year. These teams will surely have a go at it, and this game will be down to the wire. However, we have to back Saint-Gilloise’s strong away form in the Europa League this season to give them the edge.
- The pick for this game is for Union Saint-Gilloise to take the first leg. The odds for Saint-Gilloise to win, according to Stake.com, are 5.40 (decimal), +440 (American). This is our boldest and most rewarding prediction in this Europa League draw.
FBR has been delivering previews, odds, and predictions of European football competitions from the group stage, and they mean to keep the trend until the final games in all three tiers of the competition. To keep up to date with the Europa League, make sure you are following FBR on a regular basis.
