Key Europa League Clashes Taking Place On Thursday Night

It is not just the Champions League that has reached the crucial Matchday 6 stage this week, on Thursday the final group stage games in the revamped Europa League will take place, and there is still plenty at stake for most teams in the tournament.

The introduction of the Europa Conference League as a tournament below the Europa League, means that we now have a situation where the top team in the Europa League will qualify automatically for the Round of 16 of this tournament.

The team that finishes second in the group will advance to the Preliminary Knockout Round, which will feature the 8 second placed teams in the Europa League facing off over two legs against the eight teams that finished third in their groups in the Champions League.

The winners of those eight games will join the eight Europa League group winners in the Round of 16.

Also, the team that finishes third in the Europa League will no longer be eliminated from Europe this season but will drop into the Europa Conference League. Only the team finishing bottom of the group is eliminated from European competition.

So as you can imagine, there is a lot to play for in each of the eight groups this week in the Europa League and you can catch plenty of great betting on these games with bet365 Sport, or if you are based in the United States then try BetRivers Sportsbook as a good alternative.

Let’s now look ahead to the key games coming up on Thursday Night but before that we will identify which teams have already qualified and for what.

Europa League Matchday 6 – Teams Already Qualified

• Round of 16 – Lyon, Monaco, Bayer Leverkusen, West Ham United
• Preliminary Knockout Round – Real Betis, Rangers
• Europa Conference League – Fenerbahce, Celtic
• Bottom of Group & Eliminated – Ferencvaros, Ludogorets Razgrad, Royal Antwerp, Sturm Graz

That leaves the following games as being the key matches on Thursday in each group. For this we are focusing on games that will decide the top two spots in the groups only.

Group B – Real Sociedad v PSV Eindhoven

With Monaco confirmed as the group winners and Sturm Graz confirmed as bottom of the table, this game will decide who qualifies for the Preliminary Knockout Round in the Europa League by finishing second and who drops into the Europa Conference League by finishing third. PSV need to draw or better in order to finish second, while Sociedad need to win in order to progress.

The teams drew 2-2 on the opening night of Group Stage action in Eindhoven and this should be an equally close game between two sides that look well matched on paper. Sociedad are the favourites with bet365 here at 8/11 and with home advantage that is understandable, but PSV are in good form and I think could surprise a few people here. I am taking the draw at 3/1, which would see PSV finish second in the group.

Group C – Napoli v Leicester City, Legia Warsaw v Spartak Moscow

Any of the four teams in Group C can qualify and win the group, so tonight’s games promise to be hugely decisive. A win for any of the teams will see them qualify, possibly as group winners. A combination of a draw in one game and a win in another could create all kinds of potential qualifiers. Suffice to say, all four teams should focus on a win being enough and for Leicester, the likelihood is that a point will be enough.

However, my feeling here is that Napoli will win the game with Leicester (Evens) and that the other game will end up as a draw (12/5), which would mean Napoli and Leicester would go through.

Group D – Fenerbahce v Eintracht Frankfurt, Antwerp v Olympiakos

Although the top two spots in this group will go to Frankfurt and Olympiakos, who finishes first and second is not yet decided. A win for Frankfurt in Turkey against Fenerbahce would give them top spot and even a draw or loss would be enough if Olympiakos were to lose to Antwerp. However, if Olympiakos were to win the game and Frankfurt lose, then the Greek side would take top spot in the group. I can’t see that happening though as I am backing both teams to land the win here (Frankfurt 13/10 and Olympiakos 21/20).

Group E – Lazio v Galatasaray

This game in Rome is a simple one-off playoff for top position in Group E. Galatasaray lead the group by three points, but if Lazio can beat Galatasaray then the Italians would top the group and get the bye through to the Round of 16. A lot of games in this group have been drawn and it should be noted that Galatasaray have not been beaten in the group stage as yet and I am backing the Turkish side to put up a brave display here, but I think Lazio will do just enough to edge the win (4-6) and that would be enough to give them top spot in the group.

Group F – Braga v Red Star Belgrade, Ludogorets Razgrad v Midtjylland

In this group, top spot is up for grabs for three teams, Red Star Belgrade, Braga and Midtjylland. A win for Red Star or Braga would see them top the group, but if they were to draw, then Midtjylland could top the group with a win over Ludogorets. I can see the Danish side winning their game against the already eliminated Ludogorets (4/6) even though they are away from home but I think Braga will land the win in the game with Red Star Belgrade (17/20) and that set of results would see Braga qualify as group winners and Midtjylland in second.

Group H – Genk v Rapid Vienna, West Ham v Dinamo Zagreb

We already know that West Ham have won this group, so the question here is who will finish second behind them with Dinamo Zagreb and Genk the teams in with a chance. For me, I’d expect West Ham to beat Zagreb at home and that opens the door for Genk who can qualify for the next stage with a win here. I’d expect them to do that and at odds of 7/10, the bookies think so too.