UEFA Europa League: Quarter-Finals Preview

The summer festival of football continues this week as the UEFA Champions League and Europa League reach the quarter-final stage.

First up is the Europa League with all eyes on Germany with the eight remaining sides battling it out in one-legged matches at neutral venues - Dusseldorf, Cologne, Duisburg and Gelsenkirchen.

The Veltins Arena in Gelsenkirchen is one of four venues for Europa League matches

The format of course differs to the regular format of the Europa League in order to complete the tournament following the shutdown of sport due to the Coronavirus pandemic.

Each quarter-final is a one-off matches with no second leg. Should the scores be level after 90 minutes, extra time and penalties if necessary

Teams will also be allowed to make five substitutions at three points in the game although half time is not included within these points and one additional substitution will be allowed in the ties that go to extra time.

Manchester United v Copenhagen (Monday 10th August - 8pm KO GMT)

Manchester United are the favourites to win this competition and given their form in 2020, that comes as no great surprise.

Their FA Cup semi-final defeat against Chelsea was their only defeat since 22nd January, a run of form that's been inspired by the form of Portugal international Bruno Fernandes.

As a result, the Red Devils have already secured Champions League football for next season through a third placed finish in the Premier League but adding trophies to the cabinet in instilled within the very fabric of Manchester United.

The front three of Marcus Rashford, Anthony Martial and Mason Greenwood have 10 goals in the Europa League combined this season with Greenwood accounting for half that tally in what's been a sensational breakout season for the teenager.

Considering Manchester United's questionable defending at times this season, they may well be relying on that firepower to go all the way, especially if they progress to the semi-finals as they are very much expected to.

Their opponents Copenhagen come into the game with the longest winning odds in the tournament and approach the match with nothing to lose and no expectations.

The Danes also haven't conceded more than one goal in any of their last 31 European games and, despite finishing 14 points behind FC Midtjylland in the Danish Superliga, they boast talent prospects in the likes of Jonas Wind who scored twice against Istanbul Basaksehir in the second-leg of the last sixteen.

Former Manchester United full-back Guillermo Varela is only on the books of the record Danish Champions and played for the Old Trafford side in this competition in the 2015/16 campaign.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's side should have no problem securing a place in the semi-finals next week.

Wolves v Sevilla (Tuesday 11th August - 8pm KO GMT)

There are few teams left in this tournament for whom victory will mean more than Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Following an ultimately disappointing 7th placed finish in the Premier League, coupled with Arsenal's victory in the FA Cup final, winning the Europa League is the only way that Nuno Espirito Santo's team can qualify for European football next season.

Wolves have the quality to win this tournament and the squad know it.

Raul Jimenez has been a serial goalscorer since arriving at Molineaux, Adama Traore is having the best season of his career to date and is only of the coveted wingers in Europe meanwhile Daniel Podence and Diogo Jota are also threats on the left-hand side albeit Podence is suspended for the tie in Dusiburg.

The Portuguese midfield duo of Ruben Neves and Joao Moutinho complement each other superbly although Neves goal contributions don't reflect the quality of the former Porto captain, especially from range.

As for Wolves' defence, by-and-large it picks itself. Rui Patricio has been superb since arriving on a free transfer from Sporting Lisbon in 2018 while Conor Coady, Willy Boly and Matt Doherty are pretty much ever-present when fit.

Sevilla, however, are Europa League veterans.

The Spanish side won the tournament three years running between 2014 and 2016 under the guidance of Unai Emery and whilst the squad has changed significantly since those days, there is no lack of quality.

Argentinian maestro Ever Banega was in the 2015 and 2016 Europa League winning sides and brings a wealth of experience to the midfield.

On-loan Real Madrid left back Sergio Reguilon, who was a recent target for Liverpool, and a rejuvenated Jesus Navas on the opposite side are constant threats with Reguilon opening the scoring against Roma in their one-off last 16 match last week.

This is a really tough tie to call but I'll go for Wolves to continue chasing their Champions League dream.

Inter Milan v Bayer Leverkusen (Monday 10th August - 8pm KO GMT)

Arguably the tie of the round and a matchup between two of the most exciting sides in Europe.

Inter Milan lost out on their first Serie A title since 2010 by just a point to Juventus while Bayer Leverkusen boast the attacking talents of Kai Havertz, Mousa Diaby & Leon Baily.

Inter's undoing this campaign under Antonio Conte has been inconsistency. The Nerazzurri lost only four games in Serie A but 10 draws ultimately saw them fall short.

It was a similar story in the Coppa Italia as Inter lost at the semi-final stage against eventual winners Napoli.

To go all the way in the Europa League, the prolific partnership of Romelu Lukaku and Lautaro Martinez must be the inspiration. Lukaku, who signed from Manchester United for 80 million euros last summer, scored his thirtieth goal of the season against Getafe in their last 16 tie with Martinez scoring 19 in his second season at the San Siro.

Bayer Leverkusen, meanwhile, are in a similar situation to Wolves as they must win this tournament to qualify for next season's Champions League. A disappointing run of form towards the end of the Bundesliga season meant that Peter Bosz's side fell to fifth with only another spell in the Europa League guaranteed for 20/21.

Whether Leverkusen claim the trophy or not could be a deciding factor as to the future of star midfielder Havertz, who has been the subject of strong links to Chelsea during the summer. German international Havertz has spent his entire career at Leverkusen since making his debut as a 17 year old but is yet to claim any silverware.

Bailey and Diaby will provide a threat from the wings with Jamaican international Bailey having already showcased his undoubted quality this season with a brace as Leverkusen won 2-1 against Bayern Munich at the Allianz Arena in November.

I believe the winner of this tie will make it to the final on 21st August and I think that team will be Inter Milan. Nine years without a trophy for Inter is unacceptable and would keep the momentum going into next season as they look to wrestle the Serie A title out of the clutches of Juve.

Shakhtar Donetsk v FC Basel (Tuesday 11th August - 8pm KO GMT)

Two outsiders but two sides that can't be ruled out.

2009 UEFA Cup winners Shakhtar in particular are a threat for anyone on their day, with their host of Brazilian stars providing plenty of attacking flair looking to add European glory to their domestic dominance. of the last two decades.

Brazilian international Taison has been with Shakhtar since 2013, winning 14 domestic trophies in that time. Junior Moraes and Marlos, who have both declared for Ukraine at international level, are the only players in the squad who've scored more than Taison this season, with 33-year old Moraes scoring 25 goals in all competitions.

Basel meanwhile are going through on the toughest periods in the history of Switzerland's most successful side.

After winning eight league titles in a row between 2009 and 2017, Basel haven't won the league since 2017 and have just one Swiss Cup victory in that time. By the standards set by Marcel Koller's side, that is a paltry return.

There's been little to shout about in Europe too, with Basel last reached the quarter-finals of the Europa League in 2014 where they lost 5-3 to Valencia after extra time despite winning the first leg 3-0.

This season's continental exploits, however, have been fair more promising. Basel cruised through the group stage, losing just once before comfortably seeing off both Apoel Nicosia and, impressively, 2019 semi-finals Eintracht Frankfurt, winning both ties 4-0 on aggregate.

I expect Shakhtar to see off Basel, especially in a one-legged tie and it could be rather comfortable.

Europa League Semi-Final fixtures

Wolves or Sevilla v Manchester United v Copenhagen

Inter Milan v Bayer Leverkusen v Shakhtar Donetsk v FC Basel