While some clubs would usually have little issue with prioritising their domestic matches over fixtures in the Europa League, the current financial climate in football means that the biggest teams are playing full-strength sides on the continent in a bid to qualify for the Champions League. Even though at least half of the last-16 ties look over as a contest after the first leg, that will not stop managers from selecting many of their key players. With that in mind, which Europa League bets should punters be placing on Thursday night's matches?
The encounter between AC Milan and Manchester United will naturally receive the most attention, helped by the first leg at Old Trafford ending in a 1-1 draw. Despite conceding a last-gasp equaliser, there was a feeling that United were fortunate to only ship one goal to the Italian giants, leading to the perception that Milan should be regarded as favourites to progress. However, Milan could be made to rue only netting one away goal with United having made a habit of recording better results on their travels. When also taking into consideration that Milan were defeated by Napoli at the weekend, punters should feel confident in taking the 13/20 on offer for United to reach the quarter-finals. We also fancy Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's men to respond with a clean sheet at San Siro, meaning that the 21/20 for just one team to score in the game looks attractive betting odds.
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With Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur in full control of their ties against Olympiacos and Dinamo Zagreb respectively, punters may lean towards getting involved with the second leg between Rangers and Slavia Prague. Given how the Czech Republic outfit disposed of Leicester City in the previous round, Steven Gerrard would have been delighted that his side returned to Glasgow with a 1-1 draw but like with United, we cannot help but think that the away team are perfectly placed to prevail on Thursday night. Even with a weekend off, we do not expect Rangers to keep a clean sheet against strong opponents, and that theory makes the 5/4 for Slavia to make the last eight a clear no-brainer. If you want to combine that bet with United, you will get betting odds in the region of 2/1.
All things considered, no more games should produce a surprise result, leaving punters to consider different betting markets. While taking an element of caution, there is plenty of value in a multiple-fold accumulator involving draw no bet. As well as sticking with United and Slavia again, adding Spurs to beat Dinamo and Ajax to complete the job against Young Boys brings you up to 7/1 for the four-fold. There will be a temptation to get greedy with straight results, but knockout ties - competitive or not - can produce a range of various outcomes on the night.
With the competition being reduced to eight teams on Thursday, it also feels like the right time for punters to place their final outright bets for the tournament. With Marcus Rashford stressing his desire to win the Europa League, punters should consider each-way bets on United at 4/1, but there is justification in placing a small stake on Milan at 11/1. Whoever reaches the last eight will be fancied for a run to the final, and selecting both teams will give you some security. Roma can also be claimed at 9/1, far higher odds than they should be given that they already hold a 3-0 advantage over Shakhtar Donetsk ahead of the second leg.
