As the UEFA Europa League reaches the last 16, we analyse which teams are most likely to progress to the quarter-finals and, in particular, the midfield maestros to get them there.
By Robert Bright, sports writer, additional words by Phillip Othen
This coming Thursday, the UEFA Europa League sees the first leg of the Round of 16, the return leg to follow a week later. With a place in the Last Eight as the prize, it’s at this stage that the serious contenders for the trophy begin to emerge.
The favourites consist of two English, two Spanish and two Italian teams, and given the draw, you’d expect Chelsea, Arsenal, Sevilla, Valencia, Inter Milan and Napoli to advance, setting up some mouth-watering ties in the Quarter Finals.
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Most bookmakers have Chelsea down as outright favourites, with Napoli, Sevilla and Arsenal close behind. Certainly Chelsea has an enviable squad, and after a slow start to the competition, the team has put in increasingly convincing wins. According to FedEx Performance Zone stats, they lead the table in attempts on goal with 155 in total, while Olivier Giroud is joint second-top scorer with six goals.
Yet it is in the midfield where Chelsea have really dominated. Willian has been the key provider so far with five assists, as well as chipping in two goals, while in these later stages we can expect to see more involvement from one of the greatest players in the world in Eden Hazard. Their opponents, Dynamo Kyiv, will need to be at their best to contain the Chelsea midfield from overrunning the two-legged affair.
Much like Chelsea, Arsenal’s domestic form has been erratic this season, but they’ve turned in some sparkling performances in the Europa League.
New French midfielder Matteo Guendouzi has impressed with a huge 462 successful passes over his seven games, and a completion rate of 90%. It means they can expect to hog possession over French side Rennes, especially in the home leg.
But perhaps Arsenal’s greatest asset is their Spanish manager, Unai Emery, who oversaw a hat-trick of UEFA Europa League Final victories in 2014, 2015 and 2016 as manager of Sevilla.
Like Emery himself, Spanish teams have dominated the UEFA Europa League since it was established in the 2009-10 season, winning an incredible six of the nine finals. Of the three Spanish teams in the last 16, Sevilla and Valencia (vs Slavia Praha and Krasnodar respectively) are the favourites to go through, although Villarreal also stand a good chance of easing past Zenit.
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Sevilla’s history of success means they are comfortable with the pressure in these later stages of the competition. With key midfielder Éver Banega suspended for the tie, they will look to veteran captain Jesús Navas, whose FedEx Performance Stats show he completed 11 crosses, as well as providing two assists in the last tie against Lazio. He’ll need the tenacious qualities of Roque Mesa to help out in midfield, whose ball recovery (29) makes him key to turning around possession and putting Sevilla on the front foot.
Valencia will look to cultured midfielder Daniel Parejo, whose pass completion rate of 95% over the two legs reveals his near perfect reliability in the middle of the park, not to mention his clinical finishing that makes him the club’s top scorer this season in all competitions.
Italian sides Napoli and Inter Milan have been on similar trajectories since their exits from the toughest groups in the Champions League. Respectively second and third in Serie A, their excellent domestic form should worry both Frankfurt, who host Inter in the first leg, and Salzburg away to Napoli, although the German and Austrian clubs also have plenty to be optimistic about given their form in this tournament, and if there’s to be an upset among the bookies favourites, it could come in one of these two ties.
Inter Milan can call on world-class players like Croatian midfielder Ivan Perišić who is already warming to the competition having scored against Rapid Vienna in the second leg of Inter Milan’s 5-0 thumping.
But Inter Milan will be foolish to underestimate Frankfurt, which presently lead the goals-scored rankings with 23 in total, and whose Luca Jović is joint second-highest goal-scorer in the competition with six goals. This should result in a high-scoring and exciting tie – perhaps the pick of the Last 16.
With 417 goals scored so far in the Europa League (making an average of nearly three goals a game), and with the huge range of talent on show, one thing is certain – there’s going to be plenty to cheer about.
The UEFA Europa League is a tournament packed with possibilities. From the first whistle until the last, FedEx is proud to sponsor Europe’s largest professional club competition as it connects fans, friends and families across Europe, delivering passion, commitment and excitement at every stage.
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