Sports Blog 16/04/2016: Match Preview – UEFA Europa League Quarter Finals First Leg. Thursday 16th April 2015

With the first leg of the Champions League quarter finals wrapping up last night, it is time to turn to the other UK-free European competition, as the Europa League sees its final 8 face off on Thursday night.

As well as the usual sports spread betting and fixed odds, Spreadex is offering its Europa League Index, where the spread is made up of 100 points for the winner, 75 points for the runner up and 50 points for the losing semi-finalist. All the current sides are already on 25 points due to them being, and therefore potentially becoming losing, quarter finalists.

First up is a trip to Ukraine for Fiorentina, as they face Dynamo Kiev at 8pm on BT Sport 1. At a Europa League Index spread of 39-42, Dynamo are the lowest rate team left in the competition. However, they were emphatic against Everton at home, beating the English side 5-2 to overcome the deficit from their losing first leg. They are also top of the Ukrainian league, 5 points above their more moneyed rivals Shaktar Donestk, and have won 7 of their 10 games in 2015, their only losses coming in away games in the Europa League.



Fiorentina, on the other hand, have begun to slip of late. Despite having the third best Europa League Index spread of 50-53, they have lost their past 2 games to Juventus and Napoli respectively, the former of which saw them crash out of the Coppa Italia. Considering they are 8 points adrift of third place Roma, a team they overcame to reach the quarter finals, the Europa League is Fiorentina’s last chance for silverware this season. Our Spreadex traders, however, feel like the first leg edge goes to the Dynamo’s home form, at a tight Dynamo Kiev/Fiorentina Goal Supremacy spread betting quote of 0.15-0.35 with a Total Goals spread of 2.25-2.45.

The second quarter final sees another Ukrainian side, as FC Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk visit Club Brugge at 8pm on BT Sport 2. With a Europa League Index spread of 42-45, Brugge are one of the more middling sides left in the competition. However, they ran rampant over Besiktas, winning 5-2 over the two legs, and were unbeaten in 8 before losing at the weekend. They are also the only unbeaten side unbeaten in the Europa League left, and are aiming for their first European final in 23 years.



Brugge will fancy their chances against Dnipro, who at a Europa Index spread of 40-43 are the 2nd worst rated side in the competition, only above their fellow Ukrainians. However, Dnirpo surprisingly managed to beat Ajax on away goals in the last 16, and have kept 7 clean sheets in their last 9 games. Yet at the same time, Dnipro have only managed one win in 7 away games in Europe, and even if they go to progress to the semi-finals, it looks like it would be due to a home performance. This sentiment is felt by our Spreadex traders, who are offering a Club Brugge/Dnipro Goal Supremacy spread betting quote of 0.45-0.65 with a Total Goals spread of 2.3-2.5.

Things look set to be more exciting in Wolfsburg, as Napoli travel to face the German side at 8pm on ITV4. Wolfsburg are in the middle of their best Bundesliga season since they won the league in 2008-09. They are sitting in second (granted 10 points behind Bayern Munich), have a DFB-Pokal semi-final to look forward to and are unbeaten in their past 7 games. In terms of the Europa League Wolfsburg have the best Index spread of 54-57, and managed to beat Inter Milan, who are stuck in mid-table oblivion in Serie A, 5-2, a feat they will want to repeat against their latest Italian opponent.



It might be the right time for Wolfsburg to face Napoli; despite sitting in 4th in Serie A, Napoli’s have gone off the boil recently, with only one win in their last 6 games, including league-damaging losses to Roma and Lazio. In fact Napoli have failed to win in their past 5 away games, only managing one paltry goal on their recent travels. At a Europa League Index spread of 45-48 the Italian side have the 4th best rating of the remaining 8; however, our Spreadex traders can’t see beyond the formidable German side, at a Wolfsburg/Napoli Goal Supremacy spread betting quote of 0.7-0.9 with a high Total Goals spread of 2.9-3.1.

Finally, current champions Sevilla host Zenit St. Petersburg in a game that isn’t being televised in the UK, but still has the usual Spreadex in-play betting options. Sevilla were impressive in the last round, beating their La Liga rivals Villereal 5-2 over the two legs. A hard-earned 2-2 draw against Barcelona at the weekend saw Sevilla take their unbeaten run to 10 games, a run that leaves them on a Europa League Index spread of 52-55, second only to Wolfsburg.



Zenit St. Petersburg are now the only Champions League reject left in Europe’s second tier competition, and will prove to be a tough nut to crack for the current champions. Top of the Russia table by 8 points, Zenit have had one of the easier routes to the quarter finals, beating PSV and Torino since being knocked out of the Champions League. They have a rather middling Europa League Index spread of 41-44, but have only conceded 3 goals in their past 5 away games, meaning Sevilla may find it hard to break them down. On the other hand Zenit will be missing Hulk, the Russia league top scorer, so may find scoring difficult themselves. Like in the other games, our traders are fancying a home win, at a Sevilla/Zenit Goal Supremacy spread betting quote of 0.9-1.1 with a low Total Goals spread of 2.45-2.65.