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Europa League betting tips:
- Bayer Leverkusen to win to nil – 11/10 bet365
- Romelu Lukaku to score any time - 13/10 William Hill
- Panathinaikos to beat Rennes – 19/10 SpreadEx
The Europa League returns for matchday three and it’s an important time for teams across the competition to either build on promising starts or begin a potential fightback.
The battle for top spots across all groups is about to become more intense as only one team are afforded direct qualification to the knockout stage.
There are a number of quality outfits that have enjoyed strong starts to their Europa League campaign, and we’ll focus on a few of those for our predictions.
After looking at the best football betting sites, here are our tips for matchday three.
Leverkusen to keep form going
Xabi Alonso’s men have enjoyed an outstanding start to their season. Leverkusen are top of the Bundesliga after winning seven of their opening eight matches, only dropping points against Bayern Munich on the road.
They’ve continued their form in the Europa League by easing past BK Hacken with a four-goal glut and then edging out Molde on the road.
The German outfit can afford to be pleased with their start, but Qarabag will pose a threat after winning their first two games.
Gurban Gurbanov’s side have relied on their defensive strength to keep two clean sheets, claiming 1-0 victories over Molde and Hacken.
The visitors will no doubt adopt a defensive strategy against Leverkusen, which may limit their ability to push into the final third to try to put the hosts under pressure.
Alonso’s men have the nous to find a way through the Qarabag defence to secure the three points, and we’re backing Leverkusen to win to nil at odds of 11/10 with bet365.
Lukaku to steer Roma past Slavia Prague
After a difficult start to their season domestically, Roma have started to reel off results to improve their standing in Serie A.
Last year’s runners-up have made a strong start to their Europa League campaign, defeating Sheriff Tiraspol 2-1 on the road before putting four past Servette last time out.
Slavia Prague have also recorded two wins from two, setting up a tense duel at the top of Group G.
Roma have been extremely impressive at the Stadio Olimpico of late. I Lupi have won four home matches on the bounce in all competitions since suffering a 2-1 defeat to Milan at the start of September.
Jose Mourinho’s men have scored 14 goals without response, highlighting their improvement.
The form of Romelu Lukaku has been key to their success as the 30-year-old has been prolific in front of goal this term for club and country. Lukaku has scored 11 goals in 13 appearances, including strikes in both wins in the Europa League.
Mourinho has managed to get the best out of the Belgian and that could continue against Prague, which makes his odds with UK bookmakers to find the net appealing.
We're backing Lukaku to keep up his run to score any time at odds of 13/10 with William Hill.
Can Panathinaikos edge out Rennes?
Panathinaikos had their last game in the Greek Super League suspended against rivals Olympiacos after their defender Juankar was struck by a firework while warming up.
It is a quick turnaround from the incident, but Ivan Jovanovic and his team have to maintain their composure to build on an impressive start to their Europa League campaign when they host Rennes.
The Greek outfit have taken four points from two matches, producing a fine performance to defeat Villarreal before playing out a goalless draw against Maccabi Haifa last time out.
On the other side, Rennes secured a 3-0 win over Maccabi Haifa in their opener before losing to Villarreal.
Both teams have had contrasting results, but Rennes’ form in Ligue 1 has taken a downward turn and they are currently on a three-game losing streak in all competitions.
Panathinaikos have been inconsistent on home soil this season, notably losing to Sporting Braga in the Champions League play-off round.
Ivanovic’s men did record a thumping 5-0 win over Atromitos in their last game at Apostolos Nikolaidis Stadium, so they may have enough to edge out Rennes, who are winless on the road this term.
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Last Updated: 14th March 2024, 07:22 AM
