The UEFA Europa League group phase continues this Thursday, so take a look at our tips and predictions for the Group L matches. With plenty of picks and markets to choose from, don’t waste your time and enter the action at Get More Sports.
Zenit Petersburg (Rus) vs. Rosenborg (Nor)
Three-Way: Zenit Petersburg -263; X: +475 Draw; 2: Rosenborg +1150
Spread -1.5: Zenit Petersburg -106; Rosenborg +104
Total +3: Over -103; Under -104
ZENIT PETERSBURG
The Anti-aircraft Gunners are big favorites to win this game and secure third victory in a row, which will practically guarantee them a place in the next phase of the Europa League. Zenit already defeated Vardar and Real Sociedad, scoring even eight goals in the process and are in a strong position to finish at the top of the group. The former UEFA Cup champions are not in the best form in the domestic Premier League as they are without a victory in the past couple of matches, while the recent home loss to Arsenal Tula was rather unexpected and surprising.
Zenit played 20 games so far in the 2017/18, recording 12 wins, four draws, and four losses, with a goal difference of 37:12, which is 2.9 goals per contest on average. When it comes to home matches at Krestovsky Stadium, Zenit allowed only five goals in nine outings, no more than a goal per game, so it’s going to be extremely hard for the visitors to score a couple that would give them a solid chance to win in this Europa League clash.
The Russian striker AleksandrKokorin has been phenomenal this year as he bagged 15 goals in 19 appearances, but other players are far away on the goal-scoring chart. DalerKuzyaev, Leandro Paredes, DomenicoCriscito, and Sebastian Driussi contributed with three goals each, while Dmitri Poloz with five, and Christian Noboa and Driussi with four assists each are at the top of the assist-chart. Head coach Roberto Mancini doesn’t have any new injury-related problems as Viktor Faizulin remains the only sidelined player due to a knee injury.
ROSENBORG
The Norwegian champions still have hopes of qualifying for the next phase of the Europa League, but will need to avoid a defeat here because Real Sociedad will likely beat Vardar in Macedonia. Rosenborg is in a good runoff five matches without a loss and is ten points clear at the top of the Eliteserien with only five games to be played. The heavy, 0-4 defeat to Sociedad was a bitter pill for Rosenborg fans as that was the only time they failed to find the net in the last ten fixtures.
Rosenborg played 38 games in this campaign s far, recording 24 wins, eight draws, and six defeats, with a goal difference of 79:33, which is 2.95 goals per contest on average. The Troll Children lost only one away match in the last ten and didn’t score just twice – in Sociedad and Glasgow against Celtic. Zenit is not in a perfect for at the moment, so the Norwegians could have a few opportunities to score, so I am not excluding that.
The Danish striker and the former Arsenal player Nicklas Bendtner and the Icelandic forward Matthías Vilhjálmsson are the team’s leading scorers with 15 goals to their respective names. The Serbian right-winger Milan Jevtovic added 12 goals, while Pal André Helland has eight goals thus far. The Danish midfielder Mike Jensen is the most creative individual with 13 assists, while Pal André Helland with ten and Milan Jevtovic with seven are right behind Jensen on the assist-chart. The left-winger Yann-Erik de Lanlay is out with a meniscus injury, and Magnus Stamneströ is sidelined with a knee injury, but the absence of influential Matthías Vilhjálmsson will certainly be felt on the pitch.
Zenit Petersburg (Rus) vs. Rosenborg (Nor) – Match Prediction
Rosenborg will probably defend the domestic title in the next couple of games, and they can concentrate on the Europa League, so I believe they can be worthy opponents to the Russians on Thursday. I think we will watch an entertaining game with at least three or four goals.
MY PICK: Over 3 goals (-103)
Vardar (Mac) vs. Real Sociedad (Spa)
Three-Way: Vardar +1400; X: +550 Draw; 2: Real Sociedad -294
Spread +1.5: Vardar +110; Real Sociedad -114
Total +2.5: Over -125; Under +118
VARDAR
The Macedonian champions made a massive surprise by eliminating the Turkish side Fenerbahce to get into the group stage of the Europa League, but it seems that they are not strong enough to qualify for the knockout phase. Vardar lost to Zenit and then Rosenborg, conceding even eight goals in the process, and nobody expects them to win on Thursday night when they welcome Real Sociedad. The defeats to Zenit and Rosenborg are the only two in the last 12 matches, and Vardar won the previous couple in the domestic league, where they are currently in the 2nd place with six points behind Shkendija, but have two games in hands.
Vardar have played 17 games so far in this season, recording 11 victories, two draws, and four losses, with a goal difference of 31:23, which is 3.15 goals per contest on average. When it comes to home matches at Philip II Arena, Vardar won all but one game, the 0-5 against Zenit, and it was the only one where they failed to score in front of their own fans. Sociedad is not as good as the Russians, and I believe the hosts can score on this one.
The Brazilian midfielder Juan Felipe and the Armenian right-winger TigranBarseghyan are currently the team’s top scorers with six goals each, while Boban Nikolov is behind them with three goals to his name. The left-winger DejanBlazevski is the best assist-maker with five dishes, while Tigran contributed three assists thus far. Head coach ČedomirJanevski is delighted to have all of his players healthy and available for this tilt, so he will undoubtedly field the strongest possible lineup.
REAL SOCIEDAD
The Whites and Blues snapped the poor run of five matches without a victory with a 2:0 win at Alaves, and now they are in the 7th position in La Liga with nine points behind the leaders Barcelona. Real Sociedad and Rosenborg are tied with three points, but the Spaniards have a lot easier job in Macedonia, while Rosenborg is visiting Russia and Zenit Petersburg so Sociedad would make the step towards the knockout stage of the Europa League with a potential win in Skopje.
Real Sociedad played ten games so far in the 2017/18 campaign, recording five wins, a draw, and four losses, with a goal difference of 24:20, which is 4.4 goals per contest on average. That is a quite astonishing number, so we can expect to see plenty of goals on Thursday night, considering that Sociedad are scoring two goals per match away from home.
Interestingly, the centre-back Diego Llorente is the team’s leading scorer with five goals to his name; Mikel Oyarzabal has four, while Willian Jose and Juanmi contributed with a pair of goals thus far. The captain Xabi Prieto is the most creative individual with five assists, Álvaro Odriozola has two, while ASierIllarramendi, Sergio Canales, and Kevin Rodrigues recorded a couple of dishes. Head coach EusebioSacristán will be without the striker Imanol Agirretxe who is out with a hamstring injury; David Zurutuza has the same issue, while the defenders Inigo Martinez and Carlos Martinez are sidelined due to muscle injury and cruciate ligament rupture, respectively.
Vardar (Mac) vs. Real Sociedad (Spa) – Match Prediction
Sociedad are a joy to watch as their games usually produce a bunch of goals, and I think it will not be any different in Skopje, so I opted for goals.
MY PICK: Over 2.5 goals (-125)
