When UEFA made the decision to hold the latter stages of the Europa League in Germany, the general consensus was that one-off matches - rather than ties spread across two legs - would lead to more surprise results. However, none of the bookmakers favourites succumbed at the quarter-final stage, conceding just two goals in the process. Nevertheless, with Manchester United, Sevilla, Inter Milan and Shakhtar Donetsk all bringing contrasting qualities to the table, each of the four clubs remaining in the competition will feel that they have every chance of lifting the trophy on August 21.
The majority of football tipsters will likely be predicting a final between Manchester United and Inter Milan, a showdown which would throw up a number of reunions. A best-case scenario is betting odds of around 6/4 being available for that eventuality, and punters will have to consider whether that price is big enough to warrant a bet of any size.
Although many of the casuals will expect United to battle their way past Sevilla on Sunday, the Spanish outfit's unbeaten run has now been extended to 19 matches in all competitions. While Wolverhampton Wanderers will argue that they could have got the better of them earlier this week, an early missed penalty only tells a small part of the story with Los Nervionenses dominating the final three quarters of the contest in Duisburg. On the flip side, United were only left requiring a spot kick to see off Copenhagen due to multiple shots which struck the inside of the post and the heroics of Karl-Johan Johnsson in the Danish's side goal. With Sevilla only priced at 11/10, there are question marks over whether that is attractive enough to back the upset.
Switching attention to the clash with Inter and Shakhtar, and there is not a whole lot of support for Shakhtar. While there is an obvious difference in high-profile players, the Ukrainian outfit feel well over-priced in and around the 2/1 bracket to qualify for the final. Dismantling Wolfsburg and Basel is arguably less impressive than Inter battling to victories over Roma and Bayer Leverkusen, but Luis Castro's fluid-playing team are definitely a live outsider to win Monday's fixture. Other bets which should take your fancy include the 4/6 on offer for both teams to score in 90 minutes, as well as Shakhtar midfielder and penalty-taker Alan Patrick to chip in with a goal in normal time at around 5/1.
With regards to the winner of the competition, Inter are the favourites at 13/8, arguably too short given the level of opposition. For us, United's superior attacking threat makes Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's side worthwhile at 2/1, although there is value in waiting to see if they reach the final safe in the knowledge that they would be marginal underdogs in a final against the Italian side.
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