Both sides have suffered domestic defeats last weekend so they will be looking to bounce back when they clash in the UEFA Europa League on Thursday. Porto lost 2-1 to Nacional in the Primeira Liga but head coach Luis Castro rested a few key players for the Europa League clash. Winger Silvestre Varela and French defender Eliaquim Mangala, both regular first team players, were left out of the squad completely against Nacional. Luis Castro replaced Paulo Fonseca as head coach at the start of March.
Sevilla lost 1-0 at Celta Vigo last weekend and coach Unai Emery can't blame that result on resting key players. However, Sevilla won eight of their last ten matches in all competitions. Attacking midfielder Ivan Rakitic is the key man for the Spanish side, having scored 16 goals in all competitions this season along with 18 assists. He had a key contribution in Sevilla's 2-1 win over Real Madrid two weeks ago. Porto will be relying on Colombian striker Jackson Martinez who has bagged 21 goals this season.
Sevilla reached the quarter-finals of the Europa League with a shootout victory over local rivals Real Betis after their two-legged round-of-16 tie ended 2-2 on aggregate. Porto had a tougher opponent but prevailed, they knocked out Napoli 3-2 on aggregate after a 2-2 draw in Italy. Porto are third in the domestic table, 15 points behind leaders Benfica, so they most likely won't be able to defend their title. Sevilla are doing well in Spain, they are currently in fifth place and are fighting to qualify once again for the Europa League next season.
Here are the odds for Thursday's match at Bet365:
FC Porto win - 10/11
Draw - 13/5
Sevilla win - 7/2
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Comments (1)
pasty
04/03/14, 09:04:00 AM
This game is pretty balanced. I hope Porto will qualify, they do look better than Sevilla who managed a nice come-back last time with Betis (after they lost in the...
This game is pretty balanced. I hope Porto will qualify, they do look better than Sevilla who managed a nice come-back last time with Betis (after they lost in the first leg, at home) that guaranteed their place in this round of the competition. With Bacca (Sevilla) and Martinez (Porto) in a great shape and hungry for goals, we might see a great and attractive game.
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