Despite a lack of British involvement in the quarter-finals of the Europa League, there remains some tasty-looking encounters between some top European sides on Thursday.
Liverpool, Man City and Rangers were all dumped out of the often-derided competition in the last round to underline the quality of sides left in the tournament and also highlights the fact it still remains one of the toughest trophies to win.
Big-hitters from Portugal (Porto, Braga and Benfica), Spain (Villarreal), Holland (FC Twente and PSV), Russian giants Spartak Moscow and experienced Ukrainians Dynamo Kiev make up the last eight and all four first-leg ties look difficult to call.
Porto v Spartak Moscow
The third Portuguese club still in the competition, Porto, face a tricky home tie against Spartak on Thursday but are favourites at 2/5 to come out on top in the first leg, with the Russian side traditionally a much more formidable outfit back in Moscow than they are on their travels.
However, an impressive 1-0 win at Ajax in the last round will give them hope of another away win here and the fact they have started their domestic campaign poorly (one win, two defeats) suggests they are concentrating on Europe for now. A bold prediction it may be, but Spartak can win at 15/2 on Thursday.
Benfica v PSV Eindhoven
Expect the home side to edge out PSV here, as they look for a first-leg lead to take to the Netherlands. Benfica are trailing arch-rivals Porto by a huge 16 points at the top of the Primeira Liga at the minute, so the Europa League remains their only realistic chance of success this season.
A 2-1 home defeat against Porto last time out has only increased the pressure on coach Jorge Jesus but, with talent like Oscar Cardozo and Javier Saviola to call upon up front and a vociferous home crowd backing his side, a narrow win should be achieved. Go for a 1-0 win to Benfica with totesport at 11/2.
Dynamo Kiev v Braga
These two upset the odds and the chance of an English winner with impressive victories over Liverpool and Manchester City in the last round, so whoever progresses out of the tie should not be underestimated.
Kiev appear to have the more in-depth quality in their squad, but Braga can come away from Ukraine with a draw (11/4) as they look to continue what has been an extremely enjoyable European adventure for them this season.
Villarreal v FC Twente
Villarreal were only narrowly beaten 1-0 by Barcelona on Saturday and overcame Bayer Leverkusen in the last round, but are unlikely to have it all their own way against Dutch league leaders Twente at El Madrigal. Guisseppe Rossi remains the ‘Yellow Submarines’ star man and they will be relying on him for goals, but this again looks a tight contest.
Twente nearly threw away a 3-0 first-leg lead in the last round, when they went down 2-0 at Zenit St Petersburg, so expect them to have learned from that experience as they aim to keep it tight in Spain. 1-1 here at 11/2 looks an interesting option.
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