Spanish outfit Villarreal are looking to put a spanner in the works of a potential all-Portuguese Europa League final in Dublin next month ahead of their semi-final first leg with Porto as they aim to reach a first major European final at the third attempt (6/5 Villarreal To Qualify).
The Yellow Submarine are the odd ones out ahead of Thursday’s last-four encounters as they travel to Portugal to face an in-form Porto side at the same time Portuguese outfits Benfica and Braga do battle in their first-leg showdown.
Porto v Villarreal
Villarreal are desperate to end their ‘nearly’ tag after losing 1-0 on aggregate to La Liga rivals Valencia in the semi-finals of the 2004 UEFA Cup before Arsenal defeated them by the same score over two legs in the 2006 Champions League semis.
They will go into battle boosted by their 8-2 aggregate win against Dutch outfit of Twente Enschede in the quarter-finals.
However, Villarreal midfielder Bruno Soriano is under no illusions about the size of the task facing his side, claiming that Porto are clear favourites to progress (8/13 To Qualify).
And while he is happy with Villarreal’s attacking qualities, Soriano is looking for the backline to try and keep it tight so they have a chance on home soil in the second leg (Villarreal 7/2 To Keep A Clean Sheet).
He said: “We have to improve our defence to not concede as many goals. If we can do that, we will have taken a big step forward.”
Villarreal will fancy their chances of securing away goals with Italian forward Giuseppe Rossi (7/1 First Goalscorer) on 10 goals in the Europa League already this season, while Porto’s poor record of 11 wins in 34 attempts against Spanish opposition in Europe means the omens are against the Portuguese.
However, while Soriano’s claim that Porto are favourites could be a possible attempt at mind games, it is not without foundation.
Andre Villas-Boas’ team have enjoyed a storming season in which they have already wrapped up the Portuguese title in style, having won 25 and drawn two of their 27 matches so far, leaving them 19 points clear of Benfica.
Their form in the Europa League is just as prolific as they have secured 12 wins in 14 outings, including all seven away from home which is a warning to Villarreal ahead of the second leg.
They also have plenty of goals, having thrashed Spartak Moscow 10-3 on aggregate in their quarter-final clash, while they boast the competition’s top scorer with Colombian striker Radamel Falcao (5/1 Two or More Match Goalscorer) leading the way with 11.
It is a game that will no doubt contain plenty of goals (11/5 Four Or More Total Goals) and, despite the desperation of Villarreal, Porto should be able to take some kind of lead to El Madrigal for the second leg.
First-leg prediction: Porto To Win 90 Minutes @ 4/6
Value Bet: Porto To Win 3-1 Correct Score @ 11/1
Benfica v Braga
The all-Portuguese affair in the second semi-final on Thursday sees two sides looking to end otherwise disappointing campaigns on a high after dropping into the Europa League (Benfica 5/2, Braga 7/1 – Outright) from the Champions League and living in the shadow of Porto in domestic competitions.
Benfica, in particular, are smarting from the fact Porto wrapped up the Portuguese title courtesy of a 3-1 win against them in Lisbon, before then coming back from a two-goal first-leg deficit in the domestic Cup to dump them out on away goals last week.
They will have the scent of revenge in their nostrils if they can line up a final showdown with Porto next month and that should inspire them to get past Braga in the semi-finals (Benfica 2/5 To Qualify).
Braga will not be pushovers as they have already picked up some notable scalps in European competition this season, dumping Celtic out of the Champions League last July and defeating Arsenal in the group stages.
They saw off Liverpool 1-0 on aggregate in the Europa League round-of-16 before booking their semi-final place on away goals after a 1-1 aggregate draw with Dynamo Kiev.
While scoring goals is not Braga’s forte of late, they clearly know how to grind out a required result (4/1 To Keep A Clean Sheet) and will not roll over for their more illustrious Portuguese rivals.
First-leg prediction: Benfica To Win To Nil @ 13/10
Value Bet: Benfica To Win 1-0 Correct Score @ 11/2
Want £200 Free? Click here to visit Bet365 and claim your free money.