The second highest competition on the old continent will kick off its direct qualifiers this Thursday, where eight clubs will reach the round of 16 to face the group leaders in March.
The new format of the Europa League includes an intermediate round, where the second in their group stage and the third in the Champions League fight to meet in the next round against the leaders, exempt at this stage of the tournament. We see eleven clubs that seem to have more options than the others in a competition that always surprises.
Die Roten Bullen They didn’t have the best possible dynamic with Jesse Marsch, but Domenico Tedesco’s landing in December has changed the course (6V-1D-2D in 9 games). They were third in groups in the Champions League and are fourth in the Bundesliga at the moment. The faces will be seen in the intermediate round with Real Sociedad.
Peter Bosz’s men will not participate in the intermediate round thanks to their great group stage, leading Group A without defeats (five wins and one draw). In Ligue 1 they are not having such a good performance, occupying seventh place, five points behind the Champions League places.
The hammers they had a great group stage, with four wins, a draw and a loss in the H. They entered as leaders, so they will not participate in the intermediate round. They are having a great season in the Premier League, where they are in fourth place. The competition will be fierce, so the Europa League can be a way to access the top continental competition if they don’t make it via the league.
Die Werskelf led Group G with four wins, a draw and a loss, including a resounding victory (4-0) against a direct rival like Real Betis. It occupies third place in the Bundesliga with a relatively comfortable margin (seven points) to remain in the Champions League access quota.
The Italians finished in second place in Group E, with two wins, three draws and one loss, so they will be in the intermediate round to seek a place in the round of 16. In Serie A they are sixth, four units behind the Champions League positions. His first obstacle in the Europa League will be FC Porto.
The txuri-urdin they were second in Group B with two wins, three draws and one loss, so they will be present in an intermediate round where they will face RB Leipzig. They occupy sixth place in LaLiga, one unit away from the last Champions League spot.
The Verdiblancos were second in Group G after three wins, one draw and two losses, one of them especially painful (4-0) against Bayer 04 Leverkusen. In LaLiga, he is having a great season that allows him to occupy third place and fight to be in the next Champions League. They will face Zenit Saint Petersburg in the intermediate round.
The partenopei They have left behind a bad dynamic, which led them to not being able to lead Group C against Spartak Moscow and to lose first place in Series A, which now has two units. They will have a great duel in the intermediate round against FC Barcelona.
Those of the Bundesliga have raised their spirits in the domestic competition by reducing the difference with respect to the leadership to six points. It remains to be seen how long Erling Haaland has been out, a key man to try to squeeze Bayern München and to seek the achievement of the Europa League.
The Barça team has shown a clear improvement since Xavi Hernández landed, although the coach was unable to reverse the results of his predecessor and finished third in the group in the Champions League. In LaLiga it is tied on points with the last quota that gives access to it, but for the moment it would stay out. They will have a great tie against SSC Napoli.
The Seville side had a disappointing run through the Champions League group stage and finished in third place behind Lille OSC. They reach a Europa League that has been their fetish competition for more than a decade. He also does it with the sweet team and four points away from leading LaLiga. He starts as a favorite in the intermediate round against Dinamo Zagreb.
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