On Thursday evening, Eintracht Frankfurt and Arsenal go head-to-head at the Commerzbank-Arena in Group F. The pair look like the most likely to make it to the knockout stages.
Eintracht Frankfurt (Odds of 11/5 for victory)
The home side have endured an inconsistent start to their German top-flight campaign after a superb campaign last season. Adi Hutter’s side made it to the semi-finals of the Europa League last season, only to suffer a penalty defeat at Chelsea.
The summer loss of Sebastian Haller and Luka Jovic, paired with the late exit of Ante Rebic to AC Milan have no doubt taken their toll on Frankfurt’s. However, the German club have brought in experienced Dutch striker Bas Bost and highly-rated Portuguese striker Andre Silva. Therefore, they are not short of attacking talent.
Despite making the last four of this competition last season, Frankfurt still had to play through three qualifying rounds to make it to the group stages, seeing off Flora, Vaduz and last time out Strasbourg.
The home sides recent record in the Europa League is understandably good, as they have lost just once in their last ten matches in the competition over 90 minutes. Arsenal present a very real threat to that record.
Key player
One player who has made a bright start to the new Bundesliga campaign for Frankfurt is Portuguese forward Gonzalo Paciencia. The 25-year-old has scored three times in four appearances in the German top-flight this season.
Arsenal (Odds of 5/4 for victory)
The Gunners head into this potentially crucial clash as favourites for victory. However, Unai Emery’s side has been inconsistent of late in the Premier League. In fact, the team from north London have now failed to win in their last three outings, although two of those games were against Liverpool and arch-rivals Tottenham.
The visitors will be looking to go one better than last season, when they made the final only to suffer a 4-1 defeat against Chelsea. The defeat ended a five-game winning run for the Gunners in this competition. They have also scored at least two goals in four of their last six matches in the Europa League.
Emery’s side have been slightly a slightly inconsistent recent away record in this competition. They have won their last two away matches, but lost their previous two games on their travels.
Gunners boss Unai Emery had a habit of rotating his squad in the Europa League last season. However, with this looking like the visitor’s toughest game of the group, the Spaniard may name a strong starting line-up.
Key player
If Emery names a strong team as expected, then Gabon striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is likely to be Arsenal biggest goal threat. The former Dortmund striker has scored five times in as many games in the Premier League this season.
[reviewTableLarge ids=”620,639,642″ title=”Best betting sites to place bet on this game are:”]Prediction
Both teams will see Thursday’s opponents as main rivals for qualification. Arsenal at their strongest should have to much for Frankfurt in this clash. Therefore, we are backing an away win at 5/4, but it will not be an easy game for the Gunners. Backing the over 2.5 goals at odds of 4/6 doesn’t look an awful bet considering both teams are potent in attack.
Verdict: Back the away win at 5/4 and/or over 2.5 goals at odds 4/6 (All odds from Bet 365).
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Who will come out on top between Eintracht Frankfurt and Arsenal?
