Juventus hosts Sevilla in Italy on Thursday from 20:00 GMT in an enthralling Europa League semi-final first leg. Both teams have a rich history of success on the continent, and both will fancy their chances of winning the first leg and stepping closer to a place in the final. A comfortable home win is a best-case scenario for Juve, while Sevilla wants to ensure the game remains competitive ahead of next week’s decisive second leg.
Juventus enjoys the home advantage in the first leg, and that importance won’t be lost on the locals. The Old Lady hasn’t been nearly as dominant in the last few seasons as we have come to expect from them. Since the departure of Cristiano Ronaldo to Old Trafford and Manchester United, Juve hasn’t been near their best. But that doesn’t mean they aren’t a great team and good enough to lift this trophy. A home win would reinforce that belief.
This will be the fifth time the Italians and Spanish have met in competitive action, and there’s plenty to get excited about when studying the trends and head-to-head stats. Juve has two wins against the one for Sevilla and a draw making up the spare. The most recent game was played in 2016 when Juve won 3-1 on the road. Something similar here would put them on a path to the final.
Juve has plenty to play for
It has been a difficult couple of seasons for Juventus and its fans as they have been forced to re-adjust expectations. The Serie A is more competitive today than it has been for a long time, with different teams challenging for the title each term. Last season, we watched the two clubs from Milan battle for supremacy, while this year, it has all been about Napoli. The team from Naples hit the front early and hasn’t been toppled since. When the league trophy is awarded, it’ll be fully deserving.
Juventus are now 17 points behind Napoli, meaning a silver medal finish is the best they could hope for in the coming weeks. Not winning the league in Italy is far from ideal for such a major club like Juve, but the chance to add a European trophy to their second-place finish in Italy would give fans reason to be confident. They want to finish this term on a high before putting plans in place to return to the top of Serie A and the Champions League next season.
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Juventus has won their last two league games and are unbeaten in three at that level. They warmed up for this home game against Sevilla with an eye-catching 2-0 away win over a stubborn Atalanta. Winning there is no mean feat, but Juventus deserved their win thanks to goals from Iling-Junior and Vlahovic; the latter scored deep into stoppage time, meaning the final score didn’t represent the game’s competitiveness. Another tough challenge awaits the Old Lady on Thursday evening.
Sevilla can’t be overlooked
The Spanish La Liga has provided more Europa League winners than any other European competition. Sevilla has played an essential role in that achievement and will feel they are the favourites to progress to another final. They’ll want to do that on the back of an impressive away win in Italy, but this is a two-leg tie, and Sevilla’s experience will come to the fore. Will it be enough to see them progress to another European final? That remains to be seen, but fans certainly hope so when traveling to Italy.
Sevilla may be within touching distance of the final of the Europa League, but the run has come at the expense of their league form. The visitors arrive in town sitting in 11th place, with teams like Girona, Athletic Bilbao, and Real Betis ahead of them in the division. It’s become an all-or-nothing scenario for Sevilla, who seem happy to put all their eggs in one basket for the remainder of the season.
Despite their lowly position, Sevilla has won four of their last five league games and prepared for this match with their 12th win. They bounced back from a surprise 2-0 home defeat to Girona in a game they were expected to win. Thankfully for fans. Sevilla responded to beat Espanyol by the odd goal in five. It was a thriller, although they must defend better on Thursday against the star-studded attack of Juventus.
Juventus v Sevilla prediction
What a game we have in store here, and regardless of the result after two legs, armchair fans are in for a classic. Both teams are good enough to progress and win the trophy, but there’s only room for one of these sides in the final. Juventus hold the home advantage and are good enough to use it on Thursday to claim a first-leg win.
Europa League odds
The pre-match betting odds available at 22bet offers a win for Juventus at 1.75, while Sevilla backers will be pleased to see their team trading at 4.82. Fancy the draw at 3.64?
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