Thursday 01/05/2014, 20:00, Europa League, Semifinals, Valencia vs Sevilla
Valencia vs Sevilla Betting Preview
Valencia will try to salvage its season tonight by winning the second leg against Sevilla and setting the stage for a Europa League final. It won't be easy to offset a two-goal handicap, but the Bats achieved something very similar a few weeks ago. After losing the first leg against Basel, they scored three unanswered goals to push the game into overtime and eventually won. Sevilla is a far better opponent, but a victory for the hosts remains the most likely result and the odds are juicy.
Valencia vs Sevilla Betting Odds
At Bet365
Valencia 2.20, Draw 3.60, Sevilla 3.40
Valencia vs Sevilla Betting Tips
There wasn't any reason for Valencia to give everything on the pitch over the weekend, as there is no rivalry with Atletico Madrid, hence no reason to stop them in their tracks. With their own campaign to achieve a Europa League berth derailed many months before, Valencia was simply doing its best against the leading team in Primera Division.
Their efforts were not enough though, since the visitors got away with a narrow margin victory, but they can do much better tonight. Bernat, Senderos, Alves and Ruiz were all mending injuries over the weekend and none of them is expected to play tonight either, but the offense is largely unaffected.
Jonas and Piatti will play offense tonight after being rested on Sunday and together they have scored 14 goals this season. In the great scheme of things, this achievement is insignificant and their performance is dwarfed by the one of Diego Costa and David Villa. This matters less though, because they will be facing a team that has its own defensive issues.
Sevilla lost to Bilbao and kissed a Champions League berth goodbye, but they didn't lose more players to injuries, so it all evens out. Gameiro and Bacca have one mission for tonight, as they need to score just once to insure safe passage to the next stage. The problem is that the backline is relatively weak and this becomes obvious when Sevilla concedes the initiative
Key Facts
- Valencia dominated the head to head games and won 13 games at home while drawing once and losing 6
Valencia vs Sevilla Betting Prediction
The hosts are fully aware of the importance of this match and they will play with a sense of urgency, knowing they need to score early. This strategy could expose them to counterattacks and ultimately qualification might be lost, but punters need not concern themselves with such issues. By betting on Valencia to win in regulation time, we get odds of 2.20 at Bet365 which are better than industry standard.
Bet: Valencia @ 2.20 with Bet365
