UEFA - Europa League - Round of 32

The second tier European tournament opens up with a plethora of mouth watering match ups, with Champions League taking the majority of the focus as the primary competition in Europe, the Europa League should offer up just as much suspense with the amount of big name clubs from top to bottom in this seasons draw.

Teams will be highly motivated to come out victorious with the opportunity of an automatic bid into next seasons version of the Champions League, the dream of playing on the biggest stage in club football starts on Thursday night.

Enjoy the first leg in the Round of 32, with the quality of competition compiled within the top flight pool, the certainty for high drama and memorable events are sure to be on the horizon.

20534 Marseille - 20535 Sporting Braga

Orange Vélodrome , Marseille, France

2-15-2018 - 1:00 pm ET

The opening set of matches offer up a laundry list of whose-who in the world of football, with a bulk of Investment options to choose from there are certain games that stick out more than others.

 The spotlighted match offers up a tasty affair, as Portuguese representatives Sporting Braga travel to France for a showdown with a red hot Marseille Club, whom have had a resurrection of play during this campaign after a mediocre 2016-2017 season.

Sporting Braga open up the first leg as one of two Portuguese representatives in the field of 32, the "Archbishops" have been in fine form heading into Thursdays fixture having won 5 of their last 7 matches domestically, while also sitting 4th in Portugal's top flight flight table, the European regulars consistently offer up a opportunity to advance to the finals, with a proven pedigree and top notch players, the Primeira side will be a tough out for their French opponent.

S.C. Braga topped Group C with 10 points and a overall record of 3-1-2, the visitors feel confident they can grab a positive result during their travels at the  magnificent Vélodrome, knowing they will have the second leg played on their own pitch in a fortnight.

"Abel" Ferreira leads his squad to the south of France with intentions of shocking the Ligue 1 giants, after taking over in a caretaker role last season, the Portuguese head man was tasked with the responsibility of being the main voice at the legendary club for the new campaign.

Ferreira will have concerns as the Minho Warriors will start the first leg with a multitude of missing performers from their regular squad, Raúl Silva, Marafona, Ricardo Ferreira and Fransergio will all be absent during Thursdays affair, leaving opportunities for Dyego Sousa and Wilson Eduardo to compete for  starting spots in the first eleven.

Paulinho is set to feature at the top of Braga's 4-4-2 formation, the Portuguese forward has yet to get on the score-sheet in Europa League play after 5 appearances in the Group Stages, but with 7 Goals and 2 Assists in all other competitions, the young striker should be hungry to make his mark on the European stage.

Braga are a club who enjoy to have much of the possession in each match they enter, much of their success comes down the wings as the visitors will create multiple shots on goal with an average almost 13 a game, like most clubs at this stage in the tournament they are above average in set piece situations, expect to see a well rounded professional side who are used to the high level of competition within the European platform.

Sporting Braga were successful in finding the back of the net in each one of their away fixtures during Group play, while scoring an average of 1.33 Goals per match in their first 3 Europa League road games.

The Braga defense unfortunately has been unable too keep clean sheets away from home, conceding an average of 1.33 Goals per match in their first 3 Europa League road games.

Marseille open up the match day in sizzling form, the French outfit have scored in double figures in their last 8 matches in all competitions, with a total of 28 goals Les Olympiens have averaged 3.5 Goals per game during that outstanding span of play, Thursdays fixture should set up for that trend to stay in tact.

The Olympians were unable to top Group I, thus making their trip to the Round of 16 a more challenging task, after taking the 2nd spot in the table with 8 points and a overall record of 2-2-2, the hosts have since formed a more cohesive unit on the pitch, making them a true threat to progress to the finals in Lyon.

Rudi Garcia has brought stability back to the once underachieving club after several years of mediocre play, the French man returned to his native land after a tenure with Italian giants Roma to steer the faltering squad back onto the European stage, now Garcia is determined to lead his multi-talented team past their Portuguese opposition.

The Marseille head man has constructed a highly versatile squad full of athletic players who fit his 4-2-3-1 formation to perfection, the home side regularly field a track team who love to get out and run at their defenders with flawless counter attacking football, while also using intelligent through balls to free up their wingers to make deadly runs at trembling back-lines.

The French outfit will also take advantage of their skillful players who consistently create their own shots on goal,  "Les Phocéens" get off an average of 17 shots during a 90 minute span, their relentless nature gives them a chance to score multiple goals each time they step onto the pitch.

Dimitri Payet and Florian Thauvin have established themselves as world class Midfielders on the worlds stage, the attacking duo are truly dual threats having scored a total of 20 combined Goals and provided 16 combined Assists in all competitions, they have emerged as one of the more lethal combinations during the new campaign.

Valère Germain, Clinton N'Jie and Kostas Mitroglou will battle it out for the number 9 role in Marseille's potent attack, with so much depth at the striker position, the opportunity for minutes is valuable which brings out the best in each member of the rotation, with 25 combined Goals scored in all competitions, we should see those totals expanded by the end of the match to start the round of play in the Europa league.

Marseille truly struggled to get their offense on track in the begin the season, only scoring an average of 1 Goal per match in their first 3 Europa League home games.

The Marseille defense took much of the praise in getting the French side to the next round in play, their detailed organization on the back-end, lead to only 0.33 Goals conceded during their first 3 Europa league home games.

Prediction:

The home side know they must grab a lead headed back to Portugal where their guests are very strong on their own pitch, fortunately Braga have been unable to keep  a clean sheet in their last 22 European Fixtures, making for the possibility of grabbing goals at a higher percentage than normal.

Expect Marseille to challenge their visitors down the wings, Braga have been challenged to defend against clubs with skilled wing play, which the French outfit possess an abundance of, we should see goals generated through this method of attack.

Braga on the other hand must look to exploit Marseilles weakness to guard against long range shots, the Archbishops are adept at creating space to get their shots off from outside the box, their should also be a concerted effort to aggressively attack and create set piece opportunities, the French hosts have displayed a weakness to defend in those spots as well, based on each sides style of play you would expect Braga to have done their research and look to exploit these known deficiencies.

That all being said, I still expect a powerful performance from the home side, with multiple key members missing from Braga starting rotation, we should see the French outfit grabbing multiple goals in route to a lead headed back to the Estádio Municipal de Braga for the second leg of this high profile match up.

Tips:

Both Teams To Score - "YES" -110 / 1.91

Over 1  -135 / 1.74 - Total 1st Half Goal

Marseille  +100 / 2.0 - 1st Half Winner

Marseille  -1 -125 / 1.8  - Full Game Spread

Over  2.75  -110 / 1.91  -  Total Full Game Goals

Marseille - Team Total Over  1.75  -120 / 1.83 - Goals

*Bonus Tips*

20507 Borussia Dortmund - 20508 Atalanta

 2-15-2018 - 1:00 pm ET

The Italians have had a excellent showing during their first stint back in European competition after almost a 30 year absence, they have proved to be a organized side on the defensive end during their travels, while picking up timely goals during their current quest for the Europa title.

Dortmund have been hit with the injury bug, they will field a mismatch starting eleven on Thursday, it will be interesting to see how the new look German outfit performs against this confident Italian squad.

Over  1 -135 / 1.74 - Total 1st Half Goal

Both Teams To Score  - "YES"  -140 / 1.71

Dortmund - Team Total Over 1.5  -130 / 1.77 - Goals

Both Teams To Score and Over 2.5 Goals  +110 / 2.1

20513 Ostersunds - 20514 Arsenal

2-15-2018 - 1:00 pm ET

The new look Gunners travel to Sweden against a scrappy Ostersunds side, I see the North Londoners having to much firepower over the course of 90 minutes in this match up.

Both Teams To Score -"YES" -105 / 1.95

Over  1  -125 / 1.8 - Total 1st Half Goal

Arsenal  -1  -125 / 1.8 - Full Game Spread

Arsenal - Team Total Over  1.75  -120 / 1.83 - Goals

Over  2.75 Goals  -105 / 1.95 - Total Full Game Goals

20516 Real Sociedad - 20517 Red Bull Salzburg

2-15-2018 - 1:00 pm ET

Real Sociedad are in for a real dog fight when the dynamic Austrian side travel to the Basque country for this first legged event, the Red Bulls stand a great chance of leaving with all 3 points as they have continued to impress during the Group Stages of the Europa League.

Both Teams To Score - "YES"  -135 / 1.74

Red Bull Salzburg  +0.5  +100 / 2.0 - Full Game Spread

20531 Lyon - 20532 Villarreal

2-15-208 - 3:05 pm ET

The Yellow Submarine have been in tremendous form this season, but a visit to France to match up with a equally explosive Lyon side looks to be a disadvantage in the first leg of this event, I will back the French outfit to take all 3 points back to Spain in a fortnight.

Lyon  -0.25  +110 / 2.1  - 1st Half Spread

Lyon  -110 / 1.91  -  Full Game Winner

Lyon - Team Total  Over 1.5  -115 / 1.87 - Goals

Both Teams To Score and Over 2.5 Goals  +120 / 2.2

20537 Napoli - 20538 RB Leipzig

2-15-2018 - 3:05 pm ET

I question the commitment Napoli have for this particular tournament, the Southern Italian side currently hold the lead in Serie A, and seem to have their full focus on winning their first title since 1990, add in the fact star striker Dries Mertens will be absent due to suspension, we could see a less potent attack from the normally dangerous side.

RB Leipzig look to be more interested in staying in the tournament, having made their first trip to Europe this season, they are content on using this platform to lure potential summer signings to the club, as they look to repeat their European status for many years to come.

Both Teams To Score  - "YES"  -140 / 1.71

RB Leipzig  +0.25  -135 / 1.74 - 1st Half Spread

RB Leipzig  +0.5  -110 / 1.91 - Full Game Spread

Best Of Luck To All