2021 Europa League Final Preview and Betting Tips
2021 Europa League Final Preview
On Wednesday night in Gdansk Man Utd and Villarreal will fight it out for glory in the 2021 Europa League Final. The English side come into the game as the 17/20 favourites and Villarreal can be backed at 4/1. All four previous meetings between these two teams finished 0-0 and if you fancy another draw you can get on at 15/4. Can Unai Emery win this tournament for the fourth time? Or will Ole Gunnar Solskjaer earn his first piece of silverware as Man Utd manager? Find out in our big match preview below.
Villarreal
It has been a pretty decent season domestically for The Yellow Submarine. They ended up in 7th with 58 points and a place in the brand new Europa Conference League next season. Unai Emery will be hoping that they can get the win on Wednesday that would catapult his team straight into the Champions League. Villarreal have already taken care of English opposition earlier in this tournament, knocking out Arsenal 2-1 on aggregate in the semi-final.
Can they repeat the dose against Manchester United? Well, one thing in their favour is their relative lack of injuries. Juan Foyth and winger Samuel Chukwueze are doubts but Emery is hopeful they could feature. However, long term absentee Vincent Iborra will definitely miss out. So, how will Villarreal line up in Gdansk?
Well, if recent matches are anything to go by then Emery will go for a 4-4-2 formation. Most of the team picks itself but Emery will have to pick two from Coquelin, Capoue and Parejo to start in centre-midfield. Villarreal have relied heavily on Gerard Moreno this season. The 29 year old has 6 goals and 3 assists in the Europa League and 23 goals and 7 assists in La Liga. Carlos Bacca’s hat-trick vs Sevilla may well earn him a starting spot alongside Moreno up top and if the underdogs are going to pull off the upset, those two are most likely to provide the goals.
Man Utd
The Red Devils had a fine season in the Premier League. They finished 2nd on 74 points, well behind City but nicely clear of the rest. They improved their points total by 8 in comparison to 2019/20 and there have been plenty of signs of progression under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. However, Utd fans crave success and no doubt social media will be lighting up if Utd fail to get the job done in Gdansk on Wednesday night.
Utd are sweating on the fitness of their key defender and Captain Harry Maguire. He has been a pillar at the back for them this season and he is a major doubt with an ankle injury. He was still on crutches on Sunday so it would be amazing if he was fit enough to play. It could be Bailly and Lindelof at the back for Utd, hardly a partnership that will strike fear into the Villarreal attack.
With Maguire out it is hard to see Utd keeping a clean sheet. They’ll need to rely on their attacking talent to score more than their opponents. Bruno Fernandes, Paul Pogba, Marcus Rashford, Mason Greenwood and that man Edinson Cavani will need to produce the goods if Man Utd are to win this match. They probably deserve to be favourites but it won’t be straightforward. They cannot afford to underestimate their opponents on Wednesday night.
Road To The 2021 Europa League Final
|
Villarreal |
Man Utd |
|
Salzburg 4-1 |
Real Sociedad 4-0 |
|
Dynamo Kiev 4-0 |
AC Milan 2-1 |
|
Dinamo Zagreb 3-1 |
Granada 4-0 |
|
Arsenal 2-1 |
Roma 8-5 |
Overall, Villarreal have probably had an easier route to this final. They topped their Group before they beat Salzburg, Dynamo Kiev and Dinamo Zagreb in the first three knockout rounds. Their toughest task came when eliminating Arsenal in the semis. Man Utd were eliminated from the Champions League after finishing 3rd in their Group. In the Europa, they have navigated through ties with Real Sociedad, AC Milan, Granada and Roma.
2021 Europa League Final Betting Tips
If you look at the quality and depth in these two squads, there should only be one winner. However, finals don’t always work out that way. Anything can happen on the night and if Maguire is missing, Utd will probably need to score more than once if they are going to win this match.
Villarreal will be well prepared for this test by a manager with plenty of previous experience in this situation. Emery has won 3 of the 4 Europa League finals he has competed in. He will be hoping to come up with a game plan to stifle Man Utd’s attack and take advantage of any weaknesses they may have at the back.
You would have to worry for Man Utd minus Maguire as Bailly has mistakes in him. He is a touch mad at the best of times but he will be extra pumped up against his former team and I can see him flying into unnecessary challenges early on. Odds of 5/2 about him to be shown a card look too tempting to turn down.
Another interesting bet is Gerard Moreno in the anytime goalscorer market. He has been in superb form this year and I was surprised to see him priced up at as big as 23/10. He has scored three goals in his last four games and 31 in all competitions this season. Given Utd’s defensive frailties, he looks well worth a bet at the current prices.
