Europa League 2014/15: Winners and Losers from Nyon Semi-Final Draw
The draw for the semi-finals of the Europa League took place in Nyon on Friday, as the four remaining sides in the competition discovered which team stands between them and May's Warsaw final.
Holders Sevilla meet Fiorentina in a tie that promises to be an absolute treat for both sets of travelling fans—you will struggle to find two more picturesque cities—while in the other tie, Napoli, fresh off their victory over Wolfsburg, face Ukrainian outfit Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk.
Click on for some of the winners and losers from the draw.
Europa League semi-final draw
Napoli vs. Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk
Sevilla vs. Fiorentina
Ties to be played on May 7 and May 14.
Winners: Napoli
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After being given what many considered to be the thankless task of facing Wolfsburg in the previous round, Rafa Benitez underlined his reputation as one of the best cup managers in the business as Napoli secured an emphatic away win on the way to a comfortable progression into the semi-finals.
After that tough task—you could make a reasonable case that they were the two best teams left in the competition—Napoli doubtless hoped for a slightly easier affair in the semi-finals, and that is just about what they got. There are no truly "easy" ties at this stage of any competition, but Dnipro nevertheless offer a marginally easier task than either of their other potential opponents would have done.
A trip to Ukraine in May is not as daunting as it would be during the winter, while Dnipro would also appear to be short of the class of the other three sides left in the competition. Napoli are a significant step up on their other knockout stage opponents—Olympiakos, Ajax and Club Brugge—while Myron Markevych's side lost home and away to Inter Milan in the group stages.
Judging by the Serie A standings this season, Napoli are a superior outfit to Inter and would figure to be odds-on favourites to negotiate Dnipro and reach the Europa League final.
Rafa Benitez told UEFA's official website:
"When you reach a European semi-final it means you are a top-level side. The victories Dnipro earned against Olympiakos, Ajax and Club Brugge—who were undefeated until yesterday—bear witness to that. Playing the first leg at home doesn't make much difference to us. We saw that in the [round of 16] tie against Dinamo Moscow.
"
Losers: Fiorentina
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Like fellow Italian side Juventus in the Champions League, Fiorentina have been drawn against the competition's reigning champions in the semi-finals of the Europa League.
Sevilla have been to this stage of the competition before and know what is required to progress (indeed, they also know what it takes to defend the title—having done so in 2006), and Fiorentina will have to up their game once again if they are to beat the Spanish side and reach the Warsaw showpiece.
They have every incentive to do so—while the other three teams left in the competition all still have realistic hopes of qualifying for next season's Champions League through their domestic results, Fiorentina's only hope of playing in next season's Champions League would appear to come by winning this competition.
Sevilla will be motivated by that carrot as well—while they still have hopes of finishing third in La Liga,
Having lost four of their last five meetings to Napoli, perhaps the other Italian side was the one team they least wanted to be drawn against. Dnipro was perhaps the tie every other team wanted (much like Juventus in the Champions League draw) as well but, having missed out on that, Fiorentina will now have to focus on the tough task in hand.
As coach Vincenzo Montella told UEFA:
"I'm happy we avoided an all-Italian tie with Napoli, although I hope we will meet them in a few weeks [in the Warsaw final]. Sevilla are the holders and they must therefore be considered favourites, but we have reached this stage of the competition by eliminating several good teams.
Sevilla have lots of experience in the competition, having won it three times in the last ten seasons, but we deserve our place in the semis and will do our best to keep going.
"
Winner: Joaquin (Fiorentina)
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One Fiorentina player who will perhaps be delighted at the draw? Joaquin, the former Real Betis winger who will now get the chance to go up against his old club's archrivals for a place in a European final.
Joaquin, for a large part of his career a star player for Betis, has a long and passionate history against Sevilla, one we imagine he is eager to resume. He is almost certain to get a particularly hostile reception at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan, but that might only inspire him to give even greater efforts for his team.
Mohammed Salah has been Fiorentina's wing wonder since arriving at the club in January, but perhaps the personal element involved will see Joaquin take centre-stage in the semi-finals.
Winners: UEFA
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UEFA was the big winner of the draw, even before it actually got underway. Indeed, it was a winner as soon as Sevilla knocked Zenit St. Petersburg out of the competition, a victory that made Friday's proceedings altogether less fraught.
Because of ongoing political issues in the region, a UEFA bylaw for the current season dictated that Ukrainian and Russian sides could not face one another in European competition. That did not cause any real issues in the Champions League (no sides from either country reached the knockout rounds) but in the Europa League it has been a constant factor, with three teams from the two nations reaching the last-eight of the competition.
If Zenit had reached the semi-finals alongside Dnipro, then the two teams would have had to be separated, a necessary move but one that would have nevertheless artificially distorted what is supposed to be an unseeded draw (at least by this stage of the competition). More pressingly, it would also have left open the possibility of the two sides meeting in the final—a real headache for UEFA.
The game would have taken place in Warsaw—so "neutral" territory—but nevertheless would have turned the whole situation into a political issue, something the footballing body famously loathes.
But, as it turned out, Zenit went out and UEFA's problem was solved for it. It was the big winner.
