Europa League 2019: Updated Odds Ahead of Semi-Final Round
April 18, 2019
Premier League powerhouses Chelsea and Arsenal are the bookmakers' favourites to win this season's UEFA Europa League after each advanced to the semi-finals following wins on Thursday.
Maurizio Sarri's Blues are 5-4 frontrunners to win the competition after they beat Slavia Prague 4-3 at Stamford Bridge to round off a 5-3 aggregate result. They'll face Eintracht Frankfurt in the last four, with the German side priced as 6-1 underdogs with Caesars.
Arsenal edged Napoli 1-0 at the Stadio San Paolo in their second-leg showdown to win 3-0 across 180 minutes. They're second-favourites to London rivals Chelsea at 9-4, just ahead of semi-final opponent Valencia.
The bookmakers appear set on an all-English final looking most likely this season, though Valencia and Eintracht carry a lot of sway into the next stage and will have objections to those claims.
Europa League Winner Odds
Chelsea 5-4
Arsenal 9-4
Valencia 7-2
Eintracht Frankfurt 6-1
Chelsea's Road Back to UCL Looks Bright
After Sarri's first season in English football was beginning to look somewhat bleak, he's now restored some life in the Premier League's top-four race and has his side in a European semi-final.
They stand a good chance of defeating Eintracht in the next phase, although the Blues need to be wary of manager Adi Hutter's side, which he turned from an unlikely bunch of underdogs into a devastatingly capable team.
Beating the odds is what the Eagles have become accustomed to this term. Luka Jovic and Sebastien Haller have impressed with eight and five goals in the competition, respectively, and a 2-0 win at home to Benfica on Thursday showed superb resilience to draw 4-4 on aggregate to squeeze through on away goals.
This Frankfurt team may be venturing into unknown territory, but broadcaster Archie Rhind-Tutt showed what the foundation of a brilliant fanbase can help achieve:
The Bundesliga club could be a good pick for a fairytale success in that case, or perhaps Unai Emery will follow up his three Europa League triumphs at Sevilla with another title, this time in north London.
This could be the last point to catch the Gunners with any decent value at 9-4, and Emery has shown a particularly vicious streak in these phases of the tournament over the years, per Goal:
His Arsenal team have responded well to a mid-season lull that threatened to undo their campaign, and back-to-back wins at Napoli and Watford have helped reverse some torrid away form.
They face a Valencia team that's lost only once in their last 21 matches, however, not to mention carrying an unbeaten streak at home that dates back to November 2018.
Los Che are the other underdog pick for the semi-finals at 7-2, and it could be manager Marcelino Garcia Toral has the keys to unravel compatriot Emery's Europa League plans.