UEFA Europa League Round of 32 Preview & Odds

Celtic get Valencia, but there are easy draws for Arsenal and Chelsea

Chelsea
Chelsea © GEPA pictures

Europa League Round of 32 Draw Preview

There are three British teams left in the UEFA Europa League this season. The only ones not to have made it past the group stage were Scottish side Rangers. Their Glaswegian counterparts Celtic have landed themselves a draw against Spanish side Valencia, while Arsenal and Chelsea Have both loaded easy-looking ties.

Europa League Winner Odds*

Chelsea 4/1
Arsenal 6/1
Napoli 7/1
Inter 8/1
Sevilla 14/1
Valencia 16/1
Eintracht Frankfurt 20/1
Salzburg 25/1
Villarreal 25/1
Lazio 25/1
Real Betis 33/1
Bayer Leverkusen 33/1
Benfica 33/1
Shakhtar Donetsk 40/1
Zenit St Petersburg 40/1
50/1 bar
* (betting odds taken from bet365 on December 17th, 2018 at 5:29 pm)

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Celtic v Valencia

Celtic have been drawn against Valencia in the round of the 32. The Spaniards took the drop from the UEFA Champions League this season where they finished third in their group behind Juventus and Manchester United. They have been stuck in the bottom half of the La Liga table all season. Celtic finished second in their Europa League group behind Salzburg. Celtic and Valencia have met twice before. The first was in the 1962 Fairs Cup which Valencia earned a 6-4 aggregate success in. The last time they met was in the 2001 UEFA Cup with the two trading 1-0 home wins before losing at Celtic Park in a penalty shootout to settle the third round tie. Celtic lost at this stage of last season’s campaign against Zenit St Petersburg.

To Qualify: Valencia 1/5, Celtic 10/3* (betting odds taken from Bet365 on December 17th, 2018 at 2:16 pm)

Bate Borisov v Arsenal

Arsenal won their Europa League group with plenty of room to spare and were one of the seeds for the round of 32 draw. They get a comfortable looking tie as well as they take on BATE Borisov. The Belarusians managed to squeeze through in second place from their Europa League group behind Chelsea. They were beaten twice by the Blues in the group stage campaign. Arsenal and BATE were together in last season’s Europa League group stage and the Gunners had a comfortable time of things. They won 4-2 in Belarus and then 6-0 back at home.

To Qualify: Arsenal 1/12, BATE 7/1* (betting odds taken from Bet365 on December 17th, 2018 at 2:16 pm)

Malmo v Chelsea

Chelsea comfortably won their Europa League group, dropping just the two points along the way. Like Arsenal, they were a seeded team for the draw and they get a comfortable tie as well as they take on Swedish side Malmo. Malmo had a tough scrap in their Europa League group, where they finished second behind Genk with a W2 D3 L1 record, just holding off Besiktas. This will be the first-ever meeting between the two clubs. It’s not too surprising though that the Premier League side are strong favourites.

To Qualify: Chelsea 1/33, Malmo 14/1* (betting odds taken from Bet365 on December 17th, 2018 at 2:16 pm)

Other Notable Ties

There are a couple of stand-out ties in the draw for the round of 32. One of them sees Rapid Vienna v Inter take centre stage. Inter got past the Austrians on their way to winning their first ever UEFA Cup title back in the 1990/91 season. Rapid Vienna finished second in their Europa League group this season, but level on points with Villarreal. Inter drops down from the Champions League after failing to edge Spurs to second place behind Barcelona. Inter are 1/14 odds-on favourites to qualify* (betting odds taken from Bet365 on December 17th, 2018 at 2:16 pm).

Lazio v Sevilla is the biggest tie of the round though. The Italians will have their hands full here in trying to contain the five-time Champions. Lazio finished second in their Europa League group behind Eintracht Frankfurt with a W3 L3 record so they weren’t particularly strong. Sevilla won their group but were pushed all the way by Krasnodar and Standard Liege. This should be a really good tie and it is the Spaniards who are going as the 1/2 odds-on favourites To Qualify* (betting odds taken from Bet365 on December 17th, 2018 at 2:16 pm).