The first leg of the round of 16 of the European League: a match-by-match preview | European League

The stars of Arsenal, Betis, Real Sociedad and Seville in the round of 16 of the European League. Find out all the details of each match.

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Thursday, March 9th

Man United – Real Betis

After a hesitant start to the season under their new manager, Erik ten Hag, United started to fuel up. They won the League Cup and knocked out La Liga leaders Barcelona in the last round, although they may not be so keen on taking on Betis coach Manuel Pellegrini. The Chilean won the English Premier League title and League Cup twice with rival Manchester City, and scored four goalless draws against the “Red Devils” during his time at the helm of Villarreal.

Did you know…?
Betis are yet to win in three matches in England: two losses against Chelsea and (most recently) a 0-0 draw with Liverpool in November 2005.

Rome – Royal Society

The last seven European results for Roma at home against Spanish teams were not encouraging (one win, two draws and 4 defeats), but coach Jose Mourinho knows Spanish football after winning the 2011/12 league title with Real Madrid, and new defender Diego Llorente was a player in Real Sociedad. between 2017 and 2020. The visiting coach, Emmanol Alguasil, called Mourinho a “role model”, but he was not afraid: “We beat Man United in the knockout stage, so why can’t we beat Roma?”

Did you know…?
Mourinho won the UEFA Cup with Porto in 2002/03 and the Champions League the following season. Having led Roma to the Europa League title in 2021/202, he is well on his way to another European title this season.

Leverkusen – Ferencvaros

Ferencvaros coach Stanislav Cherchesov had “a kind of hunch” on the night of the play-off, when he stopped watching Manchester United and Barcelona to catch a glimpse of the Leverkusen game in Monaco. The Hungarian champions have been paired with Xabi Alonso’s squad, and want to take the next step to play the final in his native Budapest. “It will be difficult,” Cherchesov declared, “but nothing is easy.”

Did you know…?
Cherchesov played in the goal of Dynamo Dresden between 1993 and 1995 and is fluent in the German language, and he also played and trained for several years in Austria.

Shakhtar – Feyenoord

These two teams won this competition when it was the UEFA Cup: Feyenoord in 1973/74 and 2001/02, and Shakhtar in 2008/09. They also met before, in the group stage of the 2017/18 UEFA Champions League, which the Ukrainians won 2-1 away and 3-1 at home. Shakhtar could be delighted when they meet again in Warsaw with a penalty shootout victory over Rennes on the last matchday. “We left everything in the match,” their coach Igor Jovićević declared proudly.

Did you know…?
Lassina Traore, striker of Shakhtar Burkina Faso, knows Dutch football well, having started her career with Feyenoord’s rival Ajax.

Sporting Lisbon – Arsenal

After taking charge of his new squad for the club he represents from 2011 to 2022, right-back Hector Bellerin posted a crying face and a “going home” emoji on his Instagram page. The encounter will be poignant for the 27-year-old right-back, but Sporting – who are going through an up-and-down season – are delighted not to be a candidate in Lisbon. Coach Ruben Amorim said, “We are not favorites to win the European League, but we are favorites to win all matches.”

Did you know…?
Sporting CP has yet to score in four European matches against Arsenal (D2 L2): two matches in 1969 in the Fairs Cup (preceded the UEFA Cup and European League, but not organized by UEFA) and two matches in 2018/19. Group stage in the European League.

Juventus – Freiburg

Massimiliano Allegri’s team is going through a turbulent season in Serie A, but they are still alive in Europe and are unbeaten in their last four home matches in UEFA competition against Bundesliga teams (W2 D2). Freiburg will be hoping to extend the longest European campaign in its history to the quarter-finals. “In football there are always chances,” said coach Christian Streich. “In other sports, small teams don’t have as many chances. That’s one of the mysteries of the sport.”

Did you know…?
Freiburg midfielder Vincenzo Griffo was born in Germany but has scored four goals in eight matches for Italy, his parents’ home country. “I am looking forward to reuniting with some of my colleagues in the national team,” he declared of the confrontation against Juventus.

Seville – Fenerbahce

Jorge Jesus coached the Benfica team that lost on penalties to Sevilla in the 2014 UEFA Europa League Final, and the Fenerbahçe coach had the task of eliminating the six-time champions of the competition. Sevilla’s sporting director, Monchi, wants his team to strike a decisive blow at home, knowing that Istanbul is not an easy scenario: “[El Fenerbahçe] He’s a very tough competitor in his field because he’ll have a very hot audience that won’t stop cheering.”

Did you know…?
The two teams met in the round of 16 of the 2007/2008 UEFA Champions League. Fenerbahçe won 3-2 in the first leg and lost 3-2 in the second leg, but won 3-2 on penalties.

Union Berlin – Union Saint-Gilloise

Dubbed the “Re-Union”, this tie pits the two associations against each other, who also met in the group stage: the Belgian Union won 0-1 in Berlin, but the German Union emerged victorious by the same margin when the two teams met again. in Brussels. Both teams are in fine form: Urs Fischer’s Union Berlin has been at the top of the Bundesliga table all season, while Union SG finished second in Belgium in 2021/22, having returned to the top flight after a nearly 50-year absence.

Did you know…?
Union Berlin committed 120 fouls since the start of the group stage, more than any other team in the competition.