Europa League and Europa Conference League predictions and group bets

Group by group guide, betting predictions, best bets and analysis for the Europa League and best bet in the Europa Conference League.

Preview

The changes to European football this season mean a new competition, the inaugural Europa Conference League.

The new tournament has had the knock-on effect of ensuring a higher level of quality in this year’s Europa League and even before the teams drop in from the Champions League it looks a competitive renewal.

Best bets

Leicester to win Group C
2pts 5-4 Betfred, Boylesports

Midtjylland to win Group F
1pt 18-5 William Hill

Rennes to win the Europa Conference League
0.5pt EW 20-1 bet365

Group A

Lyon have arguably the best recent European record in this competition as they were beaten semi-finalists in the Champions League just two seasons ago.

However they have undergone serious changes since then and this summer they lost Memphis Depay, Joachim Andersen and Maxwel Cornet.

Of the rest of the group, Rangers reached the last 16 of this competition last season but disappointed with their showing in the Champions League qualifiers.

Sparta Prague will be hoping to replicate the success of their rivals Slavia last season and young star Adam Hlozek will be key for them.

Brondby look up against it after their poor start to the Danish Superliga.

Group B

Monaco would typically be considered favourites for this section but they were soundly beaten by Shakhtar Donetsk in the Champions League playoff and have won just one of their first five Ligue 1 games.

Real Sociedad have improved plenty in the last few seasons and look primed for a big showing after they bowed out in the round of 32 at the hands of Manchester United last year.

PSV Eindhoven were a shade unlucky as they were beaten 2-1 by Benfica in the Champions League play-offs. Donyell Malen and Denzel Dumfries will be missed but retaining the services of exciting youngster Noni Madueke is welcomed.

Sturm Graz have reached the group stages for the first time in 10 years and look vulnerable in a competitive group.

Group C

After their first FA Cup win last season, success in Europe is surely next on the agenda for Leicester City. They were beaten in the round of 32 last year but should have too much class for this group, despite the difficult away ties.

Their deeper squad this year makes them appealing at 5-4 to win this section.

Napoli will be the Foxes’ steepest competition, they have bounced between the Europa League and Champions League in the last few seasons without progressing beyond the quarter-finals of either. However under new manager Luciano Spalletti, they have started strongly in Serie A.

Spartak Moscow, led by Henrik Larsson’s son Jordan, will be a difficult trip but may not have the quality to trouble the top two, while Legia Warsaw have already been beaten three times in five games in their Polish title defence.

Group D

Olympiakos have finished third in consecutive Champions League groups before dropping into this competition and being beaten by English opposition in the round of 16 on both occasions. They are back to back Greek title winners but face a trappy group here.

Eintracht Frankfurt were semi-finalists in this competition three seasons ago but will be reeling from the loss of star striker Andre Silva this summer.

Fenerbahce return to European football after two years away and with the services of Mesut Ozil at their disposal.

Antwerp lost to Rangers in the knockout stages last season and were busy in the transfer window, including the eye-catching signing of Radja Nainggolan.

Group E

Under new manager Mauricio Sarri, Lazio have added Pedro, Felipe Anderson and Elseid Hysaj to an already strong squad. They were beaten by Bayern Munich in the knockouts of the Champions League last season and look likely to go deep in this year’s Europa League.

Marseille have also seen changes to their squad this summer, bringing in William Saliba and Matteo Guendouzi from Arsenal on loan along with Brazilian midfielder Gerson. The 2017-18 finalists could impress once more.

After three consecutive wooden spoons in the Champions League, Lokomotiv Moscow are back in the Europa League and should give a decent account, despite missing Alex Kral who has moved to West Ham.

Galatasaray were battered 7-2 by PSV Eindhoven in Champions League qualifying before scraping through two more qualifiers to reach this group.

Group F

This is probably the weakest group in the competition, giving all four teams a decent chance.

There was no shame in Midjtylland’s loss to PSV in the Champions League qualifiers and they should enjoy this group more than their Champions League section last season. At 18-5 they look a decent price to come out on top of a winnable group.

Braga were beaten by Roma in the round of 32 last year but lost a chunk of their squad this summer.

Ludogorets dominate Bulgarian football but lack the quality for European success, while Red Star Belgrade will have been disappointed to lose out to Sheriff Tiraspol in the Champions League qualifiers.

Group G

Celtic have landed a tricky section here and making it out of the group will be a good effort. New manager Ange Postecoglou does seem to have turned the tide however after a disappointing season last year.

Real Betis have a talented squad and the addition of Willian Jose could be key for Manuel Pellegrini’s side.

Patrik Schick showed his class at Euro 2020 and will lead the line for Bayer Leverkusen, who have quality sprinkled throughout their side.

Ferencvaros were beaten by Young Boys in the Champions League qualifiers but will be no whipping boys here.

Group H

West Ham have had a strong start to the Premier League season and should progress from their Europa League group. Their late transfer work has added depth to their squad and the draw could have been worse.

Dinamo Zagreb were beaten quarter-finalists last year but have lost Josko Gvardiol and Lovro Majer this summer.

Genk were seen off by Shakhtar Donetsk in Champions League qualifying after missing out on European football last year.

Rapid Wien finished third in their group last season and have lost three of their first seven league games to begin this season.

Europa Conference League

The two sides that dominate the betting for this competition are Tottenham and Roma. Both clubs realistically should be playing in other European competitions and their league campaigns will take precedence.

With motivation a question mark for the big two, Rennes may be worth siding with to succeed. They lost starlet Eduardo Camavinga to Real Madrid but have spent roughly £70 million on their squad this summer, prioritising young attacking talent.

Bruno Genesio's side already have one of the most highly thought of young wide men in Europe in Jeremy Doku and look decent value to be the inaugural Europa Conference League winners.

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