Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur are among the sides aiming to ensure direct passage to the UEFA Europa League last 16 in today’s league phase finale with nine places in the knockout stages up for grabs.
The struggling English giants are laboring in the bottom half of the Premier League table, but do sit in the top eight of the Europa League.
Only the top eight progress automatically into the last 16, while ninth to 24th have to endure the rigors of a two-legged playoff next month.
Photo: AP
United head coach Ruben Amorim is desperate to have two free midweeks for extra time on the training pitch to try and imbed his ideas after a turbulent first two months in charge.
The Red Devils have played 17 games in 64 days since Amorim took charge for the first time.
United have found Europe’s second-tier competition much easier to negotiate than domestic duties with four consecutive wins meaning they just need a point away to FCSB, but the Romanian champions can also secure a top-eight finish should they pull off a famous victory.
“We have to surpass ourselves, but we have done this before many times, so we will do it again,” FCSB striker Florin Tanase said.
Spurs head coach Ange Postecoglou is clinging to his job by a thread after a disastrous run of six Premier League defeats in seven games plunged Tottenham into a relegation battle.
A mounting injury list has been a major factor in their troubles and victory over IF Elfsborg in north London could buy Postecoglou time to get some of his star names back for the last 16 in March.
Table-toppers SS Lazio are the only side to have guaranteed a place in the last 16.
RSC Anderlecht, Athletic Bilbao, Eintracht Frankfurt, Galatasaray, Olympique Lyonnais, Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur, FCSB, AZ, Bodo/Glimt, Olympiacos, Rangers, Union Saint-Gilloise and Viktoria Plzen are all assured of at least a place in the playoffs.
However, there are big names at risk of crashing out before the knockout stages.
Two-time European champions Porto sit outside the top 24 ahead of their clash with Israel’s Maccabi Tel Aviv, which is to be held in Belgrade due to the conflict in the Middle East.
Italy’s AS Roma are also at risk as they are 21st in the table and face a tough task against second-placed Eintracht Frankfurt.
After a promising start to the competition, three consecutive defeats have plunged Ajax into peril ahead of the four-time European champions’ clash with Galatasaray in Amsterdam.
If the Wild finally break through and win their first playoff series in a decade, Minnesota’s top line likely will be the reason. They were all over the Golden Knights through the first two games of their NHL Western Conference quarter-finals series, which was 1-1 going back to Minnesota for Game 3 today. The Wild tied the series with a 5-2 win on Tuesday. Matt Boldy had three goals and an assist in the first two games, while Kirill Kaprizov produced two goals and three assists. Joel Eriksson Ek, who centers the line, has yet to get on the scoresheet. “I think the biggest
From a commemorative jersey to a stadium in his name, Argentine soccer organizers are planning a slew of tributes to their late “Captain” Pope Francis, eulogized as the ultimate team player. Tributes to the Argentine pontiff, a lifelong lover of the game, who died on Monday at the age of 88, have been peppered with soccer metaphors in his homeland. “Francisco. What a player,” the Argentine Football Federation (AFA) said, describing the first pope from Latin America and the southern hemisphere as a generational talent who “never hogged the ball” and who showed the world “the importance of having an Argentine captain,
Noelvi Marte on Sunday had seven RBIs and hit his first career grand slam with a drive off infielder Jorge Mateo, while Austin Wynn had a career-high six RBIs as the Cincinnati Reds scored their most runs in 26 years in a 24-2 rout of the Baltimore Orioles. Marte finished with five hits, including his eighth-inning homer off Mateo. Wynn hit a three-run homer in the ninth off catcher Gary Sanchez. Cincinnati scored its most runs since a 24-12 win against the Colorado Rockies on May 19, 1999, and finished with 25 hits. Baltimore allowed its most runs since a 30-3 loss to
Arne Slot has denied that Darwin Nunez was dropped from Liverpool’s win against West Ham because of a training-ground row with a member of his coaching staff. The Liverpool head coach on Sunday last week said that Nunez was absent from the 2-1 victory at Anfield, having felt unwell during training the day before, although the striker sat behind the substitutes throughout the game. Speculation has been rife that the Uruguay international, whom Slot criticized for his work rate against Wolves and Aston Villa in February, was left out for disciplinary reasons. Asked on Friday to clarify the situation, Slot said: “He
RSS