Europa League Betting – Shorthanded Reds Host Villarreal in Semis

Villarreal (+309) at Liverpool (-125), Draw (+250)

Jurgen Klopp is hoping to “inspire the whole Liverpool world” in the second leg of the Europa League semifinals against Villarreal (9-1-3 Europa League). After a disappointing year for the Reds (5-1-7), it will take an inspired performance to advance this Thursday at Anfield Road (3:05 PM Eastern).

A last-minute goal last week gave Villarreal the advantage in the series and handed Liverpool their first loss (1-0) of the season in the Europa League. The English side is now in a complex spot; they didn’t score away from home, so now they’ll need to win big or keep a clean sheet to move on.

Getting the necessary result will be made a little tougher with the injury to striker Divock Origi (leg). Origi also missed the first leg and his absence showed. Daniel Sturridge has the speed to trouble opposing defenses, but he doesn’t have Divock’s strength or nose for the net.

Liverpool are undefeated at Anfield in this season’s Europa League, going 4-2-0 in their six home games. The team has strung together four straight wins in Liverpool against Bordeaux, Augsburg, Manchester United, and Borussia Dortmund.

To make it five in a row, they’ll have to deal with a healthy and hot Villarreal side. Not only will “the Yellow Submarine” have all its key players fit for the second leg, but they’ll be riding a 12-game Europa League unbeaten streak into England. (Their only setback this year came at Rapid Vienna in the opener.)

Away from home, Villarreal are 2-3-1. Concerningly for the Reds, the Spanish side has managed to find the net at least once in five of their last six away games. If they manage to score at Anfield, it will really put the pressure on a short-handed Liverpool squad.

These two teams met for the first time last week. Expect Villarreal to come in with confidence after their first-leg win. I see a draw between two teams that are pretty much even, with Liverpool’s homefield advantage being levelled out by the team’s injury problems.

Pick: Draw (+250).

(Photo Credit: Kevin Walsh from Bicester, England (Sturridge) CC BY 2.0 [http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0], via Wikimedia Commons.)