Odds Favor Borja Mayoral at -125 to Be Europa League Top Scorer Ahead of Quarterfinals
- The Europa League quarterfinals begin on Thursday, April 8th
- Roma star Borja Mayoral is the current favorite to finish as the competition’s leading scorer with seven goals already
- Villarreal’s Paco Alcacer and Zagreb’s Mislav Orlic have both netted five times, but do they offer value? Get our full odds, analysis, and best bet below
Europa League football is back, with just eight sides left playing for the ultimate prize. There had been three different players in the competition who have already fired home seven goals, but two of them bowed out in previous rounds.
That leaves Roma striker Borja Mayoral as the clear-cut favorite to win the scoring title in Europa as his team prepares for a difficult clash with Dutch giants Ajax in the quarterfinals.
Villarreal frontman Paco Alcacer has scored five times and has the second-best odds of any player left, followed by Dinamo Zagreb’s Mislav Orlic, who bagged a hat-trick in a miraculous upset of Tottenham in the last round.
However, these two sides will lock horns in the quarterfinals, which means one of them will be packing their bags.
Europa League Top Goalscorer Odds
| Player | Total UEL Goals | Odds |
|---|---|---|
| Borja Mayoral (Roma) | 7 | -125 |
| Pizzi (Benfica) | 7 | +500 |
| Yusuf Yazici (Lille) | 7 | +500 |
| Paco Alcacer (Villarreal) | 5 | +1600 |
| Mislav Orsic (Dinamo Zagreb) | 5 | +3000 |
| Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Arsenal) | 3 | +3000 |
| Edin Dzeko (Roma) | 3 | +5000 |
| Nicolas Pepe (Arsenal) | 3 | +5000 |
| Carlos Bacca (Villarreal) | 3 | +5000 |
| Bruno Petkovic (Dinamo Zagreb) | 4 | +5000 |
| Abdallah Sima (Slavia Prague) | 4 | +5000 |
Odds as of Apr 6 at DraftKings
Mayoral the Clear Frontrunner
Since Benfica’s Pizzi and Lille’s Yusuf Yazici failed to progress in Europa, Mayoral is the lone player left who’s netted seven times. The Spaniard hasn’t been too influential for Roma in Serie A, bagging just six goals in 23 appearances.
[promoted-sportsbook]However, he’s received more opportunities to be in the starting XI in the Europa League, and needless to say, the youngster has taken full advantage. In the squad’s 5-1 thrashing across two legs of Ukrainian outfit Shakhtar Donetsk, Mayoral scored a brace in the away tie, solidifying Roma’s place in the quarterfinals.
🇪🇸 Spanish forwards ⚽️ Who'll impress most next week?
1⃣ Borja Mayoral
2⃣ Pedro
3⃣ Gerard Moreno
4⃣ Roberto Soldado#UEL pic.twitter.com/fJkHetLlE7— UEFA Europa League (@EuropaLeague) April 2, 2021
The Real Madrid loanee has scored four of his seven goals in the knockout stages, also netting in each fixture against Sporting Braga in the last 32. However, he will have it tough on Thursday. Ajax, who switched over to the Europa League after getting knocked out of the Champions League, have conceded just twice in four games. In their round of 16 clash with Young Boys, the Eredivisie standouts didn’t allow a single goal in either tie.
These next two matches versus Ajax will be the ultimate test for Mayoral with a spot in the semifinals on the line and quite possibly, the scoring title.
More Magic from Orsic?
Orsic was the deciding factor in Dinamo’s comeback against Tottenham in the last round, putting three goals past Hugo Lloris. It was a magical night in Zagreb, but they will now be looking ahead to a difficult meeting with Villarreal.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FSARXtdcKSM
With that hat-trick, the Croatian took his goal tally to 17 in Europe, making him the top scorer in club history when it comes to European competitions. Orsic has also been lethal domestically, netting 14 goals and tallying six assists in just 21 appearances for Dinamo.
Orsic also netted three times in the 2019/20 UCL group stages against Atalanta. When the stakes are high, the 28-year old brings his best.
Don’t Count Out Alcacer
One of Villarreal’s many clinical finishers, Alcacer has scored five goals in as many appearances. However, most of them came in the group stages. In fact, the former Dortmund man has scored just once in the last 15 competitive fixtures.
Fellow strike partner Gerard Moreno has been the more productive one in the Europa League, scoring a double in the second leg of the round of 16 versus Dynamo Kyiv. Alcacer is more than capable of finding the back of the net though and he’s certainly due.
Best Bet
Mayoral is going to face a daunting task with Ajax’s rock-solid backline, but he will play a key part and continue his fine form in this competition, scoring yet another goal. Whether it’s in the first leg or the return fixture, expect Mayoral to net at some point and take a stranglehold as the Europa League top scorer race.
However, if Roma fails to progress, keep an eye on both Alcacer and Orsic, depending on who advances. Both players are capable of creating some real havoc in the final third.
Pick: Borja Mayoral -125
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Quinn Allen is a sports journalist, with a background and education in broadcast journalism (BCIT '17). He is a full-time associate editor at ClutchPoints by day, where he writes about soccer, baseball, basketball, football, and more. At night, Quinn is a frequent contributor at SBD.
