Europa League qualifying is a continent-wide event. Teams are spread across thousands of miles, all with the dream of making the group stage of the competition.

The qualification round continues this Thursday. Matches start as early as 3pm BST with the last match – hosted by Sevilla – kicking off just before 9pm. It’s an epic day of football for those still nursing some World Cup blues.

Below are a few thoughts and tips on some of the top fixtures…

ABERDEEN vs BURNLEY

These two teams entered the Europa League draw hoping for an exciting away day. Unfortunately, one of them won’t even leave the United Kingdom before they exit the competition.

Aberdeen finished third in Scotland to earn this spot, but are underdogs to progress against Sean Dyche’s regimented Burnley.

Despite a potentially crowded fixture list, Burnley are yet to make an addition to their squad this summer, though that shouldn’t matter too much in this one.

Dyche’s side are perfectly designed for two-leg knockout football, even if it impacts their domestic form significantly.

This is the chance of a lifetime for many of the fans and players. Their trip north of the border is the Clarets’ first taste of continental football since the 1966-67 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup. Everything points to a Burnley win, but it might not be a classic.

TIP: Burnley to win @ 4/5

CORRECT SCORE: Aberdeen 0-1 Burnley (Priced at 13/2 with 888sport)

 

VENTSPILS vs BORDEAUX

Bordeaux finished sixth in Ligue 1 last season. They are a weaker team this year, however, having lost starlet Malcom to Roma earlier this week.

Having fallen to Hungarian side Videoton in the qualifiers last season, the French club will be especially wary of another upset here as they look to return to the Europa League group stage.

Latvian club Ventspils smashed Albanian side Luftetari 8-3 in the last round. Despite being involved in qualifying in every season since, they have not made qualified for the groups since 2010.

The capacity of Ventspils’ stadium is a mere 3,200, this is the sort of contrast in footballing background that the Europa League brings. Bordeaux may come in a little cold, but their quality should see it through.

TIP: Bordeaux to win @ 21/50

CORRECT SCORE: Ventspils 0-2 Bordeaux (Priced at 7/1 with 888sport)

 

ATALANTA vs FK SARAJEVO

Atalanta are one of the best teams in the draw. A seventh-place finish in Serie A last term has put them straight back into the Europa League after a last 32 exit to Borussia Dortmund in 2017/18.

Led by the immensely gifted Alejandro Gomez, the Italian club are a good side to watch and expected to progress easily.

Vincent Tan owned FK Sarajevo finished third in the Bosnian top flight last season. They will need the performance of their lives and a bit of good fortune to stand any chance here. The chasm in quality will probably be too much to overcome.

Like many of the big clubs in this phase, Atalanta will look to tie this up in the first leg, which will allow them to rest players when they head to Bosnia.

TIP: Over 2.5 Atalanta goals @ 41/50

CORRECT SCORE: Atalanta 5-0 FK Sarajevo (Priced at 14/1 with 888sport)

 

SEVILLA vs UJPEST

The Europa League has been Sevilla’s competition. The Spanish club have won the competition on five separate occasions, including three times in a row in this decade.

A jaunt into the Champions League saw them reach the quarter-finals last season, but they return to their old friend as one of the favourites to go all the way yet again.

Ujpest are a Budapest-based club who finished third domestically last season. They’ve had a nightmare with this draw.

You have to go back to 2004 to find the last time they made it through qualification in continental football, that drought is unlikely to end this year.

Sevilla will be looking to wrap this up before they have to fly east. This could get ugly for the visitors.

TIP: Over 2.5 goals @ 13/25

CORRECT SCORE: Sevilla 4-0 Ujpest (Priced at 7/1 with 888sport)

 

*Odds subject to change - correct at time of writing*

Sam is a sports tipster, specialising in the Premier League and Champions League.

He covers most sports, including cricket and Formula One. Sam particularly enjoys those on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean – notably MLB and NBA.

Watching, writing and talking about sports betting takes up most of his time, whether that is for a day out at T20 Finals Day or a long night of basketball.

Having been writing for several years, Sam has been working with 888Sport since 2016, contributing multiple articles per week to the blog.