15.03. (Thu) 21:05 Besiktas - Atletico Madrid

Joao Miranda, Radamel Falcao - Atletico Madrid

PROBABLE LINEUPS

BESIKTAS Gonen Toraman, Sivok, Sidnei, Koybasi Fernandes, Aurelio, UysalHolosko, Simao Pektemek

ATLETICO MADRID Courtois Juanfran, Miranda, Godin, Filipe Gabi, SuarezSalvio, Adrian, Koke Falcao

Following a disagreement with trainer Carlos Carvalhal over his withdrawal in the first leg, Ricardo Quaresma is unlikely to feature after being left out of the squad to play Orduspor at the weekend.

Filip Holosko is therefore in with a chance of taking the Portuguese's vacated spot in the line-up but Veli Kavlak could also occupy a place on the wing. Fabian Ernst is also suspended for the return match.

Filipe is likely to return to the starting line-up as suspension kept him out of the 2-0 weekend win over Granada. Diego Simeone will be without Tiago, Diego and Antonio Lopez, all of whom are recovering from injury.

The Argentine has surprisingly included Pizzi in his squad to travel to Turkey and the Portuguese could well be in line for an appearance.

DID YOU KNOW?

• Besiktas have won just three times in 14 games against Spanish sides, all of which came on home soil. (W3 D3 L9)

• The Black Eagles last reached the quarter-finals of this competition in 2002/03, where they lost to Lazio.

• Besiktas are not enjoying their finest spell of form, having only won twice in their last 11 fixtures in all competitions.

• Atletico Madrid's only defeat against Super Lig opposition was a 1-0 loss to Ankaragucu in the second leg of a 1999/00 UEFA Cup first round tie.

• Los Colchoneros have only been defeated on the road once in their last eight European games. Udinese earned a 2-0 win at Stadio Friuli in this year's Europa League group stage.

• Radamel Falcao needs just two more goals to match current leading goalscorer, the eliminated Matias Suarez. The Colombian also has one less strike than Schalke's Klaas-Jan Huntelaar, who still remains in the tournament.

Prediction

Besiktas are a team somewhat in disarray. Despite occupying a highly respectable fourth place in the Super Lig, the Black Eagles have not tasted victory in 11 games and Atletico Madrid should once again prove too much for them. Diego Simeone has lost just once since taking over from Gregorio Manzano in late December but Simao's away goal in the first leg offers the Turkish side some hope of progressing.

Editor's Prediction

Beşiktaş 1-2 Atl. Madrid

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15.03. (Thu) 21:05 Manchester City - Sporting Lisboa

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PROBABLE LINEUPS

MANCHESTER CITY HartRichards, Toure, Savic, Clichy Barry, De Jong, Milner Johnson, Balotelli, Silva

SPORTING LISBON PatricioPereira, Polga, Xandao, Insua Fernandez, Carrico, Izmailov, Suarez Capel Van Wolfswinkel

Manchester City will again have to deal with depleted options in the centre of their defence with both Vincent Kompany (calf) and Joleon Lescott (groin) both sidelined for the second-leg of this tie.

The home side are also without Pablo Zabaleta who has picked up a thigh strain.

Ricardo Sa Pinto is likely to stick to the same victorious starting line-up from last week, although a classy performance from Jeffren Suarez this weekend could give him a good chance of making the starting XI.

DID YOU KNOW?

• Manchester City have kept clean sheets in their last four home games in all competitions, scoring 12 in the process.

• Ricardo Sa Pinto has only failed to win once since taking charge of Sporting in February.

• Manchester City have not lost three games in a row yet this season, only having lost two in a row once after losses in the FA Cup and Carling Cup against Manchester United and Liverpool respectively.

• Diego Capel is the man who has been on the wrong end of the most yellow card challenges this season in the Portuguese league.

• Capel has also drawn 22 fouls in the Europa League only four more players have received more.

• Sporting's game against Legia Warsaw saw the joint most yellow cards in the competition with 11.

Prediction
Editor's Prediction 
 

Manchester City FC 3-1 Sporting Lisbon  

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15.03. (Thu) 21:05 Schalke 04 - Twente

PROSHOTS

PROBABLE LINEUPS

SCHALKE Hildebrand Uchida, Matip, Papadopoulos, Fuchs Hoger, Jones Obasi, Raul, Draxler Huntelaar

TWENTE Mihaylov Cornelisse, Wisgerhof, Douglas, Rosales Brama, Fer, Janssen Chadli, De Jong, O. John

The Gelsenkirchen side played two strikers in Sunday's 3-1 victory over Hamburg, but with Teemu Pukki cup-tied, they should revert to their usual 4-2-3-1 formation, with Chinedu Obasi and Julian Draxler replacing the Finn and Jose Manuel Jurado.

The good news for Huub Stevens is that Kyriakos Papadopoulos is available for this tie after his domestic suspension and should step into the heart of defence. Joel Matip is available to start after Uefa delayed making a decision on the appeal against his red card in the first leg.

However, Benedikt Howedes is still injured, along with goalkeeping duo Lars Unnerstall and Ralf Fahrmann, whose absences will leave Timo Hildebrand to continue his first-team run.
Twente can welcome back two players who missed Sunday's 3-1 defeat to NEC. Douglas and Willem Janssen both missed the weekend's clash due to suspension, but will return to take the places of Swedish duo Rasmus Bengtsson and Emir Bajrami in defence and midfield respectively.
Elsewhere, Andrej Rendla's long-standing knee problem will keep him out of the Veltins Arena clash, while Wesley Verhoek and Denny Landzaat are back in training, but unlikely to be risked after lengthy absences of their own.

DID YOU KNOW?

• Schalke are unbeaten at home in the Europa League this season, having recorded four wins and a draw.

• However, the only clean sheet the Gelsenkirchen outfit have kept on home soil was in the 0-0 draw with AEK Larnaca.

• Schalke have a happy record when entertaining Dutch teams - they've won both of their Veltins Arena encounters with Eredivisie sides 3-0.

• Twente have lost just once on the road in Europe this season - a 1-0 defeat to Fulham in west London.

• The Tukkers' assistant coach Youri Mulder (pictured right) played for Schalke between 1993 and 2002, and was a part of the coaching staff in 2008-09.

• Despite their impressive record away in Europe this season, Twente have won just once in their seven trips to Germany.

Prediction
Editor's Prediction 
Schalke 04 2-0 Twente

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15.03. (Thu) 19:00 Udinese - AZ Alkmaar

ese vs AZ

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PROBABLE LINEUPS

UDINESE Handanovic Ferronetti, Benatia, Domizzi Ekstrand, Pinzi, Pazienza, Asamoah, Armero  Floro Flores Di Natale

AZ Alvarado Marcellis, Moisander, Viergever, Poulsen Elm, Falkenburg, Maher  Beerens, Altidore, Holman

The Bianconeri go into Thursday’s clash without the injured Emmanuel Agyemang-Badu, with the Ghana international facing another month on the sidelines with a knee strain. Long term absentee Mauricio Isla looks set to miss the rest of the season with a cruciate ligament injury.

Diego Fabbrini will return to the squad, after the Italy Under 21 International missed the first leg through suspension. However, central defender Danilo will miss out due to a ban this time round.

Gertjan Verbeek will have to make do without the services of playmaker Maarten Martens and striker Charlison Benschop for the trip to Udine due to injury.

However, Nick Viergever is in line to reclaim his place in the side, after the former Sparta defender sat out of Sunday’s 2-0 victory over De Graafschap through suspension.

DID YOU KNOW?

• Udinese have only recorded two wins in their last nine games in all competitions.

• The hosts are averaging a goal a game in the Europa League this season.

• The Bianconeri have won only one of their last six clashes in the Europa League.

• AZ have only lost one of their last eight matches in all competitions.

• The visitors have only conceded one goal in their last five Europa League ties.

• Verbeek's side are still unbeaten in this season’s competition.

Prediction

With the Bianconeri really struggling for form at present, along with the visitors' unbeaten record in Europe this term, an away victory could see AZ impressively progress.

Editor's Prediction

Udinese 0-1 AZ

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15.03. (Thu) 19:00 PSV Eindhoven - Valencia

PROSHOTS

PROBABLE LINEUPS

PSV Tyton Manolev, Marcelo, Bouma, Pieters Wijnaldum, Strootman Labyad, Toivonen, Mertens  Matavz

VALENCIA Guaita Barragan, Rami, Ruiz, Mathieu Albelda, T. CostaFeghouli, Jonas, Jordi Alba Aduriz

For the Dutch side, defender Erik Pieters, who did not start in the first leg due to injury, is fully fit and will likely feature as the club look to improve on their sorry recent run of form in defence.

No other serious injuries or suspensions look to impact PSV ahead of Thursday's game, but a new coach will. Fred Rutten was relieved of his duties, the team announced on Monday, and Philip Cocu will be the interim coach for the remainder of the season.

Unai Emery's squad are still without the services of Ever Banega and Sergio Canales, who are both recovering from long-term injuries, while Hedwiges Maduro looks set to return in the coming days after missing most of the campaign with an ankle injury. The Netherlands international has made the list of players that will travel for the game and may make an appearance from the bench.

In defence, right-back Miguel will miss the contest as he aims to recover from a leg injury suffered in February.

However, the big news is that Roberto Soldado will miss the match due to suspension, leaving the Spaniards without their star striker, who has 22 goals this season. Aritz Aduriz will likely take his place in the team's most crucial contest so far this term.

DID YOU KNOW?

• PSV, who fell to NAC Breda 3-1 at the weekend, enter the contest having lost three games in a row, giving up a total of 13 goals. In their last six matches, the opponents averaged over three goals per game.

• A 2-0 win would see the Dutch giants advance, but they have not had a clean sheet since early December of last year, so they will likely need to score at least three to continue in the tournament. 

• The last time the Philips Stadion outfit hosted a Spanish club, Sergio Aguero bagged a brace in a 3-0 win by Atletico Madrid in the 2008-09 Champions League.

• Valencia are coming off a 2-2 draw against Mallorca at the weekend in La Liga action.

• After holding comfortable advantages in the last two matches, Los Che allowed both opponents to net two goals in under nine minutes, with one of the games being the first leg of this tie, which saw life injected into PSV after being down 4-0.

• Both sides have won a Uefa Cup title, with PSV having taking home the cup in 1978, while Valencia lifting the trophy in 2004.

Prediction

It's been months since PSV have recorded a clean sheet. Despite Roberto Soldado not playing, Los Che should do enough in attack to record a result that will see them through to the quarter-finals.

Editor's Prediction

PSV 2-2 Valencia

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15.03. (Thu) 19:00 Athletic Bilbao - Manchester Utd.

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PROBABLE LINEUPS

ATHLETIC BILBAO Iraizoz Iraola, San Jose, Amorebieta, Aurtenetxe Martinez, Herrera Susaeta, De Marcos, Muniain Llorente

MANCHESTER UNITED De Gea Jones, Ferdinand, Evans, Evra Nani, Carrick, Scholes, Young Rooney, Welbeck

Athletic Bilbao boss Marcelo Bielsa is sweating on the fitness of striker Fernando Llorente and midfielder Oscar de Marcos.

Llorente is struggling to shake off a hip problem, while De Marcos is suffering from fever and a heavy bout of flu.

Both failed to train on Tuesday but will be expected to make the team, while Ander Herrera and Javi Martinez should be recalled after they were rested for the 2-1 defeat at Osasuna on Sunday.

Defender Fernando Amorebieta returns from suspension.

Manchester United defender Chris Smalling may miss the second-leg after having to withdraw from the first game with a head injury that he had received during international duty with England.

Sir Alex Ferguson will be able to call upon the services of midfielders Tom Cleverley and Antonio Valencia who have both returned from injury and look set to take places on the bench.

DID YOU KNOW?

• Sunday’s defeat away to Osasuna was Athletic Bilbao’s first lost in their last five games.

• The Estadio San Mames side are currently in seventh place in the Spanish Primera Liga, three points behind fourth place Malaga.

• Striker Fernando Llorente (pictured right) is Athletic’s top goalscorer with the 27-year-old Spanish international having claimed 21 goals so far this season.

•  Venezuela international defender Fernando Amorebieta returns to Marcelo Bielsa’s side after being sent off in the previous round against Lokomotiv Moscow, his third red card of the season.

• Last season the Basque side finished in sixth place in the league, an incredible 38 points behind La Liga champions Barcelona.

• Bielsa’s team having scored in their last 17 games in a row, with a goalless draw against Getafe in January being the last time they failed to find the net.

• Manchester United have only managed to win three of their European fixtures so far this season, with two of those coming against Romanian minnows Otelul Galati.

• The last time the Red Devils visited North East Spain was in January 1957 when Sir Matt Busby’s side fell to a 5-3 defeat in the European Cup in the snow of Bilbao.

• Sir Alex Ferguson’s side have only lost once in their last seven games in all competitions.

• Wayne Rooney claimed his 20th league goal of the season during Manchester United’s two goal victory over West Brom, which saw them return to the top of the Premier League.

Prediction
Editor's Prediction 

Athletic Bilbao 1-3 Man Utd.  

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Europa League Opta Facts - Round of 16 Second Leg - 15 March

Manchester City v Sporting Lisbon

Sporting Lisbon have lost seven of their previous 11 away European games against English sides (excluding qualifiers), winning two and drawing two.
The Lions have never kept a clean sheet in an away game against an English side.
The Citizens have won both previous home games in Europe against Portuguese sides (excluding qualifiers), shutting their opponents out on each occasion.
Sporting Lisbon have won more fouls than any other team in the Europa League this season (166).
The Portuguese giants have only won one of their 11 away games in all competitions, having won six in a row before this spell.
Manchester City have won 35 of their last 39 home games in all competitions, drawing two and losing two.
Excluding qualifiers, City are unbeaten in 24 home European games and have only lost one of 33 in total (0-1 v Chelsea in April 1971).
15 of Sergio Aguero's 21 goals for Manchester City (all competitions) have come at the Etihad Stadium.

Athletic Bilbao v Manchester United

Wayne Rooney has scored 14 goals in his last 13 appearances in all competitions.
In their one previous European tie against Athletic, Man Utd lost the first leg (3-5) before prevailing 3-0 in the second leg to progress (European Cup - 1957).
Wayne Rooney has netted a brace in four of his last six appearances in all competitions, scoring nine goals in total in that run.
Since the start of the Champions League (1992/93), Manchester United have only progressed through one of seven European knockout ties having lost the first leg (v Roma in the Champions League quarter finals in 2007).
On that occasion (versus Roma) however, Manchester United won the second leg 7-1.
United, who have lost their last two European games, have only ever lost three in a row once in their history (excluding qualifiers), between December 2004 and May 2005.
Sir Alex Ferguson's side have kept four successive clean sheets away against Spanish opposition, but have only netted once themselves in that run.
Bilbao have only lost one of their eight previous home meetings against English opposition, winning four and drawing three.
Fernando Llorente has attempted more headed shots (12) than any other player in the Europa League this term.

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