All the German teams left in the Europa league find themselves in good positions going into their return legs, as none of them conceded any goals last week in the first round of matches. There is also still the possibility of Augsburg causing an upset by knocking Liverpool out at Anfield, something that Emre Can and Jürgen Klopp’s team will be trying to avoid. With the German teams having everything to play for, DFB.de has taken a look at each tie.
Two World Cup winners, Miroslav Klose and Lukas Podolski, will face each other when Lazio take on Galatasaray (19:00 CET). Klose’s Lazio are in a strong position after the 1-1 draw in the first leg. The situation is even better for Shkodran Mustafi’s Valencia though, as they cantered to a 6-0 victory in their first match against Rapid Vienna at the Mestalla.
However, things aren't going well for Bastian Schweinsteiger’s Manchester United, they lost 2-1 to Danish champions Midtjylland in Denmark in the first leg of their tie. They will have to put in a good performance tonight to make it through to the last 16, although the Germany captain will be unavailable for the Red Devils due to a persistent knee injury.
BVB head coach Tuchel: “I’m expecting Porto to be at their best”
Nuri Sahin issued a warning ahead of Dortmund's second leg against Portuguese runners-up Porto tonight (21:05 CET), following their 2-0 win last week. “They have nothing to lose, Porto will try to get an early goal and we have to try and stop them,”. Last week, the Turkey international made a comeback after a year out due to injury.
Dortmund‘s head coach Thomas Tuchel agrees with Sahin. “I am expecting Porto to be at their best because they are playing at home in front of their own fans, who will be full of emotion.” The BVB coach believes that his team will have to put in another "top performance" to make sure they get through to the next round.” Tuchel will be without Sokratis for the second leg, after he suffered a groin strain in the narrow win over Bayer Leverkusen last Saturday.
Goalkeeping legend Iker Casillas and his team showed how strong they are at home on Sunday evening, overturning a 2-0 deficit to come back and win 3-2 against relegation threatened Moreirense. Super sub Evandro, who scored the winner, thanked the fans after the win: “We won the game because of them.” Borussia Dortmund will have to be ready for Porto’s twelfth man in the return leg tonight.
Schalke host Donetsk: “It’s important to not concede an away goal“
Schalke’s 1-1 draw with Stuttgart at the weekend was their third game in a row without a win. In today’s return leg against Shakhtar Donetsk (19:00 CET), the Royal Blues will have to end their bad run of form in order to make it through to the last 16 of the Europa League. Playmaker Johannes Geis is highly motivated ahead of the second leg: “Unfortunately, in the first game we couldn't manage to get a win, in the second game we want to do better.”
The 0-0 draw in the first leg isn’t a bad result, but it has put us in a dangerous position for the return leg,” said Cameroon international Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting, “Even so, we are playing at home and will definitely be playing for a win.” The striker is an injury concern though, after he was substituted 22 minutes into the game against Stuttgart, due to a pelvic contusion. Germany U21 international Leon Goretzka is also a doubt for the game due to a calf strain. The good news though, is that Max Meyer is once again available to play after overcoming a bout of tonsillitis.
“We will have to be creative and push for a goal, but not be caught on the counter” said Schalke sporting director Horst Heldt, who believes Shakhtar will “play cautiously”. As the Ukrainian league only restarts in March, Mircea Lucescu’s team haven’t had any other fixtures to focus on, so they have been able to concentrate fully on the match in Gelsenkirchen. The Romanian coach, who has been at the club since 2004, knows how to beat Schalke, as he was in charge last time Donetsk knocked them out of the European Cup in 2005, when Shakhtar managed to win 1-0 at the Veltins-Arena to go through, following a 1-1 in the first leg in Donetsk.
Augsburg want to eliminate Liverpool
Reaching the round of 32 is already the biggest success in Augsburg’s history. However, after drawing 0-0 against Liverpool last week, Markus Weinzierl’s team will be thinking they can extend their Europa League dream. Winger Tobias Werner is confident ahead of tonight’s match at Anfield (19:00 CET): “We have nothing to lose. If we can be compact again in Liverpool, we will certainly have a chance of progressing.”
FCA managed a narrow win at the weekend against Hannover, which has given them even more momentum going into the match. “It relaxes you. Although we haven’t won yet, it has made the trip to Liverpool easier,” explained Markus Weinzierl, who will have to do without striker Raúl Bobadilla because of the muscle strain he picked up in the first leg. The Paraguayan striker, who has scored six goals so far in the competition, has played a large role in Augsburg’s success so far.
Liverpool and Jürgen Klopp enjoyed a weekend off from matches last week. “It’s important to have two days off, especially for the players who have been a part of almost every game,” the German coach commented ahead of the return leg. That applies to Germany international Emre Can as well, as he has played in 36 competitive matches already this season. Liverpool will face Manchester City in the final of the League Cup on Sunday, but Klopp may not be able to rest any of his first team regulars against Augsburg though, because of the injury worries in his squad.
Leverkusen ahead thanks to Bellarabi
After losing to Borussia Dortmund at the weekend, Roger Schmidt’s side will have to be fully focused on the return leg against Sporting Lisbon tonight (19:00 CET), if they are hoping to win their first title since their DFB Cup win in 1993. Bayer 04 go into the game with the upper hand following Karim Bellarabi’s goal in the first leg.
“It was good that we won 1-0 in the first leg, but it is still a dangerous score line," warned the experienced Stefan Kießling ahead of the second leg. Leverkusen will be without their captain Ömer Toprak and Kevin Kampl for the tie, as both of them picked up injuries in the match against BVB which will put them out for two to three weeks. Playmaker Hakan Calhanoglu summed up his side’s position, “At the moment the tie is ours to lose. We want to make sure we put it to bed.”
The Portuguese league leaders made it nine game unbeaten for them in the league on Monday with a 2-0 win over Boavista, as they chase their first league title since 2002. Lisbon have a miserable record against German teams though, winning only two of their 23 games against them. In Germany their record is even worse, as they have played eleven games, lost ten and drawn one.
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All the German teams left in the Europa league find themselves in good positions going into their return legs, as none of them conceded any goals last week in the first round of matches. There is also still the possibility of Augsburg causing an upset by knocking Liverpool out at Anfield, something that Emre Can and Jürgen Klopp’s team will be trying to avoid. With the German teams having everything to play for, DFB.de has taken a look at each tie.
Two World Cup winners, Miroslav Klose and Lukas Podolski, will face each other when Lazio take on Galatasaray (19:00 CET). Klose’s Lazio are in a strong position after the 1-1 draw in the first leg. The situation is even better for Shkodran Mustafi’s Valencia though, as they cantered to a 6-0 victory in their first match against Rapid Vienna at the Mestalla.
However, things aren't going well for Bastian Schweinsteiger’s Manchester United, they lost 2-1 to Danish champions Midtjylland in Denmark in the first leg of their tie. They will have to put in a good performance tonight to make it through to the last 16, although the Germany captain will be unavailable for the Red Devils due to a persistent knee injury.
BVB head coach Tuchel: “I’m expecting Porto to be at their best”
Nuri Sahin issued a warning ahead of Dortmund's second leg against Portuguese runners-up Porto tonight (21:05 CET), following their 2-0 win last week. “They have nothing to lose, Porto will try to get an early goal and we have to try and stop them,”. Last week, the Turkey international made a comeback after a year out due to injury.
Dortmund‘s head coach Thomas Tuchel agrees with Sahin. “I am expecting Porto to be at their best because they are playing at home in front of their own fans, who will be full of emotion.” The BVB coach believes that his team will have to put in another "top performance" to make sure they get through to the next round.” Tuchel will be without Sokratis for the second leg, after he suffered a groin strain in the narrow win over Bayer Leverkusen last Saturday.
Goalkeeping legend Iker Casillas and his team showed how strong they are at home on Sunday evening, overturning a 2-0 deficit to come back and win 3-2 against relegation threatened Moreirense. Super sub Evandro, who scored the winner, thanked the fans after the win: “We won the game because of them.” Borussia Dortmund will have to be ready for Porto’s twelfth man in the return leg tonight.
Schalke host Donetsk: “It’s important to not concede an away goal“
Schalke’s 1-1 draw with Stuttgart at the weekend was their third game in a row without a win. In today’s return leg against Shakhtar Donetsk (19:00 CET), the Royal Blues will have to end their bad run of form in order to make it through to the last 16 of the Europa League. Playmaker Johannes Geis is highly motivated ahead of the second leg: “Unfortunately, in the first game we couldn't manage to get a win, in the second game we want to do better.”
The 0-0 draw in the first leg isn’t a bad result, but it has put us in a dangerous position for the return leg,” said Cameroon international Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting, “Even so, we are playing at home and will definitely be playing for a win.” The striker is an injury concern though, after he was substituted 22 minutes into the game against Stuttgart, due to a pelvic contusion. Germany U21 international Leon Goretzka is also a doubt for the game due to a calf strain. The good news though, is that Max Meyer is once again available to play after overcoming a bout of tonsillitis.
“We will have to be creative and push for a goal, but not be caught on the counter” said Schalke sporting director Horst Heldt, who believes Shakhtar will “play cautiously”. As the Ukrainian league only restarts in March, Mircea Lucescu’s team haven’t had any other fixtures to focus on, so they have been able to concentrate fully on the match in Gelsenkirchen. The Romanian coach, who has been at the club since 2004, knows how to beat Schalke, as he was in charge last time Donetsk knocked them out of the European Cup in 2005, when Shakhtar managed to win 1-0 at the Veltins-Arena to go through, following a 1-1 in the first leg in Donetsk.
Augsburg want to eliminate Liverpool
Reaching the round of 32 is already the biggest success in Augsburg’s history. However, after drawing 0-0 against Liverpool last week, Markus Weinzierl’s team will be thinking they can extend their Europa League dream. Winger Tobias Werner is confident ahead of tonight’s match at Anfield (19:00 CET): “We have nothing to lose. If we can be compact again in Liverpool, we will certainly have a chance of progressing.”
FCA managed a narrow win at the weekend against Hannover, which has given them even more momentum going into the match. “It relaxes you. Although we haven’t won yet, it has made the trip to Liverpool easier,” explained Markus Weinzierl, who will have to do without striker Raúl Bobadilla because of the muscle strain he picked up in the first leg. The Paraguayan striker, who has scored six goals so far in the competition, has played a large role in Augsburg’s success so far.
Liverpool and Jürgen Klopp enjoyed a weekend off from matches last week. “It’s important to have two days off, especially for the players who have been a part of almost every game,” the German coach commented ahead of the return leg. That applies to Germany international Emre Can as well, as he has played in 36 competitive matches already this season. Liverpool will face Manchester City in the final of the League Cup on Sunday, but Klopp may not be able to rest any of his first team regulars against Augsburg though, because of the injury worries in his squad.
Leverkusen ahead thanks to Bellarabi
After losing to Borussia Dortmund at the weekend, Roger Schmidt’s side will have to be fully focused on the return leg against Sporting Lisbon tonight (19:00 CET), if they are hoping to win their first title since their DFB Cup win in 1993. Bayer 04 go into the game with the upper hand following Karim Bellarabi’s goal in the first leg.
“It was good that we won 1-0 in the first leg, but it is still a dangerous score line," warned the experienced Stefan Kießling ahead of the second leg. Leverkusen will be without their captain Ömer Toprak and Kevin Kampl for the tie, as both of them picked up injuries in the match against BVB which will put them out for two to three weeks. Playmaker Hakan Calhanoglu summed up his side’s position, “At the moment the tie is ours to lose. We want to make sure we put it to bed.”
The Portuguese league leaders made it nine game unbeaten for them in the league on Monday with a 2-0 win over Boavista, as they chase their first league title since 2002. Lisbon have a miserable record against German teams though, winning only two of their 23 games against them. In Germany their record is even worse, as they have played eleven games, lost ten and drawn one.
