The 2022/23 European football calendar is winding to a close over the coming couple of weeks and the first of the major cup finals up on our schedule is Sevilla vs Roma in the Europa League Final. Kick-off is 8pm BST on Wednesday evening from the Puskas Arena in Budapest.
Will trophy-winning legend Jose Mourinho add another cup to his cabinet or will he be stopped by the Europa League experts Sevilla who are aiming to win this competition for a record 7th time? Here are my free Europa League football tips ahead of the big game.
Rojiblancos Looking to Set New Records
It is fair to say that Sevilla are synonymous with success in the Europa League. The Spanish club have won the competition a record six times down the years with victories coming in 2006, 2007, 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2020. Half of those wins came under the guidance of Unai Emery but with the club now under the management of Jose Luis Mendilibar, there is hope that this group of players can write a new glorious chapter in the team’s history books.
The club was stuck in a relegation battle when Mendilibar was appointed at the end of March. The Spanish managerial journeyman has since guided the club to 11th place in La Liga but he knows they need to win here if they want to see European football at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan next season. Betfred have Sevilla listed at 10/11 to lift the trophy with a win in 90 minutes available at 15/8 with Bet365.
Three of the last four Europa League games involving Sevilla have ended with both teams to score coming in. I’m not convinced that will happen here but if you are keen to back that outcome then it’s priced at 6/5 with William Hill. Attacker Youssef En-Nesyri has bagged 3 goals in his last 3 Europa League appearances and he’s listed at 13/5 with William Hill to score any time.
Third Time Lucky for Jose?
If Sevilla are considered the team of the Europa League then current Roma head coach Jose Mourinho must be considered one of the managers of the Europa League. The Portuguese gaffer has won the competition on two previous occasions with Porto in 2003 and Manchester United in 2017. Bet365 have him listed at 10/11 to become the first manager to win the competition with three different clubs.
Roma, unlike their opponents, know that they will be playing European football next season no matter what happens here but a win would bring the glory of Champions League football. Considering the team are currently in 6th place in Serie A heading into the last round of league games, that would be quite the treat!
La Lupa are familiar with success in Europe under Mourinho already having won the Europa Conference League last season. The team beat Feyenoord by a 1-0 score-line in the Final and if you’re thinking this game could end the same way then you’ll get a 1-0 win for Roma at 6/1 with Unibet. Roma have seen less than 2.5 goals scored in 7 of their 8 knockout round matches in this competition this year so I think we can expect a low-scoring affair here again.
Head-to-Head Meetings
These two clubs have only met on four previous occasions and three of those encounters were just club friendlies. The spoils have been shared in those three non-competitive games with one win apiece and one draw.
The only time they have played each other in a competitive game was back in 2006 in the 2020 Europa League last 16. The knockout phase was reduced to one-legged ties at neutral venues due to the covid-19 pandemic curtailing the season. Sevilla prevailed as 2-0 winners in that game.
Sevilla vs Roma Betting Tips
Football is all about romance and everything is so well set ahead of this final. Will it be Sevilla extending their record Europa League/ UEFA Cup trophy haul? Or will Mourinho set a new managerial record with yet another trophy win? One way or another, history will be made here!
My gut feeling is that we’ll see Roma sneak the win. I think Mourinho’s experience at winning in finals will give him an advantage over Mendilibar. The Roma players are also experienced at winning trophies having won the Europa Conference League last season. It’ll be a tight game with few chances but I think it’ll definitely be a Roma trophy lift and less than 2.5 goals scored. The value on less than 2.5 goals being scored isn’t great though so I’m ending the season with a big call on the correct score.
Roma to Lift Trophy @ 10/11 with Bet365 bonus code
Correct Score: Roma to Win 1-0 @ 6/1 with Unibet
All odds are accurate at the time of writing.
