Europa League: Molde vs Sevilla preview

Molde played their first competitive game of the year on Thursday evening and given Sevilla’s impressive home record, nobody was surprised when they suffered a heavy 3-0 loss to the La Liga outfit. The Norwegians face an uphill task in the return leg as they need to overcome a three-goal deficit in front of home fans, but one thing is for sure: the underdogs will leave their hearts on the field in Thursday’s game against Sevilla as their pride is at stake this time out. Molde have nothing to lose in the return leg and they are likely to adopt an attack-minded approach against los Sevillanos in the second leg. In their last home fixture in the Europa League Molde suffered a 2-0 loss to Fenerbahce, but they did well to beat Celtic 3-1 at their Aker Stadion earlier in the process. In Fredrik Gulbrandsen’s absence, Mohamed Elyounoussi will be the man to watch in the home team.

Fredrik Gulbrandsen and Knut Olav Rindaroy are both sidelined through suspension, but there are no injured players in the home team.

Sevilla recorded a routine 3-0 win over Molde in the first leg, with the team once again proving their worth in front of home fans. However, even though many people expected that they would record their first away win of the 2015/2016 La Liga campaign against Rayo Vallecano at the weekend, Unai Emery’s men played out a 2-2 draw with the capital club. Los Sevillanos obviously struggle on the travels and I am positive that they will give their best to put an end to the negative trend when they take on Molde at Aker Stadion. Seeing that the La Liga side are with one foot in the Europa League last 16, there is every chance Emery will mix the squad against Molde. Fernando Llorente impressed in the first leg and the “Lion King” who scored a brace in the Estadio Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan clash is likely to keep his place in the starting XI.

The likes of Gregorz Krychowiak, Nico Pareja and Vitolo all miss the game with injury, but coach Unai Emery has no other selection worries ahead of the trip to Norway. Experienced winger Jose Antonio Reyes is likely to be recalled to the starting XI and he will replace Vitolo.