Who will join Atalanta in the event’s hall of fame? Eight teams remain in contention for the second most prestigious trophy in Europe. Hopes of bringing the trophy back to Italy have dwindled following Roma’s elimination last Thursday, when, down to ten men from the 11th minute of the first half, they were unable to prevent Athletic Bilbao from coming back to win 3-1 at San Mamés, the stadium that will host the final in May.
In any case, all is not lost: the other team from the capital, Marco Baroni’s Lazio, is still in contention. After a sensational league phase – no one did better than the Biancocelesti in the single round of the competition, finishing with 19 points, level with Athletic – they want to continue to have their say.
Meanwhile, Lazio had not reached the quarter-finals of a European competition since 2018. They got there despite suffering more than expected in the round of 16 against Viktoria Plzen, beating them 2-1 in the first leg in the Czech Republic despite having two players sent off. It was not easy at the Olimpico either, with Romagnoli and his teammates managing to avoid extra time thanks to the captain’s goal a quarter of an hour from the end, which canceled out Sulc’s Czech lead (1-1). Lazio will be the favorites in the next round as well, facing the Norwegian side Bodo/Glimt, who are dangerous but overall within Baroni’s men’s reach.
Winners of the Europa League in 2025, Lazio second ahead of the English teams
The Biancocelesti believe they can do it. So does Opta’s Supercomputer, which sees Lazio as the second favorite to win the cup behind Athletic Bilbao. The capital club has a 21.5% chance of winning a European trophy again after the golden years of Cragnotti’s management in the late 1990s and early 2000s, while the Basques have a 22.4% chance and, should they reach the final, would have the chance to play in front of their home crowd.
Behind them are the two English teams, Tottenham and Manchester United, who have lost ground since the start of the season. This is undoubtedly due to their poor results in the Premier League: for both teams, winning the Europa League is currently the only way to avoid focusing solely on the league next year.
According to Opta’s predictions, Spurs are ahead of Manchester United: 18.4% against 13.3%. Their opponents in the quarter-finals, Eintracht Frankfurt (7.8%) and Lyon (10.9%), should not be underestimated either: neither of them seem to be starting at a disadvantage against the Londoners and the Red Devils. Finally, there is very little chance for Bodo/Glimt and Rangers: the Norwegians (3.4%) are slightly ahead of the Scots (2.2%), who surprisingly knocked out José Mourinho’s Fenerbahçe in the round of 16.