The 2013/14 Europa League is cruising right along and set to begin the Round of 16 on Thursday. The draw has been friendly to soccer watching neutrals and rewarded us with some interesting ties that could provide some quality entertainment.
UEFA Europa League 2014: Round of 16 preview
The round of 16 begins in Europe’s other club tournament with some interesting match-ups for your enjoyment.
Valerio Pennicino
Defending -- and likely repeating -- Serie A champions Juventus face a tie against fellow Italian side Fiorentina. The Viola played the Old Lady extremely tough on Sunday but fell 1-0. They'll get a chance for some revenge as they can take the first step towards knocking Juve out of the tournament. Napoli are also in action against defending Primeira Liga champions FC Porto.
Two rivals from Spain meet as well in the round of 16 as Real Betis faces off against Sevilla in a two-leg Seville Derby. Sevilla has had the better of the results over the years between the two teams, but the nice thing about knockout ties is that anything can happen. Betis are a surprise participant in this round considering their extremely poor league forms that finds them on the verge of relegation from La Liga.
Fellow Spanish side Valencia faces Bulgarian side Ludogorets Razgrad.
Tottenham from the EPL will try to knockout last year's Europa League runner-up Benfica. The Águias are on track to win a 33rd Primeira Liga title and will face a Spurs side fresh off an embarrassing 4-0 defeat at the hands of Chelsea.
Here’s a full schedule for tomorrow’s matches. All times are ET.
2 PM
FC Basel vs. SV Salzburg
FC Porto vs. Napoli
Ludogorets Razgrad vs. Valencia
4:05 PM
AZ Alkmaar vs. Anzhi Makhachkala
Juventus vs. Fiorentina
Lyon vs. Viktoria Plzen
Sevilla FC vs. Real Betis
Tottenham Hotspur vs. Benfica
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