There was a flurry of goals in the quarter-finals of the Europa League and I expect the trend to continue on Thursday.
With three Portuguese sides represented in the last four, Villarreal are the odd ones out, the competition has a somewhat lopsided look to it but the trio of Primeira Liga teams fully merit their places and the betting suggests two will contest the final.
Favourites to lift the trophy at this stage are Porto and following their incredible season it is hard to argue that they warrant their place at the head of the betting. They wrapped up the domestic championship with weeks to spare, Porto are still unbeaten, dropping only four points as a result of two draws, and their progress in Europe has been equally as emphatic.
Having won 12 of their 14 Europa League matches en route to the semi-finals, going way back to a 7-2 aggregate triumph over Genk in August in qualifying, Porto have nothing to fear from Villarreal under young manager Andre Villas-Boas and I expect them to establish a first-leg advantage.
Porto do concede goals however, for a team so dominant it is noteworthy they have not kept a clean sheet for eight matches, and the tie is likely to be very much alive ahead of the return in Spain.
With 36 league goals between them this season, Porto will look towards the South American pairing of Hulk and Falcao for inspiration on Thursday but the visitors themselves have an abundance of attacking talent and in Italian Giuseppe Rossi one of Europe’s finest poachers.
Rossi, on target in a 3-2 defeat at Sevilla on the weekend, has forged a decent partnership with the much-touted Brazilian Nilmar and I don’t envisage for one minute that either of these teams will be sitting back at Estádio Do Dragão.
It’s not often I take the plunge in a goals related market however the 1.91 about both sides finding the target appeals. Any result is a possibility, Villarreal are capable of beating anybody on their day, but it should be end-to-end despite the prize on offer and the selection is a confident one.
4pts Back Both Teams to Score (Porto vs. Villarreal) @ 1.91 (Boylesports)