UEFA Europa League 2018-19: 10 Matches to look forward to on Match Day 1
The UEFA Europa League, Europe's second most prestigious club competition will start from 20th September. This competition includes teams who have won the domestic cup competition in their country or finished their domestic league with a high enough ranking to render them eligible for Europa League football.
This year's tournament includes English teams Arsenal and Chelsea, as well as teams from other leagues such as: Sevilla, Betis and Villarreal, who represent La Liga; AC Milan and Lazio from Serie A; Eintract Frankfurt, Bayer Leverkusen and RB Leipzig from Bundesliga; and Marseille along with Bordeaux from France.
Here, we take a look at the 10 most interesting matches to look forward to on UEFA Europa league MatchDay 1:
#1 PAOK vs Chelsea
Chelsea have started the season in fine form winning all the five matches they played in the Premier League this year. A change in philosophy has helped Chelsea get to the top of the table after five rounds of football in the Premier League. But their adventure in Europe starts with a trip to Greece where they will face PAOK.
PAOK finished second last season coming behind AEK in the Greece Superleague. Chelsea will be looking to rest a few of their main players, but still they have players like Morata and Willian who did not start this week against Cardiff. Chelsea will be looking to continue their impressive run in the Europa league also.
#2 Arsenal vs Vorskla
Arsenal also had a change this season when Arsene Wenger left after 22 years and Unai Emery arrived from PSG to take control over a fledgling side. Unlike Chelsea, Arsenal players do need some time to adapt to Emery's style of play. Nonetheless, after a few hiccups, when they suffered losses to Chelsea and Manchester City at the start of the season, they have gone on to win against West Ham and also away at Cardiff and Newcastle.
Vorksla finished 8th in the Ukrainian Premier League last term, but did manage to win the Cup competition by virtue of which they are in Europa. While trips to Ukraine are generally tough, Vorksla is no Shakhtar and Arsenal should defeat them.