The Premier League season may well be over, but the big football continues to come thick and fast.
This week it’s the turn of the Europa League final in Lyon on Wednesday as Atletico Madrid and Marseille go head to head in a bid to take the trophy.
Atletico have plenty of European pedigree in recent years, but can Marseille secure their first European success since 2005? Our football expert runs you through the pick of the Europa League bets.
Costa to right the wrongs of his last Atletico final appearance
Diego Costa has unfinished business with Atletico Madrid in major European finals.
The Spanish forward was forced to limp off after just eight minutes in their Champions League final defeat to Real Madrid in 2014.
The 29-year-old seems to always deliver when it matters most and scored the goal in the semi-final which sealed their 2-1 aggregate win over Arsenal and ended Arsene Wenger’s hopes of a fairy-tale end to his time with the Gunners.
He plays at his best with fire in his belly and will definitely be up for the occasion so I wouldn’t be surprised if he picks up a caution as well as a goal, and that is good value at 6/1 with grosvenorsport.com
Payet to deliver
For Marseille to have any hope of victory they will need their better players to step up to the plate, particularly Dimitri Payet.
The attacking midfielder made the move back to Marseille from West Ham after two hugely successful seasons in London, which brought him back to prominence and fired him into the French European Championship squad.
His form has remained solid with Marseille and heads into the final with seven assists to his name, the most in the competition, and it would be foolish to not believe he could make it eight, which is a bet I am willing to take at 4/1.
Atleti favourites to secure Europa League treble
Diego Simeone’s charges have become perennial challengers for European honours in recent years, with this final being their fifth in the past nine seasons.
The 2010 and 2012 Europa League winners have also featured in two Champions League finals, though both proved to be unsuccessful against their city rivals Real.
Atletico are understandably 4/6 favourites for the encounter against a Marseille side who can be backed at 9/2 to win their first Europa League title, having come up short twice when the competition was named the UEFA Cup in 1999 and 2004.
I think the Spanish side will just have too much quality though for the French side in their homeland and the bet that is attracting me is for Atletico to win in 90 minutes, with both teams scoring, which is available at 3/1.
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