5️⃣ things to look out for in Thursday's European action 👀 | OneFootball

The semi-finals beckon in both the Europa League and Conference League quarter-final second leg clashes on Thursday.

Here are five things to watch for across the action.

Can Liverpool pull off another epic Euro comeback?

Istanbul 2005. Barcelona in 2019. Dortmund in 2016.

Liverpool are no strangers to a stunning European comeback when all hope looks to be gone – and it is notable that two of those stirring revivals came under current boss Jürgen Klopp (although crucially they had home advantage for the decider of both of those).

But his farewell plans took a huge hit at the hands of Atalanta last week at Anfield as they scuppered romantic plans of an emotional send-off in Dublin for his last game to be victory in the Europa League with a well-deserved 3-0 victory.

It should also be noted that on the Reds most recent trip to Bergamo, they left with a 5-0 win, but results and performances either side of that Orobici win on Merseyside have also been concerning and this may be a bridge too far – even for this Liverpool team.

In the history of this competition, even dating back to its former UEFA Cup guise, the away side has won the first leg of a tie by three or more goals on 132 occasions. The deficit has never been overturned in the return fixture.

The dream departure does not look likely for Klopp.

All roads lead to Rome

Of the 12 ties across Europe’s three continental competitions, only one is an inter-country affair and Milan’s 1-0 first leg loss at home to Roma was every bit as gripping as had been anticipated.

That leaves things wide open ahead of the return leg in the Eternal City as rookie coach Daniele De Rossi aims to continue his outstanding work since stepping in as interim boss to replace José Mourinho, by leading his side to the final for the second successive season.

But Milan’s performance in the first leg will be a big warning (mustering 25 shots without scoring) as will the fact that they have won on three of their last four visits to the Stadio Olimpico to face the Giallorossi, not to mention their strong record in all-Italian Euro ‘away’ days – one defeat from six.

It all makes for a truly fascinating fixture.

New champs chase season for the ages

Bayer Leverkusen still have the chance to pull off what could arguably be the greatest season in football history (or at least be in the discussion for such).

On Sunday, in the wake of their Europa League first leg win over West Ham, they were finally crowned German champions for the first time in their 119-year history with a ruthless 5-0 demolition of Werder Bremen.

They are still yet to lose a game in any competition as they pursue a potentially astonishing undefeated treble, but the Hammers will pose problems in front of a fired up home support, although key injuries and suspensions could put the comeback beyond them.

Although they have won three of their last four home games against German opposition, Leverkusen have also advanced on all 13 occasions they’ve won the first leg in Europe by two or more goals. Ominous indeed.

Underdogs’ daunting defensive record

It has been seven games and 669 minutes since Viktoria Plzeň last conceded a goal in Europe, when Marin Tomasov found the net for Astana in a defeat on matchday two.

Their most impressive rearguard action came in the last game as they held last season’s beaten finalists Fiorentina to a scoreless draw at home despite being ravaged by injuries and suspensions – leaving them well within striking distance of a big upset in Italy.

That result was also huge in terms of the Czech Republic’s continental co-efficient and looks to have earned them an automatic Champions League qualification berth, but most important was what it does for Plzeň’s own prospects, with their illustrious opponents notably frustrated in the wake of being the latest side who couldn’t breach their rearguard.

“They aren’t naive at the back so we need more unpredictability and speed,” coach Vincenzo Italiano bemoaned last week. “They are an airtight team and we knew that. They don’t give you any space and you have to create any openings yourself.”

That is unlikely to come any easier in Florence.

Villa on the verge

Former European Cup winners Aston Villa have been starved of success on the continental stage for too long but are now just 90 minutes and a clean sheet away from the last four of the Conference League.

They lead Lille 2-1 ahead of the return leg, but the French side’s 15-game unbeaten run at home is evidence of how difficult a trip this will be for Unai Emery’s men, although perhaps less daunting than their most recent away fixture when they stunned Premier League title hopefuls Arsenal for the second time this season.

The first leg also showed how tough this tie is for the Villans, with Lille giving as good as they got, and coach Paulo Fonseca wasn’t wrong when he claimed his side were deserving of more than the narrow loss they left with.

Time will tell if being granted a weekend off to prepare while Villa were storming the Emirates will prove a wise call but it is another intriguingly poised affair.