UEFA Cup 26 April

Both games tonight in the UEFA Cup semi final first leg are offered at a level handicap and my feeling is that the home sides are probably slightly under-estimated by the bookies.

Osasuna will feel reasonably confident tonight against a Seville side that has failed to score a single goal in their last five away games. There is some recent form to go on too as these two met at the same venue on April 1 and drew 0-0. You can wonder how much effort Seville will put into this game too as they have a key game at the weekend against Espanyol which would give them a decent chance of winning La Liga and I have a feeling that we may not see a full strength Seville side tonight. The best value in this game though is to bet on there being no goalscorer in the contest and the 8.60 odds on Betfair on this game ending goalless looks too big and is worth a one point wager.

[Osasuna won 1-0]

Werder Bremen are also pushing to win their league and I wonder whether they will be saving themselves for their weekend clash against Bielefeld. They will fancy their chances of making it through to the final but it would be unwise to underestimate Espanyol. The Spaniards have Garcia out tonight (banned) but they still have a decent attack with Tamudo and Pandiani and they are yet to lose in this competition (eight wins and two draws). Given their home support and good record, I think the bookies are being a bit generous on the handicap. Have a one point bet on Espanyol (level) at 2.05.

[Espanyol won 3-0]