Back this 7/1 UEFA Europa League acca on Thursday

Our Europa League coverage continues with another (hopefully winning) treble on Thursday, on a night which sees two English clubs in action. 

Manchester United host FC Twente at Old Trafford while Tottenham welcome FK Qarabag to the capital ahead of their meeting in the Premier League on Sunday afternoon.

Both could do with a win after a stale start to the new campaign, but they won't be the focus of our attention in this piece as we look further across the continent for our selections here. 

Brad Walker's best Europa League bets for Thursday, September 26th, 2024

Ajax to beat Besiktas (Evens) - 2 pts

Lyon to beat Olympiakos (19/20) - 1 pt

Roma to beat Athletic Bilbao (11/10) - 1 pt 

Ajax, Lyon & Roma treble (7.19/1) - 0.5 pts

Selection #1 - Ajax to beat Besiktas (Evens)

'De Godenzonen' have made a respectable start to life under former Nice boss Francesco Farioli and head into this one unbeaten in their last four. 

The run includes two victories over Jagiellonia Bialystok in the play-off in this competition to secure a place in the new 'league phase'. 

Ajax have also looked confident at home - both of their two wins in the Eredivisie have been at the Johan Cruyff Arena - and they've also recorded three consecutive clean sheets at home in the Europa League heading into this one. 

In fact, the club have won seven in a row in this competition - though six of those came against lower-level opposition during the qualifying rounds this summer.

Ajax will also be facing-off against an old rival in former Feyenoord midfielder Giovanni van Bronckhorst. 

The Dutchman took over the reins at Besiktas in the summer and has overseen an unbeaten start for the club in the Turkish Super Lig (W4, D1).

Besiktas' form in the Europa hasn't been quite as convincing, though. They've picked up just two wins in their last 10 in the competition, one of which came vs Lugano in the play-off rounds.

Coupled with their poor form on the road - where they've picked up one win in nine in the Europa - it's hard to envisage anything but a home win here. 

Van Bronckhorst has only been in the Besiktas dugout since the summer. (Photo credit: Alamy Images)

Selection #2 - Lyon to beat Olympiakos (19/20)

The last three seasons have been difficult for Lyon fans. Having failed to finish in Ligue 1's top three since 2018/19, the Groupama Stadium faithful will hardly have been convinced by their start to the new campaign. 

Lyon have won just one of their first five outings in the French top-flight, three of which have ended in defeat.

The latest loss came in a crushing 3-2 defeat at home to Marseille at the weekend, where Rayan Cherki initially looked to have salvaged a point for the hosts before Jonathan Rowe netted a late winner two minutes after. That match perfectly typified their season so far - dangerous on the front foot but made to pay after lapses in defensive areas.

Some hope can be taken from their recent form in the Europa League, though. Lyon have lost just three times in their last 15 in the competition, which they last competed in back in 2021/22. 

Their opponents on Thursday haven't enjoyed the same level of success on the continent. Despite making a positive start in the Greek top-flight, Olympiakos have not reached the knockout stages of the Europa since the 2020/21 campaign. 

The Greek outfit were eliminated during the group stage across the two previous seasons, posing questions over their ability to compete with a struggling but still more-established Lyon side. 

Ultimately, I expect the added quality of the French club to shine through and provide a much-needed lift which they will hope to carry across to their domestic fixtures moving forward.

Selection #3 - Roma to beat Athletic Bilbao (11/10)

Chaos continues to ensue at Roma following the sacking of former manager Daniele De Rossi last week. 

The Italian failed to win any of their opening four Serie A matches and was shown the door, triggering a riotous reaction from the Roma faithful. 

Club CEO Lina Souloukou has now resigned in recent days due to the response from the fan base, cranking the tension up at Stadio Olimpico in the process.

Former Torino boss Ivan Juric has stepped into the storm to replace De Rossi in the dugout and, to his credit, got off to a winning start with a 3-0 victory at home to Udinese. 

Steadying the ship will be his first job and progress in European competition will go a long way to winning over the club's fractious support, particularly given their performance in this competition in recent years. 

The sacking of former Roma boss has prompted a strong reaction from the club's support. (Photo credit: Alamy Images)

The club had reached the semi-finals, final and then semi-finals again across the last three campaigns, and they'd also won the Conference League in the competition's inaugural season under Jose Mourinho. 

Athletic Bilbao stand between them and a winning start this time around, and come into the game in positive form on the domestic front. 

After a shaky start, Ernesto Valverde's side have now won four of their last five in La Liga, where they currently sit third. 

Their inexperience competing across the continent could prove costly, though. Bilbao haven't competed in European competition since 2018, where they lost their last three matches en route to elimination in the round-of-16.

Compared with the resume of their Italian counterparts, I think the Romans rightly come into this one narrow favourites an odds-against price of 11/10. That's the direction I'll be going in, anyway.