The Europa League quarterfinal draw was held in Nyon on Friday afternoon. Croatian champion Dinamo is among the eight clubs that will compete in the quarterfinals.
Arsenal, Manchester United, Roma, Granada, Villarreal, Slavia Prague, and Ajax also reached the quarterfinals. There were no restrictions in the quarterfinals and all clubs could play each other. The pairs were drawn by former Arsenal and City player Gael Clichy.
After the draw for the quarterfinals, a draw for the semifinals was held.
Quarterfinal draw:
Granada – Manchester United
Arsenal – Slavia
Ajax – Roma
Dinamo – Villarreal
Semifinal draw:
Granada / Manchester United – Ajax / Roma
DINAMO / Villarreal – Arsenal / Slavia
If Dinamo passes Villarreal, they will play with the better team from the clash between Arsenal and Slavia in the semis. The Croatian champion was lucky in the draw because they avoided any Premier League sides in the quarterfinals, but also the mighty Ajax.
Dinamo will thus play against the seventh-placed team of the Spanish championship, which isn’t having the greater season. Villarreal knocked out Dynamo Kyiv (4:0) and Red Bull Salzburg (4:1) on the way to the quarterfinals.
According to Transfermarkt, Villarreal is worth 250 million euros and the most expensive player is stopper Pau Torres (50 million euros). The biggest stars are Spanish strikers Gerard Moreno and Paco Alcacer, and last year the great midfielder Dani Parejo from Valencia arrived.
Dinamo and Villarreal played 10 years ago in the group stage of the same competition. Dinamo won 2:0 in the first round at Maksimir and lost 0:3 in the return match in Spain.
The first quarterfinal matches are on April 8, and the return matches on April 15, while the semifinals are played on April 29 and May 6. Dinamo will host the first match in the quarterfinal and in the eventual semifinal.
The Europa League final is on May 26 in Gdansk. The winner Europa League winner will win a direct place in the group stage of the Champions League next season.
Source: Index.hr
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