Defending champions Atletico Madrid head a list of several teams that can advance to the knockout stages of the Europa League today, as the group phase reaches the business end.
Group B leaders Atletico, who are one of three remaining teams with a perfect record thus far, can assure themselves of a berth in the last 32 with a victory against Academica in Coimbra.
However, Atletico will be without Colombian star Radamel Falcao and numerous other first-team regulars with manager Diego Simeone electing to name a youthful squad for the trip to Portugal.
Despite a 2-0 loss at Valencia on Saturday – a result that snapped the club’s 23-match unbeaten run in all competitions – Emre Belozoglu, one of the veterans retained by Simeone today, lauded the team’s unity.
“When I signed for this club, I saw there was a fantastic atmosphere in the squad – it’s like a family,” the Turkish international said.
However Atletico’s record 16-game winning streak in Europe remains intact and Emre has his sights set on defending the title.
“Last year we won the Europa League and we want to win it again,” he said.
“We have a great team and we are going well. If we can continue progressing, we can achieve our goals and hopefully finish a great season in Spain.”
Lyon, who have also recorded three wins from three, will be out to book their spot in the next round against Athletic Bilbao.
Lyon won the corresponding fixture at Stade Gerland 2-1, leaving last year’s finalists Bilbao staring down the barrel in Group I.
Dnipro are the third team boasting a flawless record, and the Ukrainian outfit will advance from Group F if they can put an end to Napoli’s 15-match unbeaten home run.
A resurgent Inter can ensure they progress with victory at Partizan Belgrade, provided Rubin Kazan, who would also go through with a win, dispose of Azerbaijani minnows Neftci.
The picture is slightly more complicated for Tottenham, however, as their campaign remains grounded after three draws to start Group J.
Spurs sit third, trailing leaders Lazio by two points and unheralded Maribor by one.
Liverpool and Newcastle both occupy first place in their respective groups and can give themselves breathing space with wins today, but defeats would put the English sides right back into the mix.
Having beaten Anzhi Makha-chkala 1-0 at Anfield, Liverpool travel to Dagestan with a two-point advantage over their Russian rivals and Udinese, while Young Boys are another point further adrift.
Newcastle have yet to concede in this season’s group phase and are in action at Bruges, who sacked former Belgium manager Georges Leekens over the weekend.
Today’s Europa League fixtures
Group A: 18.00 Anzhi vs Liverpool; 19.00 Udinese vs Young Boys.
Standings: Liverpool 6; Anzhi, Udi-nese 4; Young Boys 3.
Group B: 19.00 A. Coimbra vs A. Madrid; V. Plzen vs H. Tel-Aviv.
Standings: Atl. Madrid 9; V. Plzen 6; Coimbra, H. Tel-Aviv 1.
Group C: 19.00 Fenerbahce vs AEL Limassol; Marseille vs B. M’gladbach.
Standings: Fenerbahce 7; Marseille, B. M’gladbach 4; AEL Limassol 1.
Group D: 19.00 Bordeaux vs Mari-timo; Bruges vs Newcastle.
Standings: Newcastle 7; Bordeaux 4; Bruges 3; Maritimo 2.
Group E: 19.00 Copenhagen vs Stuttgart; Molde vs S. Bucharest.
Standings: S. Bucharest 7; Copen-hagen 4; Molde 3; Stuttgart 2.
Group F: 19.00 AIK Solna vs PSV Eindhoven; Napoli vs Dnipro.
Standings: Dnipro 9; PSV Eindhoven 4; Napoli 3; AIK 1.
Group G: 21.05 Basel vs Videoton; Sporting Lisbon vs Genk.
Standings: Genk 7; Videoton 6; Basel 2; Sporting Lisbon 1.
Group H: 18.00 Neftci vs Rubin Kazan; 21.05 Partizan vs Inter.
Standings: Inter, Rubin Kazan 7; Neftci, Partizan 1.
Group I: 21.05 Athletic Bilbao vs Lyon; Hapoel KS vs S. Prague.
Standings: Lyon 9; Sparta Prague 6; Hapoel KS, A. Bilbao 1.
Group J: 21.05 Lazio vs Panathinaikos; Tottenham vs Maribor.
Standings: Lazio 5; Maribor 4; Totten-ham 3; Panathinaikos 2.
Group K: 21.05 B. Leverkusen vs R. Vienna; M. Kharkiv vs Rosenborg.
Standings: B. Leverkusen, Metalist 7; Rosenborg 3; R. Vienna 0.
Group L: 21.05 FC Twente vs Levante; Hannover vs Helsingborgs.
Standings: Hannover 7; Levante 6; Twente 2; Helsingborgs 1.