Europa League: Matchday Three Tips & Predictions

Matchday three of the new-look UEFA Europa League takes place this week, with Thursday set to witness 16 games across Europe as the teams jostle for position in the 36-team league table that will now begin to take some genuine shape after three games.

There's plenty of British interest, with Tottenham seeking a third straight win when they host AZ Alkmaar, Rangers bidding for their second victory with Romanian outfit FCSB coming to Glasgow and Manchester United set to face former boss Jose Mourinho and his Fenerbahce side in Turkey.

Tip 1: FCSB or draw against Rangers @ 33/20](https://www.betuk.com/betting/football#event/1021554876)

The pressure is intensifying on Rangers manager Philippe Clement after his side lost at Kilmarnock on Sunday. The Light Blues missed a golden opportunity to close the gap after the top two teams in the Scottish Premiership, Celtic and Aberdeen, had drawn 24 hours earlier.

The mood around the Ibrox club is now decidedly low and the knives could soon be sharpened for their Belgian boss, with Rangers now having lost two of their last three games. They were hammered 4-1 by Lyon here on matchday two, the French side scoring four goals inside the hour.

FCSB – formerly Steaua Bucharest – arrive in Glasgow on a nine-game unbeaten sequence, including back-to-back Europa League wins over Latvian side RFS and Greek outfit PAOK. They rode their luck last time, with PAOK having 27 goal attempts, but FCSB had to play more than half an hour with ten men.

With Rangers suffering from a lack of confidence – and creativity based on Sunday's Rugby Park showing – it's hard to be keen on them as 2/5 favourites here and taking the Romanian visitors in the double-result market is preferred.

Tip 2: Tottenham -1 against AZ Alkmaar @ 6/5](https://www.betuk.com/betting/football#event/1021554877)

Tottenham Hotspur have won both their Europa League games this term, overcoming an early red card as they made short work of Qarabag in north London and then picking up maximum points from a testing trip to Hungary to face Ferencvaros.

Ange Postecoglou's team are in excellent form, winning six of their last seven in all competitions. The only blip came when they collapsed after leading 2-0 at half-time against Brighton.

They responded positively by defeating West Ham 4-1 at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium at the weekend and should be relishing a visit from an AZ Alkmaar side who have lost four on the bounce.

That run included their 2-0 reverse at Athletic Bilbao on matchday two, a game in which they had a paltry five goal attempts, with just two on target. Spurs should put them away comfortably, given that four of the Lilywhites' last five wins have come by more than one goal.

Tip 3: Fenerbahce vs Manchester United Draw @ 12/5

Outside of thrashing Barnsley in the League Cup, Manchester United have won just three of 10 games in all competitions this season. One of those was against winless Southampton, with the other two being very hard-earned home wins over Fulham and Brentford.

Former Red Devils boss Mourinho will be licking his lips as his Fenerbahce side get set to entertain United in Istanbul.

Fenerbahce's only domestic defeat this season came against league leaders Galatasaray, while they pushed Lille to extra-time in their attempts to qualify for the Champions League.

Fener have picked up four points from a possible six in this competition so far and can hold Manchester United to what would be their fifth draw in seven games as Erik ten Hag's side continue to find wins elusive.