Source: Digital News
In UEFA Europa League 2024/2025 season, there's a total of 36 teams competing in the league phase. In this article, our team is summarizing the performance of the "Nordic Five" in UEFA Europa League before knock-out phase.
Sweden
Elfsborg
Elfsborg started the league phase of UEFA Europa League 24/25 season away against AZ Alkmaar with a tight 3-2 loss. They managed to stay in the game for a long time despite creating very few goal chances, until Parrott's goal from penalty spot led AZ Alkmaar to a home win. In the second round, Elfsborg was facing AS Roma at Borås Arena; match ended 1-0 for the Swedish side, starting Elfsborg's unbeaten streak at home.
Elfsborg has been very tough in this season's league phase - they have been extremely clinical in terms of goal scoring opportunities and xG, and capable to turn matches on their favor, especially at home. They are currently 20th in UEFA Europa League standings, fighting to reach the knockout phase playoffs.
Malmö FF
Results wise, Malmö's league phase has been very difficult - the previous season's Swedish champion is currently in 32nd position in UEFA Europa League standings, unable to reach the knockout stage. The luck of the draw with Malmö's opponents didn't really favor the Swedish side - among others, the draw brought previous year's UEFA Conference League winner Olympiakos, Scottish giant Rangers and 16-time Turkish Süper Lig champion, Besiktas.
Unlike the other Allsvenskan representative Elfsborg, Malmö has struggled to get points especially when playing at home. When looking at UEFA Europa League home matches, they're at the bottom of the league table, with only one point picked up from a 2-2 draw against Galatasaray.
Norway
Bodø/Glimt
Northern Norway's sensation of the recent years is currently in 10th place in the Europa League standings and fighting for a direct spot in the round of 16. The team has already secured a place in the UEFA Europa League knockout stage with a well-balanced team performance and good results. The current season is the Norwegians' fourth consecutive in Europe, and at the moment it looks like they're reaching the knockout stage for the third time on their four-year period in European competitions.
The Norwegian side have excelled in goal-scoring especially at home, with a goal scoring average of over 2 goals per match. They have an excellent chance to secure the spot in the round of 16 in the last match of the league phase against underperforming Nice.
Denmark
Midtjylland
Midtjylland’s 2024/25 UEFA Europa League season has been challenging and quite variable, in terms of results. They began with a 1-1 draw against Hoffenheim on the first league phase match, with Dario Osorio scoring for Midtjylland and Max Moerstedt equalizing for Hoffenheim. After securing a 0-2 away win against Maccabi Tel Aviv on the second round and a 1-0 victory over Union Saint-Gilloise on the third round, they suffered season's first defeat to Eintracht Frankfurt in Herning, where Hugo Larsson's goal in the first half and a penalty by Omar Marmoush sealed the win for Frankfurt.
Midtjylland has accumulated 7 goals and conceded 7, with 3 clean sheets in the competition. By taking points from Fenerbahce in the last game of the league phase, they are a likely contender for UEFA Europa League knockout stage.
Latvia
RFS
The UEFA Europa League debutant, Rīgas Futbola Skola (RFS) has experienced a mixed 2024/25 UEFA Europa League season. After progressing through the qualifying rounds, they faced a series of challenging fixtures in the league phase.
RFS has accumulated five points from seven matches, placing them in the lower tier of the league phase standings. Their final group stage match is scheduled against Dynamo Kyiv on January 30, 2025.
While the campaign has presented significant challenges, the landmark victory over Ajax stands out as a historic achievement for both RFS and Latvian football.
Add comment
Comments