Europa League Tips: Jose and company to find a way

• Roma must win to progress
• Fenerbahce winning games and scoring freely
• Malmo have lost all five group games

Mourinho to muddle through

Roma v Ludogorets
Thursday 03 November, 20:00
Live on BT Sport

Roma boss Jose Mourinho was so proud of the club's success in the UEFA Europa Conference League last season that he went out and got a tattoo of the three European major trophies he has won on his arm.

Adding the UECL to the two Champions Leagues and two Europa Leagues he has lifted was a unique achievement, as last season was the first edition of the new competition.

However, Roma haven't found things quite so smooth in the Europa League this term. A 2-1 defeat at Ludogorets was a dreadful start, and the collection of a single point from the two games against Real Betis has seen them playing catch-up.

A narrow victory in the Finnish capital Helsinki against HJK last week kept their qualification hopes alive, but now they must beat Ludogorets to reach the playoff round.

The perennial Bulgarian champions have a poor away record in this competition recently.

They haven't won any of their last nine away games in the UEL, and they have lost five of those matches. In the group stage they have been held to a draw in Helsinki, and they lost 3-2 in Seville against Betis.

Even without the injured Paulo Dybala and Gini Wijnaldum, Roma should have the quality to finally seal qualification here, and overall they have won four of their last six matches.

It might be a tense and tight affair, and if Roma take the lead early on, don't expect Mourinho to open the game out. I'll back Roma to win and Under 3.5 Goals on the Sportsbook at 2.01/1.

Spaniards to wrap up in style

Real Betis v HJK
Thursday 03 November, 20:00
Live on BT Sport

While Roma and Ludogorets are fighting for a playoff spot, Manuel Pellegrini's Real Betis will be enjoying their final group game in comfort.

The Andalusians have sealed passage to the last 16 with room to spare, but that doesn't necessarily mean they won't look to impress on Matchday Six.

Betis are on a high after an impressive 2-0 win at Real Sociedad in La Liga, and they have now won eight of their last 13 games in league and cup.

At the Benito Villamarin this term, they have won six out of eight matches, scoring at least twice in four of those wins.

Finnish side HJK did well just to get to this stage, and they know their European campaign will end after this game.

They are having a rough run, having lost their last three matches in all competitions, including a 1-0 loss to title rivals KuPS. They lost 3-0 at Roma and 2-0 at Ludogorets, and even in a meaningless game I think they'll be outclassed here.

I'll back Betis -1.5 on the Asian Handicap at 1.84/5.

Fener to claim another win

Dynamo Kyiv v Fenerbahce
Thursday 03 November, 20:00
Live on BT Sport

These are heady days indeed for fans of Istanbul giants Fenerbahce. They are top of the Turkish Super Lig, and if they don't get a worse result against Dynamo Kyiv than Rennes manage against AEK Larnaca, they will fly through to the last 16 of the UEL.

Fener have won 14 of their last 20 games in league and cup, and at the weekend they won 5-2 at Istanbulspor to go three points clear at the top of the Turkish Super Lig. Jorge Jesus' team has scored 55 goals across those 20 competitive matches.

Dynamo Kyiv have struggled, and with good reason. The ongoing war in Ukraine has seen them play their home matches in Poland, their league campaign was also delayed and disrupted, and they weren't able to attract quality signings in the summer.

Dynamo are out of Europe whatever happens on Thursday, having claimed a single point from their five games so far.

On neutral ground, Fener look a great bet to take the win at 1.9620/21.

Braga to do their bit

Braga v Malmo
Thursday 03 November, 20:00
Live on BT Sport

Despite their defeat to Union Berlin in the German capital, Braga are still in with a chance of qualifying for the knockout rounds as a runner-up. Their head-to-head record against Union is dead level, with a 1-0 win and a 1-0 defeat apiece.

They also have the same goal difference (+1), so it's all down to whether they can beat Malmo and whether Union will slip up at Union Saint-Gilloise in Belgium.

Malmo have been the whipping boys of this group, losing all five of their games so far. They have rarely been smashed, but they have only managed two goals. In the reverse fixture they lost 2-0 to Braga in Sweden.

Braga just need to win and hope, so there's no need for the game to be chaotic or get out of hand.

Four of their five UEL matches in the group have featured fewer than four goals, and that's true of their last five home games in all competitions. If we back Braga to win and Under 3.5 Goals on the Sportsbook, that covers 1-0, 2-0, 2-1 and 3-0, and that's a fair range of results, given that I can't see shot-shy Malmo scoring twice.