UEFA Europa League Predictions: Athletic Club vs. Man Utd, Tottenham vs. Bodo/Glimt | OneFootball

This season's Europa League campaign has been littered with drama and the semifinal stage looks likely to conjure some more magic.

Manchester United, who were at the heart of the chaos in the quarterfinals, are joined by fellow Premier League big-hitters Tottenham Hotspur as they aim to end their 17-year trophy drought. Silverware is important for both of the English top-flight's underperformers but Champions League qualification is just as crucial—well, for the Red Devils at least.

Whether they can navigate challenging semifinal ties remains to be seen but they start the job on Thursday evening. Here are Sports Illustrated's predictions for the Europa League first legs.

Athletic Club vs Manchester United: Thursday, May. 1

Prediction: Athletic Club 2-1 Man Utd

United required a logic-defying turnaround to book their ticket in the semis, with Harry Maguire the unlikely saviour during a thrilling quarterfinal second leg with Lyon. The aggregate score finished 7-6 in the Red Devils' favour across both matches but Ruben Amorim will be eager to endure far less stress in meetings with Athletic Club.

The Manchester behemoths have generally saved their best performances for Europe this term but few can ever predict which iteration of the fallen giants will turn up on any given matchday. Another tame outing at Bournemouth on Sunday will hardly have raised morale.

Athletic Club are formidable foes, too. The Basque outfit, who are currently fourth in La Liga and likely to qualify for next year's Champions League, are exceptionally difficult to beat and have lost just five times in the league this term—the same number as Barcelona, Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid. Their defence is the sternest in Spain, which is bad news for United's misfiring forward line, and they boast the likes of Nico Williams in the final third.

Tottenham vs Bodo/Glimt: Thursday, May. 1

Prediction: Tottenham 3-1 Bodo/Glimt

Tottenham and United have been similarly hopeless this season but the former have also salvaged a modicum of pride in the Europa League. They have navigated challenging ties with AZ Alkmaar and Eintracht Frankfurt in the knockouts—albeit not entirely convincingly—and now have an excellent opportunity to make the showpiece event.

Bodo/Glimt, the reigning Norwegian champions, lie in wait and despite defeating Lazio in the quarterfinal, they will be significant underdogs for Thursday's first leg in north London and the reverse fixture on home soil. They have already made it further than any Norwegian team in a major European competition and will be aiming to do the unthinkable against Spurs.

Tottenham cannot underestimate their Scandinavian opponents and Ange Postecoglou will want a convincing victory to protect during next week's second leg.

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