FC Porto vs. Lazio 2/17/22 UEFA Europa League Soccer Picks, Predictions, Odds

FC Porto and Lazio face off on Thursday in Leg 1 of their Group of 16 showdown at Red Bull Arena Leipzig. The last time these two teams faced off was all the way back during the 2002-03 season. 

FC Porto finished in third place in the standings of Group B of the Champions League. Porto finished with one win, two losses, and three draws which put them in 5th place in the standings. They have been playing well coming into this game, and in each of the last 12 games they have picked up at least one point. In the last game against Sporting, FC Porto played to a 2-2 draw. FC Porto had fallen behind 2-0 in the first 34 minutes. As the game went on through, FC Porto started to pick up steam, and two goals allowed them to pick up one point. In the Primeira Liga, FC Porto has scored 57 goals total while their defense has given up 16 goals. Luis Diaz has been the top player scoring 14 goals and adding four assists. Mehdi Taremi has also scored 12 goals and added seven assists.

On the other side of this matchup is S.S. Lazio who finished in second place in Group E of the Europa League. Lazio has won two of their last three games with the one loss being a 4-0 defeat at the hand of AC Milan. In the last game against Bologna, S.S. Lazio scored three goals, and that led to the shutout victory. Lazio has scored 52 goals while giving up 39 goals in Serie A. Ciro Immobile has been the top player for Lazio scoring 19 goals and adding two assists. Sergej Milinković-Savić has also been having a nice season scoring eight goals and adding six assists. In this game, S.S. Lazio needs their defense to be strong early, and they can’t fall behind early. 

FC Porto has been consistent this year, and I expect that is going to continue in this game. Just a few games ago Lazio gave up four goals to AC Milan, and they are going to struggle in this game. Look for FC Porto to jump out to a fast start, and they will cruise to the victory. Back FC Porto on the moneyline.