UEFA Europa League 2023/24 Season

[shogun47]

Ac Milan to be honest have disappointed lots in the Champions League for the second time, if I should personalize it, I have expected them to go further than group stage, infact I must say they're the worst side in that group F, if I can remember I didn't give them enough support. I wanted to see Newcastle rise cause they came from the Premier League but they failed to win Borrussia Dortmund during their home game first.

Anyways, they're big sides in the European Competitions and they have seen a massive levels of rise within the last two games. Well, we shall see how far they go.

AC Milan had 21 points after 8 games in Serie A. But then they significantly dropped in performance and nothing really changed within their team as far as I remember. I think they didn't have any severe injuries or did they? But their performance was out of balance, the strikers didn't strike anymore as they did at the beginning of the season.

I still think they have a word to say when it comes to the Europa League title, but given what their current shape is I would not count them as a top favorite. That doesn't mean they are an underdog, but more in the upper 20% of the competition.

[Godday]

It is still too early to expect some surprises in the Europa League or in the Conference League, because those things will probably happen in the round of 16 and also in the round of eight later in the Europa League and also in the Conference League. So everyone can just enjoy the match as usual here in the Europa League before seeing the surprise that makes a big team eliminated by a small team, but for now I still don't think that that will happen again this season because there are a lot of big teams who will try not to be eliminated so that they can make the competition in the European League this season even fiercer than last season.

Yes I agree with you. Currently the Champions League and European leagues are on holiday for several weeks. We can't expect any surprises from the group stage. Because so far those who have qualified for the round of 16 are the teams that were predicted to qualify from the start. Although there are some small changes such as Copenhagen qualifying ahead of Galatasaray but the real surprise could happen in the last 16 and subsequent rounds. I'm looking forward to some interesting matches in the European League and Champions League. Can't wait for February.

[KTChampions]

AC Milan, Liverpool, and Leverkusen are the favorite teams to win Europa League title. They have quality players on their squad, they also have good experience in international matches. So, no doubt that they are superior against other teams in Europa League. However, we can't underestimate other teams, smaller teams are impossible to eliminate bigger teams. AC Milan and Liverpool performance look not really stable in international matches, they also look not in their best form in domestic leagues. I only see that Leverkusen is the most stable team in the term of performance. So, Leverkusen should be the most favorite team to win the title.

In fact, bookmakers do not consider Milan one of the main favorites, look:

Liverpool 3.09

Bayer Leverkusen 5.88

Milan 10.29

Brighton 12.74

West Ham 14.70

Roma 16.66

As you can see, there are two main favorites: Liverpool and Bayer Leverkusen, and a second group of contenders, which includes Milan. It is noteworthy that the second group consists of two Italian teams and two English ones. Overall, at least for now, the season is going well for Italian clubs again. Quite surprising considering that Serie A lags far behind other top leagues in terms of finances.

[Jody.Drummer]

It is still too early to expect some surprises in the Europa League or in the Conference League, because those things will probably happen in the round of 16 and also in the round of eight later in the Europa League and also in the Conference League. So everyone can just enjoy the match as usual here in the Europa League before seeing the surprise that makes a big team eliminated by a small team, but for now I still don't think that that will happen again this season because there are a lot of big teams who will try not to be eliminated so that they can make the competition in the European League this season even fiercer than last season.

Yes I agree with you. Currently the Champions League and European leagues are on holiday for several weeks. We can't expect any surprises from the group stage. Because so far those who have qualified for the round of 16 are the teams that were predicted to qualify from the start. Although there are some small changes such as Copenhagen qualifying ahead of Galatasaray but the real surprise could happen in the last 16 and subsequent rounds. I'm looking forward to some interesting matches in the European League and Champions League. Can't wait for February.

Yes, we must first wait for the Europa League to resume after completing the grueling group stages. I think speculation about surprises is valid as long as you don't say for sure things that haven't been played yet. Now many people also expect Leverkusen and Liverpool to face each other in the final, it's just an expectation based on their performances during the Europa League, especially in the group stages.
We will still have the play offs before the last 16 is played, and the play offs are also likely to be a surprise. There are still many big clubs that will play there, and not to forget there are some clubs from the Champions League that will also play there. From the Champions League itself there are several clubs that are superior like AC Milan that we cannot forget.

[temple]

It is still too early to expect some surprises in the Europa League or in the Conference League, because those things will probably happen in the round of 16 and also in the round of eight later in the Europa League and also in the Conference League. So everyone can just enjoy the match as usual here in the Europa League before seeing the surprise that makes a big team eliminated by a small team, but for now I still don't think that that will happen again this season because there are a lot of big teams who will try not to be eliminated so that they can make the competition in the European League this season even fiercer than last season.

Yes I agree with you. Currently the Champions League and European leagues are on holiday for several weeks. We can't expect any surprises from the group stage. Because so far those who have qualified for the round of 16 are the teams that were predicted to qualify from the start. Although there are some small changes such as Copenhagen qualifying ahead of Galatasaray but the real surprise could happen in the last 16 and subsequent rounds. I'm looking forward to some interesting matches in the European League and Champions League. Can't wait for February.

Yes, we must first wait for the Europa League to resume after completing the grueling group stages. I think speculation about surprises is valid as long as you don't say for sure things that haven't been played yet. Now many people also expect Leverkusen and Liverpool to face each other in the final, it's just an expectation based on their performances during the Europa League, especially in the group stages.
We will still have the play offs before the last 16 is played, and the play offs are also likely to be a surprise. There are still many big clubs that will play there, and not to forget there are some clubs from the Champions League that will also play there. From the Champions League itself there are several clubs that are superior like AC Milan that we cannot forget.

Awaiting any two teams to be up against each other in the Europa League final is dumb because nobody can predict whether they will be eliminated before the final and nobody can predict whether they will eliminate each other before the final. As if anyone had an idea what the draw for the quarterfinals and semifinals will look like. There is no point in speculating about the two clubs that may reach the final.

I don't know if I get the statistics right here so feel free to correct me, but the chance that Liverpool plays against Leverkusen in the quarterfinal is around 14% (assuming they both get there) and the chance that they meet in the semifinal is 33% (assuming they both get there). This means we have a chance of 86% * 67% = 58% that they both play the final if they make it there. Of that 58% chance you can deduct the probability that they get eliminated by some other team and then you will probably end up somewhere around 10 - 15% at best. 

[Tipstar]

It is still too early to expect some surprises in the Europa League or in the Conference League, because those things will probably happen in the round of 16 and also in the round of eight later in the Europa League and also in the Conference League. So everyone can just enjoy the match as usual here in the Europa League before seeing the surprise that makes a big team eliminated by a small team, but for now I still don't think that that will happen again this season because there are a lot of big teams who will try not to be eliminated so that they can make the competition in the European League this season even fiercer than last season.

Yes I agree with you. Currently the Champions League and European leagues are on holiday for several weeks. We can't expect any surprises from the group stage. Because so far those who have qualified for the round of 16 are the teams that were predicted to qualify from the start. Although there are some small changes such as Copenhagen qualifying ahead of Galatasaray but the real surprise could happen in the last 16 and subsequent rounds. I'm looking forward to some interesting matches in the European League and Champions League. Can't wait for February.

Yes, we must first wait for the Europa League to resume after completing the grueling group stages. I think speculation about surprises is valid as long as you don't say for sure things that haven't been played yet. Now many people also expect Leverkusen and Liverpool to face each other in the final, it's just an expectation based on their performances during the Europa League, especially in the group stages.
We will still have the play offs before the last 16 is played, and the play offs are also likely to be a surprise. There are still many big clubs that will play there, and not to forget there are some clubs from the Champions League that will also play there. From the Champions League itself there are several clubs that are superior like AC Milan that we cannot forget.

Awaiting any two teams to be up against each other in the Europa League final is dumb because nobody can predict whether they will be eliminated before the final and nobody can predict whether they will eliminate each other before the final. As if anyone had an idea what the draw for the quarterfinals and semifinals will look like. There is no point in speculating about the two clubs that may reach the final.

I don't know if I get the statistics right here so feel free to correct me, but the chance that Liverpool plays against Leverkusen in the quarterfinal is around 14% (assuming they both get there) and the chance that they meet in the semifinal is 33% (assuming they both get there). This means we have a chance of 86% * 67% = 58% that they both play the final if they make it there. Of that 58% chance you can deduct the probability that they get eliminated by some other team and then you will probably end up somewhere around 10 - 15% at best. 

We can still have some predictions considering how the general trend of Europa League had been and how the performance of each individual team are in local and international perspective.
Villarreal and Liverpool are surely the favorite ones. It's a rare occasion for Europa cup going anywhere except Premier league or La Liga teams.
But Leverkusen is a rare success this time. Not just due to their success in the group stage but also how they are performing this season in the bundesliga. They are certainly going to be promoted to the UEFA cup this year.

[harapan]

It is still too early to expect some surprises in the Europa League or in the Conference League, because those things will probably happen in the round of 16 and also in the round of eight later in the Europa League and also in the Conference League. So everyone can just enjoy the match as usual here in the Europa League before seeing the surprise that makes a big team eliminated by a small team, but for now I still don't think that that will happen again this season because there are a lot of big teams who will try not to be eliminated so that they can make the competition in the European League this season even fiercer than last season.

The biggest teams in the tournament have left but teams like Betis, Ajax, and Olympiakos have all left the tournament in the group stage. As I said, these teams are not the best, but they're certainly better than some teams that have qualified, meaning in this current round, some big teams would be eliminated. It could be one or two but big teams would be eliminated.
We saw teams like Manchester United get eliminated in the group stage of the UCL and they couldn't even make it to the Europa League, that's what football is about. PSG were lucky enough to remain in the group stage.

What I can say is too early to predict at this stage of the Europa League is the winner. Some people have already begun interpreting the finals and the winners, but it is still too early.
I believe all the highest favorite teams would be eliminated.

[QueenVera]

I doubt Milan's performance. I'm not sure if Milan can win the European League title because in my opinion the clubs that are more favorite are Liverpool and Leverkusen. Indeed, in terms of squad, Milan and Liverpool are superior because they have top players compared to Leverkusen, but the players Leverkusen are able to work together well and compactly so that their solidarity is very high and indeed so far the performance of the Leverkusen players is still extraordinary under the guidance of Xabi Alonso so in my opinion it is possible that Leverkusen will be favorites in winning the title this season, whether it is the league trophy Europe or the Bundesliga.

If you talk about Milan not being very stable, I think that's right, but if you say Liverpool is not very stable, I think you are wrong because Liverpool is still quite stable in the domestic league, even they are in 1st place with only 1 defeat so far, and It is true that Leverkusen is still quite consistent and unbeaten to date and that is a good achievement.

Milan are currently a shadow of themselves and they don’t come close to the likes of Liverpool and Leverkusen in terms of squad strength and composure as compared to these 2. Liverpool have the experience while Leverkusen have more fluidity with the ball and that’s a plus for them. Now when you want to compare Milan squad, you can put that this Milan squad suffers injury crisis and that’s one reason they got of the UCL to the UEL and also they’ll be having crazy time trying to fight for a safe spot in their league. But Liverpool and Leverkusen are sitting pretty comfortably on top of their various leagues.

 These clubs have already secured top spot and would fight evenly for the UEL as compared to how Milan might want to put up a fight. Well football has it’s own surprises and that’s always after 90 minutes we can just analyze and the players do the work,  let's watch and see what Milan have to offer in the UEL.

[emrecemsan]

I also don't have much expectation from Milan to go for the Europa League title to tell the truth.

They have been pretty inconsistent throughout the season until this point. I mean not only in the Serie A but also in the Champions League. Because of this reason I don't expect them to even reach the final stage. I mean they just need to be really lucky with draw until then. If they don't face especially teams like Liverpool and Leverkusen their chance to make it to the final stage would be higher. Otherwise they would say an early goodbye probably. 

[Jody.Drummer]

Yes, we must first wait for the Europa League to resume after completing the grueling group stages. I think speculation about surprises is valid as long as you don't say for sure things that haven't been played yet. Now many people also expect Leverkusen and Liverpool to face each other in the final, it's just an expectation based on their performances during the Europa League, especially in the group stages.
We will still have the play offs before the last 16 is played, and the play offs are also likely to be a surprise. There are still many big clubs that will play there, and not to forget there are some clubs from the Champions League that will also play there. From the Champions League itself there are several clubs that are superior like AC Milan that we cannot forget.

Awaiting any two teams to be up against each other in the Europa League final is dumb because nobody can predict whether they will be eliminated before the final and nobody can predict whether they will eliminate each other before the final. As if anyone had an idea what the draw for the quarterfinals and semifinals will look like. There is no point in speculating about the two clubs that may reach the final.

I don't know if I get the statistics right here so feel free to correct me, but the chance that Liverpool plays against Leverkusen in the quarterfinal is around 14% (assuming they both get there) and the chance that they meet in the semifinal is 33% (assuming they both get there). This means we have a chance of 86% * 67% = 58% that they both play the final if they make it there. Of that 58% chance you can deduct the probability that they get eliminated by some other team and then you will probably end up somewhere around 10 - 15% at best. 

I don't think it's stupid, because it's legitimate to predict that, as I said before. What's stupid is when we say with certainty they will face each other in the final.
Of course anything can happen here, because we can't underestimate other clubs, it could be that a club that is not part of our prediction will make the club we predicted eliminated early.
Last season many people predicted that Arsenal would be in the final, yes it was not wrong because their appearance at the beginning was so promising before finally they also lost and were eliminated early.
We also predict things based on the statistics that the club is currently showing and that's pretty basic, regardless of whether they are eliminated or not that we can only see when they play their matches.

[hahay]

I also don't have much expectation from Milan to go for the Europa League title to tell the truth.

They have been pretty inconsistent throughout the season until this point. I mean not only in the Serie A but also in the Champions League. Because of this reason I don't expect them to even reach the final stage. I mean they just need to be really lucky with draw until then. If they don't face especially teams like Liverpool and Leverkusen their chance to make it to the final stage would be higher. Otherwise they would say an early goodbye probably. 

Yes indeed, although Milan do not have a chance to reach the final match, but at least Milan can still promise to be able to qualify for the next round in the Europa League this time. Because yes, at least Milan get opponents like Rennes in this phase, and it looks like Rennes also does not have good quality. Therefore, Milan can still be sure to beat Rennes and then Milan will qualify for the next round.

But yes, even though Milan do not have a good chance to get to the final match, but that does not mean Milan are weak and does not mean Milan will be eliminated faster. Because ya, of course Milan also has reliable quality as a representative of Serie A and thus, until the quarter-final match and or maybe until the semifinal match at least Milan still has a chance.

[Tony116]

Yes, we must first wait for the Europa League to resume after completing the grueling group stages. I think speculation about surprises is valid as long as you don't say for sure things that haven't been played yet. Now many people also expect Leverkusen and Liverpool to face each other in the final, it's just an expectation based on their performances during the Europa League, especially in the group stages.
We will still have the play offs before the last 16 is played, and the play offs are also likely to be a surprise. There are still many big clubs that will play there, and not to forget there are some clubs from the Champions League that will also play there. From the Champions League itself there are several clubs that are superior like AC Milan that we cannot forget.

Awaiting any two teams to be up against each other in the Europa League final is dumb because nobody can predict whether they will be eliminated before the final and nobody can predict whether they will eliminate each other before the final. As if anyone had an idea what the draw for the quarterfinals and semifinals will look like. There is no point in speculating about the two clubs that may reach the final.

I don't know if I get the statistics right here so feel free to correct me, but the chance that Liverpool plays against Leverkusen in the quarterfinal is around 14% (assuming they both get there) and the chance that they meet in the semifinal is 33% (assuming they both get there). This means we have a chance of 86% * 67% = 58% that they both play the final if they make it there. Of that 58% chance you can deduct the probability that they get eliminated by some other team and then you will probably end up somewhere around 10 - 15% at best. 

I don't think it's stupid, because it's legitimate to predict that, as I said before. What's stupid is when we say with certainty they will face each other in the final.
Of course anything can happen here, because we can't underestimate other clubs, it could be that a club that is not part of our prediction will make the club we predicted eliminated early.
Last season many people predicted that Arsenal would be in the final, yes it was not wrong because their appearance at the beginning was so promising before finally they also lost and were eliminated early.
We also predict things based on the statistics that the club is currently showing and that's pretty basic, regardless of whether they are eliminated or not that we can only see when they play their matches.

Leverkusen and Liverpool are very strong and in good form, so it is impossible to say whether these two teams will meet in the Europa League final. Several strong teams are playing in the Europa League now. I don't see any opportunity to underestimate these teams either. Liverpool.
Leverkusen and Milan will be heavy favorites for the final. We can keep the Roma team in position. At the same time, I would say Galatasaray, Sporting and the Lens team should not be underestimated. These teams also have the potential to qualify for the finals. They are able to perform quite well. It will not be possible to select the most favorite team to win the title before the quarter finals.

[tbterryboy]

This year in Europa League and Conference we dont see so much surprises. So we have two roads ahead, o the competitions still without surprises or all the surprises come now and we are gonna start to see a few big teams choking against weak or smallers teams.

It is still too early to expect some surprises in the Europa League or in the Conference League, because those things will probably happen in the round of 16 and also in the round of eight later in the Europa League and also in the Conference League. So everyone can just enjoy the match as usual here in the Europa League before seeing the surprise that makes a big team eliminated by a small team, but for now I still don't think that that will happen again this season because there are a lot of big teams who will try not to be eliminated so that they can make the competition in the European League this season even fiercer than last season.

UEFA events are famous for their surprises and shocking events which is nothing new currently we are having all set for the round of 16 in Champions League and qualifiers for the Europa League and Conference League as well with few surprises can happen here as well because few teams are having not good time and these can lost their spots even we are considering them favourite right now we have too many options but teams performance and quality are also important with currently many leagues are having decline in performance and quality which is surely going to have impact on their team's performance in these events as well.

Currently, we can't predict who is going to have better results with just Liverpool and Bayer Leverkusen are having performance which is giving them tag of hot favourite for the cup, all others need to do hard work for this all.

[redsun114]

AC Milan really deserves to be taken into account because after all they are a top European team who have a strong enough mentality on the European stage and also this season AC Milan has good strength even though they are sometimes unable to maintain the consistency of their best performance.
However, if we look overall to be favored to win the Europa League this season of course AC Milan is still below Liverpool and Leverkusen but I always think that in the know out round anything is possible to happen so we can't be too excessive in favoring a team to win. won the Europa League title this season and the season is still quite long and it is possible for all teams to experience improvements or declines in quality.

AC Milan is a consistent performing team but their problem is that they cannot perform consistently in important matches. Where other teams perform exceptionally well in important matches, AC Milan are unable to perform consistently, due to which they are left out in most major tournaments with great potential. If Liverpool had qualified for the Champions League this season, AC Milan would have had the chance to play in the finals, but it's unfortunate for AC Milan that Liverpool are playing in the Europa League this season while Leverkusen are having their best time. Maybe that's why AC Milan won't do very well in the Europa League this season.

AC Milan was very good and competitive team with their current performance is not good as they were in past which is surely big concern for them even they are doing good in Serie A, but their performance in Champions League is not good so they relegated to Europa League and now having tough challenges ahead of them for having good end of their season even many are considering them third or fourth favourite for the title which is not good prediction about them because they can face exit without any resistance due to their lack of quality and consistency.

Recently we had improvement in few teams which are surely going to have good time and also chance for the title here in this event but for the perfect prediction we have to wait for the round of 8 which will give better chance for having who is going to win, currently things are not good for this all.

[8rch7]

Leverkusen and Liverpool are very strong and in good form, so it is impossible to say whether these two teams will meet in the Europa League final. Several strong teams are playing in the Europa League now. I don't see any opportunity to underestimate these teams either. Liverpool.
Leverkusen and Milan will be heavy favorites for the final. We can keep the Roma team in position. At the same time, I would say Galatasaray, Sporting and the Lens team should not be underestimated. These teams also have the potential to qualify for the finals. They are able to perform quite well. It will not be possible to select the most favorite team to win the title before the quarter finals.

Bayern Leverkusen vs Liverpool is most dreaming Europe League final but depend with drawing schedule match will both teams are in the race for facing in the final or other possibility with drawing for both team have to face on 16 round or quarter final. All fans expected with ideal final in Europe League between Leverkusen vs Liverpool but we have waiting match drawing about teams will play in the final or not beside have many top teams from Champion League will play in Europe League.

I think not really bad if Milan success lead to final round in Europe League because they have experienced and teams who has many Champion League tittle for Europe League teams participants.

[Mame89]

Yes indeed, although Milan do not have a chance to reach the final match, but at least Milan can still promise to be able to qualify for the next round in the Europa League this time. Because yes, at least Milan get opponents like Rennes in this phase, and it looks like Rennes also does not have good quality. Therefore, Milan can still be sure to beat Rennes and then Milan will qualify for the next round.

But yes, even though Milan do not have a good chance to get to the final match, but that does not mean Milan are weak and does not mean Milan will be eliminated faster. Because ya, of course Milan also has reliable quality as a representative of Serie A and thus, until the quarter-final match and or maybe until the semifinal match at least Milan still has a chance.

AC Milan's journey to win the European League was very steep because there are still many competing clubs whose playing systems are much more solid than Milan, such as Liverpool, Leverkusen etc. Milan still has a lot to improve, especially releasing Pioli and replacing him with a coach who is able to form a team with talented young players and limited funds. because for me Pioli is not a suitable coach for Ac Milan at the moment, just look at the way they play without character or even inconsistently.

Yes, maybe Malwan Rannes AC Milan can win because of the quality of their players and in my opinion they can advance easily to the next round but for them to become champions it looks like AC Milan is not a strong competitor. because for me to win the Europa League this season, if not Liverpool it means Bayer Leverkusen because both teams have so far shown consistency and their play has also been solid in all areas.

[temple]

We can still have some predictions considering how the general trend of Europa League had been and how the performance of each individual team are in local and international perspective.
Villarreal and Liverpool are surely the favorite ones. It's a rare occasion for Europa cup going anywhere except Premier league or La Liga teams.
But Leverkusen is a rare success this time. Not just due to their success in the group stage but also how they are performing this season in the bundesliga. They are certainly going to be promoted to the UEFA cup this year.

Villareal, this is the first time I hear someone mentioning Villareal as the main favorite next to Liverpool. Really, I appreciate that you have an opinion nobody else has had so far. I don't think Villareal is a favorite, but I would also not describe them as a weak team or an underdog. They are more like average similar to many of the other teams.

Leverkusen has gathered some experience in the last season in the Europa League and I think this time it could really be their turn to go one step further and reach the final hopefully.

[kawetsriyanto]

Leverkusen and Liverpool are very strong and in good form, so it is impossible to say whether these two teams will meet in the Europa League final. Several strong teams are playing in the Europa League now. I don't see any opportunity to underestimate these teams either. Liverpool.
Leverkusen and Milan will be heavy favorites for the final. We can keep the Roma team in position. At the same time, I would say Galatasaray, Sporting and the Lens team should not be underestimated. These teams also have the potential to qualify for the finals. They are able to perform quite well. It will not be possible to select the most favorite team to win the title before the quarter finals.

IMO, Leverkusen and Liverpool are the most favorite teams to be in the final round. They have quality squad and they performed quite well in the group stage. Although there are some big teams from UCL joining UEL play-offs, I still believe Leverkusen and Liverpool are the strongest team in UEL this season. AC Milan, Roma, Benfica, and Galatasaray are also big teams but they didn't perform well this season. If they performed well, they will survive in UCL.

As long as Leverkusen and Liverpool won't meet in quarter final or semi final, I believe they will go to the final round. TBH, I assume Leverkusen vs Liverpool will be the ideal candidates for the final round for UEL this season.

[arimamib]

We can still have some predictions considering how the general trend of Europa League had been and how the performance of each individual team are in local and international perspective.
Villarreal and Liverpool are surely the favorite ones. It's a rare occasion for Europa cup going anywhere except Premier league or La Liga teams.
But Leverkusen is a rare success this time. Not just due to their success in the group stage but also how they are performing this season in the bundesliga. They are certainly going to be promoted to the UEFA cup this year.

Villareal, this is the first time I hear someone mentioning Villareal as the main favorite next to Liverpool. Really, I appreciate that you have an opinion nobody else has had so far. I don't think Villareal is a favorite, but I would also not describe them as a weak team or an underdog. They are more like average similar to many of the other teams.

Leverkusen has gathered some experience in the last season in the Europa League and I think this time it could really be their turn to go one step further and reach the final hopefully.

Villareal can be an underdog like how they reached UCL semi-final under Unai emery seasons ago. But they have new manager now and are not in a good shape of football. I dont know much about how they play, but the statistics are not in their favor. But, in Europa League history, Spanish clubs tend to do well, because they put always UEL as their priority.

Leverkusen is the real favorite alongside Liverpool due to their performance in their league and group stage. But their priority is also intriguing, because they are fighting for the league title under the pressure of bayern which is not easy to handle both competition in the same manner. Experience can often play a crucial role in a team's performance, and Xabi Alonso is new to this situation where he has to compete with already experienced teams and managers. I would put Roma as the most serious contender because of Mourinho.

[tusandii]

Yes, we must first wait for the Europa League to resume after completing the grueling group stages. I think speculation about surprises is valid as long as you don't say for sure things that haven't been played yet. Now many people also expect Leverkusen and Liverpool to face each other in the final, it's just an expectation based on their performances during the Europa League, especially in the group stages.
We will still have the play offs before the last 16 is played, and the play offs are also likely to be a surprise. There are still many big clubs that will play there, and not to forget there are some clubs from the Champions League that will also play there. From the Champions League itself there are several clubs that are superior like AC Milan that we cannot forget.

Awaiting any two teams to be up against each other in the Europa League final is dumb because nobody can predict whether they will be eliminated before the final and nobody can predict whether they will eliminate each other before the final. As if anyone had an idea what the draw for the quarterfinals and semifinals will look like. There is no point in speculating about the two clubs that may reach the final.

I don't know if I get the statistics right here so feel free to correct me, but the chance that Liverpool plays against Leverkusen in the quarterfinal is around 14% (assuming they both get there) and the chance that they meet in the semifinal is 33% (assuming they both get there). This means we have a chance of 86% * 67% = 58% that they both play the final if they make it there. Of that 58% chance you can deduct the probability that they get eliminated by some other team and then you will probably end up somewhere around 10 - 15% at best. 

I don't think it's stupid, because it's legitimate to predict that, as I said before. What's stupid is when we say with certainty they will face each other in the final.
Of course anything can happen here, because we can't underestimate other clubs, it could be that a club that is not part of our prediction will make the club we predicted eliminated early.
Last season many people predicted that Arsenal would be in the final, yes it was not wrong because their appearance at the beginning was so promising before finally they also lost and were eliminated early.
We also predict things based on the statistics that the club is currently showing and that's pretty basic, regardless of whether they are eliminated or not that we can only see when they play their matches.

Yes, that's right, because soon the transfer market will reopen and that's when there will be many changes between clubs becoming stronger when bringing in additional players or even a club can become weak because they sell their flagship players.
With the current conditions we can only speculate temporarily and after the transfer market closes we can speculate further because there is no longer any chance for the club to strengthen its performance from new players and maybe I will also speculate the same in the hope that both clubs can survive until the final and competed in the final round to prove that both of them have the same advantage in terms of strong performance in UEL.