Europa League preview: Newcomers look to make their mark

Europa League action heats up on Thursday, with sides who bowed out of the Champions League joining in the last 32 of the competition.

It means there are 16 round of 32 ties to be played with several of the best sides in Europe doing battle over two legs, including Serie A high-flyers Napoli taking on La Liga’s Villarreal, who have never won in Italy.

The goals of Uruguayan Edinson Cavani have fired Napoli into second on the Serie A table and, with five goals in the group stage to go with his 20 league strikes, the striker appears to be Napoli’s key man.

Villarreal have a similar attacking threat, in the form of Italian striker Giuseppe Rossi.

The former Manchester United forward has struck on 12 occasions in the league this season and netted five in the Europa League group stage.

While Napoli and Villarreal is sure to excite, several other ties also present exciting battles, including Sevilla’s clash with Porto at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan.

Porto cruised through the group stage undefeated largely thanks to Colombian international Falcao’s seven strikes and are flying in Liga Sagres, sitting 11 points clear of second-placed Benfica.

Falcao, Brazilian striker Hulk and Silvestre Varela have combined for 34 league goals this season and Sevilla, struggling in La Liga in eighth position, will have their work cut out trying to stop the talented trio.

Other clashes will see Stuttgart visit Portugal to face Benfica, while Benfica’s Lisbon rivals Sporting will encounter a fervent atmosphere when they travel to Ibrox to face Scottish champions Rangers.

Rubin Kazan host Twente while Spartak Moscow travel to Switzerland to face Basel in two ties that feature sides who dropped out of the Champions League.

Polish side Lech Poznan, who impressed in qualifying to eliminate Juventus, host Sporting Braga.

Bundesliga runners-up Bayer Leverkusen will be confident of securing a result when they travel to Ukraine to face Metalist Kharkiv, with the German club having lost just two of their last 22 matches on the road in all competitions.

Ajax Amsterdam, minus departed striker Luis Suarez, travel to Belgium to face Anderlecht while Suarez’s new club Liverpool head to Sparta Prague.

Ligue 1 leaders meet their Eredivisie equivalents when Lille host PSV, while Zenit St Petersburg are away to Young Boys.

Other first-leg ties see Besiktas host Dynamo Kyiv, PAOK tackle CSKA Moscow and PSG make the trip to Belarus to face BATE Borisov.