Previews
WED 12.04.2017
This 13 April is set to be a special day in Vigo. Not only is it Maundy Thursday, but also the day that RC Celta take to the pitch in the quarter-finals of the Europa League for the fourth time in their history, but for the first time in 16 years.
Eduardo Berizzo's side welcome RK Genk to Balaidos as they look to grind out a decent result which they can take to the return leg in Belgium with a chance of making club history and reaching the semi-finals of the tournament for the first time ever.
Celta have reached the quarter-finals of the Europa League three times before (1998/99, 1999/2000 and 2000/01), back when the tournament was known as the UEFA Cup, but they have never progressed beyond that stage. The Galician team will now give it their all to finally make it into the next round. Berizzo has a full squad at his disposal for the match with the exception of Italy's Giuseppe Rossi, who suffered a serious injury in the club's last match. John Guidetti returns to the team having recovered from injury, although the forward is short of match fitness and may start the game on the bench.
Berizzo came across as cautious but ambitious in his pre-match press conference: "We want to take Celta to new heights. The excitement of months of hard work has kept us going and we're very motivated going into this game. We have to bring an energy to the game and turn it into the ambition needed to take this historic next step."
However, Genk will not make it easy for them. The Belgian side are having an outstanding Europa League campaign and travel to Vigo with Spanish midfielder Alejandro Pozuelo at their head.
© LALIGA - 2017