Roma vs. AZ Alkmaar: Ruben van Bommel, LW
The son of Mark van Bommel, Ruben van Bommel actually has a different stylistic comparison to an iconic footballer – former Manchester United, PSG, and Real Madrid winger Angel Di Maria.
As Roma reel from another tough defeat this past weekend against defending Serie A champions Inter Milan, the Giallorossi are hoping to get back on the right track on the European stage against AZ Alkmaar, who are the toughest team any of these three big European sides will be going up against in this week’s Europa League action.
Alkmaar are fourth in the Dutch top flight right now, tied on points with heavyweights Feyenoord and Ajax, and in Van Bommel, they have one of the league’s most exciting talents.
Van Bommel has made the left wing his home this season, scoring two goals with two assists already in the Eredivisie with an even more dangerous two goals in two Europa League starts.
The 20-year-old is an athletic and explosive attacking player who is adept at creating chances, and, statistically, he’s also been elite at defending from attacking positions with 2.5 combined tackles and interceptions per game in the Europa League and 2.8 combined tackles and interceptions per match in the Eredivisie.
Alkmaar haven’t won in nearly a month since they took down lowly Elfsborg 3-2 in their Europa League opener, so after falling 2-0 to Athletic Club on Matchday 2, they’d love nothing more than to break their slide by taking down an even bigger club than the Lions in Roma.
The Giallorossi need to be on upset watch this Thursday, and their biggest priority will be making sure they don’t end up on the wrong answer of a trivia question involving Van Bommel, the No. 7 who could very well be the next big thing in Dutch football.
Tottenham vs. Dynamo Kyiv: Andriy Yarmolenko, RW
Andriy Yarmolenko never quite made it at the highest level of European football despite shining for Dynamo Kyiv and the Ukrainian national team at multiple major tournaments in the mid-2010s, as he was fairly mediocre for Borussia Dortmund before failing to be anything more than a backup at West Ham.
So Manchester United have certainly seen footage of Yarmolenko in the Premier League, and he did once score five goals in the English top flight. But now he’s back in Kyiv and back in European football, where he once score four goals with five assists in a magical 2014/15 Europa League tournament for the Ukrainian side, as they made it to the quarterfinals.
Yarmolenko isn’t likely to Mislav Orsic his way through Tottenham’s defense, but Spurs will have to keep an eye out for the wily veteran’s trademark curled efforts.
He last scored one of those on the international stage at Euro 2020. The 34-year-old didn’t do much at the Euros this year, but he did appear in three games. And in his last Europa League game, he created a chance with three fouls drawn against a top European club in Lazio.
Tottenham should be able to walk all over Dynamo Kyiv, who are second from bottom in the Europa League table, but if there’s one guy who can cause Spurs damage in crunch time, then it’s this guy.
Manchester United vs. Fenerbahce: Dusan Tadic, RW
Manchester United have a date with destiny against Jose Mourinho and Fenerbahce on Thursday night in the Europa League, and the Turkish giants have a number of big names who could haunt the Red Devils, including some well-known former Premier League stars.
The legendary Edin Dzeko is there to bang home the goals, and he has a strong Champions League pedigree, having once played for upstart semifinalists Roma. And then there’s Allan Saint-Maximin, the electrifying former Newcastle winger.
But no single player could do more damage to the Manchester United defense, which still seems to be strung together with silly string despite an offseason of financial investment, is none other than Dusan Tadic.
Of course, Tadic is familiar with Manchester United as a former Southampton star in the Premier League, but undeniably his finest work at the European level came with Ajax a few years ago under the management of, you guessed it, Erik ten Hag.
Tadic was the star of that young Ajax side that reached the 2018/19 Champions League semifinals, with Tadic unforgettably earning the rarest of distinctions from L’Equipe with a perfect 10 match rating for his absolute demolition of the three-peat champions Real Madrid.
In 2024/25, Tadic has been breathtaking under Mourinho in the Turkish Super Lig, maintaining his status as one of European football’s finest all-around attacking weapons with five goals and three assists in eight matches.
With an average of three key passes per game, Tadic is even envying Bruno Fernandes in the playmaking department, and if the Manchester United defense and midfield aren’t careful, the 35-year-old Serbian winger could carve the Red Devils up on Thursday.
The managing editor of The Trivela Effect, Kevin has 15 years of experience in digital media. He covered Real Madrid from 2019-2022 for The Real Champs as a site manager. His work has been featured in ESPN, Bleacher Report, Yahoo! Sports, NBC Sports, and other major outlets. You can contact him at the site’s official Twitter handle @TrivelaEffect or via the site’s official email thetrivelaeffect@gmail.com.