Shakhtar Donetsk have enjoyed little success in the competition since lifting the 2009 UEFA Cup trophy, and they aim to change that by preventing holders Sevilla from reaching the third successive final.

Los Rojiblancos suffered a major scare in the quarter-finals against Athletic, but they are alive and kicking, and closing in on third straight EL trophy.

Shakhtar Donetsk couldn’t progress from the Champions League group that also contained Real Madrid and PSG, but they in turn made sure to make the most out of their Europa League campaign.

The Pitmen first enjoyed an impressive 3-0 aggregate win over Schalke, before double wins over Anderlecht and Sporting Braga saw them set up a clash with defending champions Sevilla.

Shakhtar couldn’t keep up with Dynamo Kiev on domestic stage, with two slip-ups of late surrendering the title to their bitter rivals.

However, the excellent Europa League run has been the high point of their season and they are now available at 2.75 (7/4) to see off Sevilla as well.

Important midfielder Fred misses out through suspension, whereas Marcio Azevedo has yet to recover from a knee injury.

Probable starting line-up (4-2-2-1): Pyatov – Srna, Kucher, Ordets, Ismaily – Malyshev, Stepanenko – Marlos, Kovalenko, Taison – Ferreira.

Sevilla are already the most successful side in Europe’s second-rate competition, but they aim to set the new record by winning three Europa League trophies in a row.

Los Rojiblancos began the current campaign in the Champions League, but were soon back to their favourite competition, and they were able to reach the last four without really impressing in the process.

Sevilla experienced some problems in games vs Molde, Basel and especially Athletic, where they only qualified after a penalty shoot-out.

Meanwhile, the team have been far from impressive in La Liga of late, and it is clear that key men are running on empty after playing so many games this season.

This is why Ever Banega and Kevin Gameiro have not looked sharp in recent weeks, but coach Unai Emery hopes the derby win over Real Betis will give the team a much needed boost.

Jose Antonio Reyes will not be able to help against Shakhtar having undergone an appendicitis surgery, while Benoit Tremoulinas, Vitolo and Marco Andreoli remain sidelined. Adil Rami returns after recovering from a minor knock.

Probable starting line-up (4-2-3-1): Soria – Coke, Carrico, Rami, Kolodziejczak – Krychowiak, N’Zonzi – Krohn-Dehli, Banega, Konoplyanka – Gameiro.