Preview
Manchester United return to Europa League action on Thursday night in a bid to keep this season's trophy charge going when they take on Granada in Spain. The Red Devils are eager to maintain the momentum after securing a crucial comeback win in the second half of Sunday's Premier League encounter with Brighton & Hove Albion.
After conceding Danny Welbeck's opener at home in the first half, Ole's men came out blazing to assume the driver's seat with goals from Marcus Rashford and Mason Greenwood. The win was of much significance as it gave a club a breather with a late top-four battle brewing in the premiership. It was also a needed response following the Old Trafford outfit's elimination from the FA Cup by Leicester City prior to the international break.
Before then, United had gone on a remarkable 14-game unbeaten run across all competitions. They had secured notable wins over rivals Manchester City in the Premier League as well as victories over Real Sociedad and AC Milan in the knockout stage of the Europa League. Owning to the demotion from the Champions League, the 2017 title winners are without defeat in any of the knockout legs they have featured in, conceding just one goal in the three games played so far.
The upcoming clash with Granada is the first of its kind and although they are not a household name, underestimating the Spanish club could prove to be calamitous for Solskjaer and his brigade. Following an impressive 2019/2020 campaign, the Estadio Nuevo Los Cármenes outfit has leveraged on its well-drilled set-up to mount an impressive campaign in the Europa League this season. They recently beat Molde - a side previously managed by Man United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer - on aggregate to secure the quarter-final berth.
Needless to say, the Spanish club has not had the best of form in recent weeks and will approach Thursday's game with the hopes of turning things around. Over the weekend, they were subjected to a resounding 3-0 defeat against Villarreal. All three goals were scored by Gerard Moreno, ending a run of four successive home wins for Diego Martinez's side.
At the moment, Granada have managed just four wins from the last 14 games but will take solace in the fact that they have only lost one of their six Europa League games. With three straight defeats in all competitions to ponder over, they are expected to deliver a befitting reaction when they welcome Manchester United to their home grounds on Thursday.
Match facts
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Granada will be the 11th different Spanish side Manchester United have faced in major European competition.
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Granada are the second side since RB Leipzig in 2017-18 to reach the quarter-finals of a major European competition in their first European campaign.
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Manchester United have reached the quarter-final stages of a major European competition for the 27th time. They have progressed from 17 of the previous 26.
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Manchester United have scored 21 goals in European competition this season. 13 of the goals have been scored by either Marcus Rashford (seven goals) or Bruno Fernandes (six goals).
Team news
Granada will face-off with Manchester United in the absence of three senior full-backs in Carlos Neva, Dimitri Foulquier and Quini. Neyder Lozano remains on the long-term absentee while Luis Suarez is expected to sit out the meeting with the Premier League club with a hamstring problem.
Manchester United will be without forward Anthony Martial as the Frenchman is still receiving treatment for the injury he suffered on international duty. Eric Bailly will be the other absentee after testing positive for Covid-19. Marcus Rashford is a doubt to start despite travelling with the squad. The striker is nursing a foot injury and could not last the full duration of Sunday's clash with Brigton.
Predicted starting XI
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Granada: Silva; Vallejo, Duarte, Sanchez, Diaz; Gonalons, Eteki; Kenedy, Herrera, Machis; Soldado
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Manchester United: De Gea; Wan-Bissaka, Lindelof, Maguire, Shaw; Fred, Pogba; Greenwood, Fernandes, James; Cavani.
Broadcast information
Match details, result and original broadcast info
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