Manchester United did just enough to edge past Ajax. They will begin their Last 16 challenge at Old Trafford where they last lost 2-1 in the 2011/12 UEFA Europa League.
Since the past several years now, Sir Alex Ferguson and his players haven’t played any other team than Real Madrid, Barcelona or Villarreal when it comes to Spanish oppositions. On Thursday, they’ll be up against Bilbao at Old Trafford.
Manchester United vs. Athletic Bilbao is one of the eight Round of 16 first leg ties to take place on March 8. The Red Devils are entering this UEFA Europa League encounter as pure favourites. In truth, however, they are not guaranteed to triumph analytically.
Athletic Bilbao’s prolific goal scorer, Fernando Llorente, is fully aware of Manchester United’s greatness. However, the Spaniard isn’t ruling his team’s chances at all. According to EP, he admitted:
“Manchester are obviously the favourites. They always play Champions League and compete with teams like Barcelona and Real Madrid. They are one of the big teams in Europe and we're novices.
“I expect a very exciting game. We are really looking forward to the game, and will do our utmost to get a good result. We have been doing quite well and might cause an upset.”
Indeed, Athletic Bilbao are unbeaten in the last 4 matches in all competitions. They stand a chance of securing a Champions League spot in La Liga and they are 2011/12 Copa del Rey finalists. Manchester United midfielder Michael Carrick couldn’t describe Athletic Bilbao’s threat in the UEFA Europa League Last 16 better:
“Bilbao is a tough place to go, we need to perform well at home to give us a chance in the away leg. Most of the time in recent years we've tended to play the away leg first.
“That will be something different for us. It won't change our approach hugely but we know how tough it will be over there.
“It is renowned to be a very hostile environment. They have fanatical fans but it's something we're looking forward to.”
To add to Carrick’s home factor remark, Athletic Bilbao haven’t lost a single game in San Mames in Europe. On the contrary, Manchester United have been far from convincing at Old Trafford. Sir Alex Ferguson was critical of his boys in the pre-match press conference:
“It's a very difficult tie, all the work Bilbao have done has been very impressive. They're a very progressive team in Spain at the moment and it's going to be very difficult for us.
“We need to wake up, there's no question about that. Some of our European form has been disappointing. But it's an opportunity to progress and we want to take that opportunity, although it's going to need a very good performance.”
And among many other comments on Wednesday, Michael Carrick echoed Ferguson's worry by avowing:
“I'm not sure why our home form in Europe has not been so good. It's a tough one. We haven't quite performed on the night for whatever reason.
“Compared to recent years, when our home form has been formidable, it hasn't quite happened for us this year. That's the reason why we're talking about the Europa League.
“The Ajax game was a bit of a disappointment but we got through. We can put that behind us and look forward.”
How far can Manchester United go in the 2011/12 UEFA Europa League?
Manchester United vs. Athletic Bilbao is one of the eight Round of 16 first leg ties to take place on March 8. The Red Devils are entering this UEFA Europa League encounter as pure favourites. In truth, however, they are not guaranteed to triumph analytically.
Athletic Bilbao’s prolific goal scorer, Fernando Llorente, is fully aware of Manchester United’s greatness. However, the Spaniard isn’t ruling his team’s chances at all. According to EP, he admitted:
“Manchester are obviously the favourites. They always play Champions League and compete with teams like Barcelona and Real Madrid. They are one of the big teams in Europe and we're novices.
“I expect a very exciting game. We are really looking forward to the game, and will do our utmost to get a good result. We have been doing quite well and might cause an upset.”
Indeed, Athletic Bilbao are unbeaten in the last 4 matches in all competitions. They stand a chance of securing a Champions League spot in La Liga and they are 2011/12 Copa del Rey finalists. Manchester United midfielder Michael Carrick couldn’t describe Athletic Bilbao’s threat in the UEFA Europa League Last 16 better:
“Bilbao is a tough place to go, we need to perform well at home to give us a chance in the away leg. Most of the time in recent years we've tended to play the away leg first.
“That will be something different for us. It won't change our approach hugely but we know how tough it will be over there.
“It is renowned to be a very hostile environment. They have fanatical fans but it's something we're looking forward to.”
To add to Carrick’s home factor remark, Athletic Bilbao haven’t lost a single game in San Mames in Europe. On the contrary, Manchester United have been far from convincing at Old Trafford. Sir Alex Ferguson was critical of his boys in the pre-match press conference:
“It's a very difficult tie, all the work Bilbao have done has been very impressive. They're a very progressive team in Spain at the moment and it's going to be very difficult for us.
“We need to wake up, there's no question about that. Some of our European form has been disappointing. But it's an opportunity to progress and we want to take that opportunity, although it's going to need a very good performance.”
And among many other comments on Wednesday, Michael Carrick echoed Ferguson's worry by avowing:
“I'm not sure why our home form in Europe has not been so good. It's a tough one. We haven't quite performed on the night for whatever reason.
“Compared to recent years, when our home form has been formidable, it hasn't quite happened for us this year. That's the reason why we're talking about the Europa League.
“The Ajax game was a bit of a disappointment but we got through. We can put that behind us and look forward.”
How far can Manchester United go in the 2011/12 UEFA Europa League?
