Manchester United have had their fights against Leeds United this past week, two of them to be precise, getting four points out of six, in their battle to get as close to the top two teams in the Premier League standings. But while that has been all good and fun, and while United will later this month have a chance to win their first trophy in six years, when they take on Newcastle United in the League Cup final, it is this week that a new competition will be on the mind of the Red Devils and their fans.
Europa League is back and Erik Ten Hag’s team will be up for a big challenge. Thanks to the 1-0 loss to Real Sociedad at the very start of the competition last autumn, Man United ended up in second place in their group, meaning they would have two extra matches to play in the knockout rounds. The new Europa League knockout round play-offs are played between the second placed teams in the Europa League group stages and the third placed teams from the Champions League. As much as United have had their share of great draws in domestic cup competitions, they were not so lucky in this one, getting to play Barcelona in the 2009 and 2011 Champions League final ‘remakes’ of sorts.
This Season Europa League Is Tougher Than Usual
It is fair to say that the Europa League knockout rounds are going to be more fun than before, thanks to plenty of teams we will get to see. Just from the Champions League, the eight sides that moved to Europa League are really strong ones. Barcelona, Juventus and Ajax are all former European champions, Sevilla are the best ever Europa League team, while the likes of Sporting Lisbon, Shakhtar Donetsk, Bayer Leverkusen and RB Salzburg can be dangerous at all times. Sure, United could have gotten an easier draw here, but nevertheless, this will be one big challenge for Erik Ten Hag’s team, to see where they are and how they compare to the La Liga leaders.
It is clear that for United to go far in this competition as well, they will have to put two great performances against Barca on 16 and 23 February. But if they manage to get past them, then they will probably become one of the favourites to win the competition. Sure, the likes of Arsenal, Feyenoord, Betis and Real Sociedad are yet to enter the competition in the round of 16, and there are also the likes of Monaco and Roma in the mix, but getting past one of the best teams in Europe at this point is always a huge boost. Also, it would be one big team less in the competition.
At this point, no one around Man United should be making plans about going deep into the Europa League knockout stages. First, the team will have to have two massive battles against Barcelona and it will not be easy to survive them. Even if they do, there will still be a League Cup final to be played. It would be great fun for United to have some big European nights before the end of the season, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves just yet.
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