Manchester United are ready to host Sevilla in the first leg of their UEFA Europa League quarter-final game at Old Trafford. The Seville-based side marks the fourth La Liga side that the Red Devils will be playing in the Europa League – having defeated Real Sociedad, Barcelona, and Real Betis en route to the last eight.
The Red Devils boast an amazing home record under Erik Ten Hag. In fact, the last side to defeat them at home was La Liga side Real Sociedad in their first Europa League game of the campaign. With that being said, United have been unbeaten at home since and is a menacing side to face for any opponent.
Sevilla, however, have the reputation of being troublemakers in Europe – despite their poor La Liga run this season. They have enough under-the-radar gems in their squad to pop up surprises and make things very tricky for the Red Devils.
United have momentum on their side and a lot of confidence heading into this game. They’re playing exciting attacking football and have Old Trafford faithful out of their seats again, as they’ll aim to take energy from the crowd’s electricity blow over Sevilla on Thursday.
Last 5 Games
The Red Devils boast a better recent for than the La Liga side, having won four of their last five games across all competitions. That includes winning their last three home games in compelling fashion – giving them a surge of momentum heading into this clash.
Manchester United
Win: 2-0 vs Everton
Win: 1-0 vs Brentford
Loss: 2-0 vs Newcastle United
Win: 3-1 vs Fulham
Win: 1-0 vs Real Betis
Sevilla
Draw: 2-2 vs Celta Vigo
Win: 2-0 vs Cardiz
Loss: 2-0 vs Getafe
Loss: 1-0 vs Fenerbahce
Win: 2-1 vs Almeria
Predicted Lineups
The major issue for Manchester United is that Marcus Rashford is unlikely to be fit for this game. He suffered a groin injury late into their 2-0 win over Everton and looked to be in a lot of pain because of that. Luke Shaw is also suffering from an injury he suffered against Brentford last week.
The duo are likely to be added to their injury list alongside Alejandro Garnacho and Donny van de Beek, both of whom are unlikely to play any more part for the Red Devils this season.
Sevilla, on the other hand, have a fully fit squad for the vital trip to Old Trafford. Jose Luis Mendilibar will hope to use this advantage to get any kind of a positive result out from United’s home fortress.
Manchester United: De Gea, Dalot, Varane, Martinez, Malacia, Casemiro, Sabitzer, Fernandes, Antony, Martial, Weghorst
Sevilla actually holds an impressive record in their history of having played against Manchester United. The two sides have only met each other three times and the La Liga side have had the upper hand almost every time – having won two out of the three occasions.
The last time these two teams met was in the 2019/20 UEFA Europa League semi-final. Due to Covid-19, the two-legged clash was reduced to just one game – but Sevilla came out on top with a 2-1 win.
Where the game will be decided
The Red Devils have enjoyed quite a lot of success against La Liga sides this season, but Sevilla could prove to be a bit of a tough nut to crack for them – despite the Spanish club’s difficulties in the league this season.
Sevilla can get down and dirty during games and make it difficult for teams to enjoy any fluidity in it. They’re likely to turn things into a physical, intense fight in which the character of the United players will be brought into question.
Fortunately for the Red Devils, they have gritty players like Casemiro and Lisandro Martinez this time to handle business if needed. That’s why United should get the upper hand in this battle with Sevilla and torment them with a lot of attacking threats.
A lot will be dependent on how much the likes of Bruno Fernandes or Sabitzer can create, while Antony needs to be more accurate with his final product too. Anthony Martial will need to assume Rashford’s scoring responsibilities and put away chances clinically.
Sevilla will bring the fight to United in this game and have plenty of quality to cause them trouble. If they can handle their attacking pressure, Sevilla boasts some clinical forward players to cause trouble. Moroccan striker Youssef En-Nesyri is a thorn for defenders and is really clinical in finishing away chances, especially headers. Sevilla will be troublesome from set-pieces and try to create crosses for their striker.
The game will be decided on which team can keep themselves calm and maintain utmost concentration all game around. Knowing the recent history, United turns into different animals at home and should be able to see out Sevilla’s pressure to put on another bright showing at Old Trafford.
Prediction
We back United to get the win in this first-leg clash. It’s mostly because of just how brilliant they’ve been at home and how things seem to be working in their favor every time they take to the Old Trafford pitch.
The return of Casemiro should be a huge boost and help them control the game better. Sevilla’s lack of quality in a couple of areas in the field can haunt them, as they’ll have to work hard to ensure the tie doesn’t end at Old Trafford itself.
Prediction: Manchester United 3-1 Sevilla
Odds*
Manchester United to win: 2/5
Draw: 19/5
Sevilla to win: 13/2
Manchester United are understandably the favorite to win this clash, having 2/5 betting odds. That means if one was to bet $1 on them to win, they would bag a return of $1.40 – with a profit of just $0.40.
On the other hand, Sevilla’s 13/2 odds mean that if one was to bet $1 on them to win and they got that desired result, then that someone would get a return of $7.50, with a $6.50 profit!
*by BetUS at the time of writing
Kick-off Time
The game kicks off at 20:00 GMT and the referee will be Felix Zwayer.
