With only two wins from four games in the Europa League this season, Manchester United have it all to do when they play host to second-placed Feyenoord in a Group A encounter.
Jose Mourinho has not enjoyed the best of the starts for Manchester United in the Premier League, but his side’s performances have been equally woeful on the European front. Drawn in a group that should not have caused too many hindrances, very few people expected the Red Devils to be in dire straits in Europe’s second-tier club competition.
After losing both their matches on the road against Fenerbahce and Feyenoord, Thursday’s game is far from a foregone conclusion despite United winning both their games at Old Trafford.
The Dutch side, too, have not been in the best of form recently and could struggle to come away from Manchester with a positive result. After winning 11 of their first 12 games in all competitions this season, Feyenoord have managed to win just 1 of their next 5.
Barring last weekend’s convincing 3-0 win over minnows PEC Zwolle, De Stadionclub have had a hard time to pick up points on the table in their recent outings, and the lack of form could cost them a spot in the knockout stages of the Europa League.
Probable Lineups
Mourinho will look to capitalise on his home games in Europe and is likely to field a strengthened team against Feyenoord on Thursday. Phil Jones is expected to continue playing as a right-sided centre half with Daley Blind partnering him. Matteo Darmian was subbed off in the game against Arsenal and Marcus Rojo could take up the Italian’s position at left-back.
Michael Carrick is unlikely to start two games in a row which could see Ander Herrera playing in midfield alongside Paul Pogba. Henrikh Mkhitaryan is expected to started on the right flank with Marcus Rashford playing on the other side.
Juan Mata’s fine showings this season has merited him of a number 10 berth and he is likely to play in behind Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
Bradley Jones is expected to start in goal with Rick Karsdorp and Terence Kongolo operating as full-backs. Marko Vejinovic, Renato Tapia and Jens Toornstra will look to pull the strings in midfield forming a trio.
Former Liverpool attacker Dirk Kuyt would like to put up a good performance against his former rivals and is expected to receive a hostile reception at Old Trafford on Thursday. Eljero Elia will look to provide blistering pace down the left flank while Nicolai Joergensen will be tasked to find a way past De Gea in the United goal.
Stats
- The two sides have just met on one occasion at Old Trafford, with United winning 2-1. Dennis Irwin and Paul Scholes were among the scorers for the Red Devils on the day.
- United have managed to score in 13 of their last 14 European games. They failed to find the back of the net against Feyenoord on matchday 1.
- Jose Mourinho’s men have attempted the most passes after four games among any other side in the Europa League this season (2582).
- The Red Devils have also dominated possession in each of their four matches, recording an average percentage of 62.5.
- At 38 goals, Wayne Rooney is just one strike shy of surpassing Ruud van Nistelrooy to become the club’s all-time leading goal scorer in Europe.
- Feyenoord have won just once in their last six visits to England. Their only victory came against Newcastle in 2002.
- They have, however, kept clean sheets in three of their last four matches against English sides in European competitions, including each of their last two.
Watch out for
Henrikh Mkhitaryan
The signing of the Armenian from Borussia Dortmund seemed to be one of the best deals of the summer, at the time. Mkhitaryan scored 11, assisted another 15 in the league, and was voted Bundesliga’s player of the 2015/16 season. But, to the amusement of millions of football fans around the world, Mkhitaryan is still to fully convince Mourinho of a starting berth.
The Portuguese manager did affirm, in his pre-match press conference, that Mkhitaryan will start the game against Feyenoord on Thursday. This may be the opportunity the 27-year-old has craved for and he could finally show Mourinho why he has been wrong in excluding him from the matchday squads.
Prediction
Manchester United 2-0 Feyenoord
United’s performances have taken a meteoric rise in recent weeks as they beat an abject Swansea side 3-1 prior to the international break and dominated Arsenal at Old Trafford over the weekend. Mourinho may have finally found his best set of players, at least on the offensive end, and could sort his defence out once his player’s return to full fitness.
Given their recent showings domestically, it is hard to see anything past a United win on Thursday. Yes, the Dutch giants will not roll over and let the home side have their way, but the Red Devils have far too much quality in their ranks to not come out of the game with a positive result.