In the first leg of the UEFA Europa League playoff round, Manchester United will travel to the Spotify Camp Nou to face Barcelona....CONTINUE READING THE FULL ARTICLE>>>
The last time the Red Devils and Catalan giants faced off was in the 2018–19 Champions League quarterfinals. They will square off in the Europa League play-off round’s most-watched matchup almost four years later.
After finishing behind Bayern Munich and Inter Milan in their Champions League group, Barca was demoted to the Europa League.
Manchester United, on the other hand, lost to Real Sociedad in their Europa League group because of a worse goal differential. As a result, they were denied automatic entry into the Round of 16.
Both sides have had success at home so far this season. When compared to Erik ten Hag’s idea at Manchester United, Xavi’s Barcelona project appears to have taken off.
Who will win tonight’s match between the two illustrious European clubs? Here are five reasons why Barcelona will defeat Manchester United tonight, without further ado.
5. Barcelona’s home record this season
Barcelona has succeeded in making the Camp Nou into a fortress under Xavi. This season, they have only suffered one home loss. In the Champions League group stage, it happened against Bayern Munich.
Notably, Manchester United has only ever defeated Barcelona at Camp Nou once. Tonight, Manchester United may find it very difficult to win in a hostile environment.
They ought to strive to maintain the relationship and remain there. Even a tie would be a successful outcome since United will believe they can win the second leg.
4. Barcelona are in great form
Barcelona has recently been playing fantastically. In their last 16 games in all competitions, they have gone undefeated, and they have won their last 11 straight games.
They have made it a habit to win games, so they have plenty of momentum going into this marquee contest. Barca presently possess an eight-point advantage at the top of the La Liga table.
Manchester United are not doing too poorly themselves but the Catalans, in their current form, might prove to be too much to handle for the Red Devils. If Ten Hag’s team had all of its members, the outcome might have been different. They aren’t, which is unfortunate.
3. Manchester United are missing key players
When Manchester United takes the field tonight at Camp Nou, they will be without a number of important players. Christian Eriksen’s knee injury will keep him out until May.
Additionally present in the nursing room are Anthony Martial, Antony, Scott McTominay, and Donny van de Beek. Marcel Sabitzer and Lisandro Martinez are now serving one-game suspensions, which makes matters worse.
With such a long list of absent players, United’s bench strength has significantly decreased, and they are lacking in quality in a number of areas.
2. Barca likely to dominate midfield
Xavi has a history of using four midfielders while playing a strong opponent. Because he is aware that Manchester United are somewhat weak in midfield, the Blaugrana boss is anticipated to use similar strategy once more tonight.
The Casemiro and Eriksen double midfield pivot was effective up to the latter’s hospitalization as a result of a careless challenge by Andy Carroll during a recent cup match.
The technical prowess and physical presence of Pedri, Gavi, Frenkie de Jong, and Franck Kessie will allow them to win tonight’s midfield duel.
Against Barcelona, United might struggle to maintain possession of the ball in midfield because Fred hasn’t exactly been at his best.
1. The Robert Lewandowski factor
The goal-scoring prowess of Robert Lewandowski has contributed significantly to Barcelona’s recent string of victories.
The legendary Polish player has made 27 appearances for the Catalans across all competitions this season, scoring 23 goals and dishing out six assists.
He also has a very strong track record against English rivals. In his last three games against English clubs, Lewandowski was directly involved in nine goals.
There were three goals and an assist against Chelsea in February 2020, a brace and two assists against the Blues in August 2020, and two goals against Tottenham Hotspur in October 2019.
The 34-year-staggering old’s 45 goals in his last 37 outings in European play should also be noted. The task ahead for Manchester United will be challenging, trying to keep Lewandowski at bay.
