Tag Manchester UnitedEuropa League

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Linz (Austria), March 12, 2020 (Reuters/NAN) Manchester United took a big step towards the Europa League quarter-finals by thrashing Austrian side LASK Linz 5-0 on Thursday in their last 16 first leg tie.

The match was played at an empty Linzer Stadium due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Striker Odion Ighalo fired Manchester United ahead in the 28th minute as he juggled a Bruno Fernandes pass onto his left foot.

He then unleashed a thunderbolt into the top corner from 18 metres.

Daniel James doubled the lead in the 58th when he side-stepped his marker and buried a crisp low shot into the bottom corner, leaving goalkeeper Alexander Schlager rooted to the spot.

Juan Mata made it 3-0 with a clinical finish from 10 metres after 82 minutes, before late substitutes Mason Greenwood and Andreas Pereira put the icing on the cake in stoppage time.

Swiss side FC Basel stunned Eintracht Frankfurt 3-0 away, also behind closed doors.

Samuele Campo curled in a 27th minute free kick before substitute Kevin Bua made it 2-0 in the 73rd and then set up Fabian Frei to drill home the third.

An 88^th minute penalty kick from Bosnia forward Edin Visca gave Istanbul Basaksehir a 1-0 home win over FC Copenhagen in the solitary early fixture which fans were allowed to attend.

Former Chelsea striker Demba Ba missed a pair of gilt-edged chances for the Turkish side before Visca, who hit the post early on, drilled home his spot kick.

The Manchester United fixture was one of four in Europe’s second-tier club competition ordered to be played with no fans present due to the coronavirus outbreak and two matches were postponed.

Spanish side Getafe refused to travel to Italy and face Inter Milan, while AS Roma said they could not travel to Spain to play Sevilla because of flight restrictions.

Later on Thursday, Olympiakos Piraeus drew 1-1 with Wolverhampton Wanderers behind closed doors.

The fixture was allowed to go ahead in spite of the Greek club’s owner Evangelos Marinakis saying he had contracted the coronavirus.

Vfl Wolfsburg lost 1-2 to visiting Shakhtar Donetsk in an empty stadium, while Rangers lost 1-3 to Bayer Leverkusen in the day’s only other match with fans permitted to attend. (Reuters/NAN)
KIA/KTO/OLAL
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(Edited by Kamal Tayo Oropo and Olawale Alabi)

NAN-S-2
League
By Victor Okoye
Abuja, Feb. 23, 2017 (NAN) Manchester United eased into the last 16 round of the 2016/2017 Europa League with a lone goal victory and a 4-0 aggregate defeat of hosts Saint-Etienne on Wednesday.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that goalscorer Henrikh Mkhitaryan could however be out of Sunday’s English Football League (EFL) Cup final after limping off.

Leading 3-0 from the first leg, thanks to a Zlatan Ibrahimovic hat-trick, United started sharply in front of a noisy home support at a stadium often referred to as “The Cauldron’’.

Mkhitaryan flicked in Juan Mata’s cross early on to leave the hosts needing five goals.

The Armenian departed shortly after and clutched his hamstring as he entered the tunnel, an injury which could impact on manager Jose Mourinho’s team selection for Sunday’s Wembley meeting with Southampton.

And although United had defender Eric Bailly sent off for two bookable offences in the second half, they rarely looked under pressure in securing a place in Friday’s last-16 draw.

Short of a Loic Perrin header, which was easily held by Sergio Romero in the first half, United — who had made six changes — were comfortable throughout.

One of their best chances saw Marcus Rashford poking wide when well placed in the second period.

The first leg of their next game in the competition will arrive days before an FA Cup tie at Chelsea.

But with just one defeat in 25 matches, Mourinho continues to shuffle his pack efficiently and the challenge for three Cup successes remains in tact. (NAN)
VO/OLAL
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(Edited by Olawale Alabi)