Manchester United – Rostov

Manchester United are aware that they may not finish in Premier League’s Top 4 this season, which means only one thing – they need to win the Europa League, if they want to participate in the Champions League next season. And now they have to finish the job against the Russian side Rostov to qualify for the 1/4-finals.

The first leg on Russian soil finished with a 1-1 draw, after Henrikh Mkhitaryan opened the score for the Red Devils, but Alexander Bukharov equalized after the break. This result have put Manchester United in a better position before the rematch at the Old Trafford, but it also doesn’t erase all of Rostov’s chances to cause a huge upset and qualify for the next round of the competition.

Right now Manchester United are falling with six points behind the 4th Liverpool in the Premier League, so United’s manager Jose Mourinho probably understands that winning Europa League could be his only way to qualify the team for the Champions League. We should expect to see a strongly motivated Manchester United side at the Old Trafford on Thursday night.

Manchester United are once again not showing their best form in the last few weeks. The Red Devils won just two of their last five Premier League games. They once again lost precious points against Bornemouth at home, dissapointing its fans with a 1-1 draw.

Rostov on the other hand is also performing very unconsistent in the Russian Premier League. Ivan Daniliants’ team is currently 8th in the standings with 29 points won, winning just two of its last five games in the league.

Manchester United are the big favourites to qualify for the next round, of course. They already managed to achieve a good result in the first leg and playing at the Old Trafford is going to be a huge advantage for Jose Mourinho’s side.