In numerical superiority from the 35e Minute, Manchester United, who has only Europe to save its season, corrected the Athletic Bilbao (3-0) on Thursday in San Mamés in the first leg of the Europa League and approached a new final.
THE Red Devilsonly fourteenths of the Premier League, brought down the Basque Lions, helpless on their lawn despite a magnificent atmosphere, after the severe expulsion of the defender Dani Vivian for an obstruction on the Danish goalscorer Rasmus Hojlund, and who saw their dream of final at home, May 21, moving away.
The English club, put on the right tracks by the Brazilian Casemiro (30e) and carried by a double of his Portuguese captain Bruno Fernandes (37e s.p, 45e+4), gets closer to a third C3 final, the last chance to save a nightmarish season and find the Champions League.
-A controversial arbitration decision
The ultra-realistic Mancunians took advantage of the opposing defensive generosity to open the scoring against the course of the game, while the Basques had just created the best occasions (7e11e19e), before collapsing following the disputed penalty granted to Hojlund and the red card from Vivian. This situation, revised by video arbitration, provoked the anger and misunderstanding of the players and the staff of Bilbao, who claimed, in vain, a hand of Argentinian Alejandro Garnacho at the start of the action.
They then spent their time defending, and could even have undergone an even heavier humiliation, but the Moroccan side were unheeded of Mazraoui (45e+4) and the Brazilian environment Casemiro (64e), first scorer of the match, found the bar and the opposing post.
They will now need a huge feat on Old Trafford’s lawn next Thursday to go up this delay in three goals and join Tottenham, or the Norwegians of Bodo/Glimt, in the final.
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