This was the second leg of the Europa League Round of 16. The first game at Old Trafford was one that Manchester United players would like to forget, after losing to Athletic Bilbao 3-2. This left United with a mountain to climb, by not only being one goal behind but also having to deal with the 3 away goals that Athletic was able to pick up.

Sir Alex Ferguson started the first game with Rio Ferdinand and Michael Carrick on the bench. He started Jonny Evans and Chris Smalling at center-back, and they struggled all day with Llorente. Rafael was at right-back, and he had a horrible day dealing with Iker Muniain. In addition, Phil Jones started in midfield with Ryan Giggs and they had problems all game with the pressure by Athletic. United got the first goal, but it was against the run of play. By the middle of the second half, United had to bring in Ferdinand and Carrick to stem the tide. But it was only because of a great performance by David De Gea that United goes into this game with the score only 3-2 on aggregate.

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It only feels like yesterday when United advanced into the semi-final of the FA Youth Cup with a determined victory over a very decent Charlton Athletic side who refused to be beaten until James Wilson’s dramatic late winner was enough to finally see them off.

United started favourites that night at Old Trafford but tonight I think they’ll start as underdogs as they welcome a relatively experienced Chelsea side who boast plenty of talent who played in last years fixture at the same stage of the same competition. United don’t have that luxury, but what they have shown during this cup run is a determination and a typical Manchester United ethic of playing right until the final whistle.

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Manchester United were knocked out of the Europa League by a rampant Athletic Bilbao side, after a 2-1 defeat in Spain condemned them to an aggregate 5-3 defeat.

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Muadh (@MuadhKalbani)

Another off-night for Manchester United in a European home match means that tonight could well be the end of a forgettable European season. That is, if United are unable to overturn a 3-2 deficit at Athletic Bilbao. The mission? Win by two clear goals, win 3-2 to at least force extra time, or win by anything from 4-3 to 10-9 and beyond to win on away goals.

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Despite the lack of an official announcement regarding Paul Pogba’s new deal, Tuesday’s sport pages run plenty of stories regarding Manchester United.

Let’s start with the…..

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If you’re listening on a Mobile Device, use this link – Episode 27

Welcome to the twenty- seventh Can They Score Manchester United podcast. After an indifferent seven days, this pod sees Tom, Jonas, Samuel and I look back at our disappointing Europa League defeat, Rooney- driven victory against WBA, and preview the three United matches in the next week; Athletic away, Chelsea in the FAYC (with @ManUnitedYouth) and Wolves away (with @WolvesBlogger)!

Questions Discussed Include: Are United risking the loss of their AAA rating in Europe’s Elite? We really seemed to struggle to dictate the play at Old Trafford, as Athletic controlled the tempo of the game, so you do you think SAF will bring in Scholes to try and keep more of the ball? Who are the key players for United in our Semi- Final against Chelsea in the FA Youth Cup? United are top of the League, are you surprised we’ve caught up so soon?

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In recent years Manchester United have been at the centre of some of the more heavily media-scrutinised transfers. But if David Beckham and Ruud Van Nistelrooy moves to Real Madrid exemplified Fergie’s resoluteness in parting ways with loyal servants that had overstepped the line, and Ronaldo’s departure for the Spanish capital was seen as the sign of Fergie’s ability to conjure another season-winning trophy with his star before letting him leave for a world record transfer-fee, Rooney and Pogba are different cases.

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This is a story written by Charles Samuel about the first ever Mexican to play for Manchester United. Javier Hernandez…..CHICHARITO.

The story chronicles the life-so-far of one of football’s fastest growing talents. It explains how Chicharito hails from a footballing family background and how his physique led to coaches doubting his ability to make it in the big wide world of professional football, even his Dad (an ex-player) is quoted as saying “I never thought he would actually make it as a professional….”

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If ever there was a stereotypical ‘game of two halves’, this was it! United took the initiative and started the better of the two teams, so much so that after 30 minutes United were literally ‘dipping their bread’ as-and-when they fancied scoring.

Within those 30 minutes United took a well deserved and impressive three goal lead, the passing and the movement was killing Sunderland who simply didn’t have an clue what was happening to them.

Frustrated and somewhat stunned by United’s superb start Sunderland began to test United’s physical strengths, this for me was the first of many turning points that eventually led to the game ending 3-3 with United the happier to hear the final whistle.

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