Europa League preview: Can Manchester United achieve famous victory at Old Trafford?

The Europa League knockout play-off second leg returns and with it comes a fixture for the ages as Manchester United face Barcelona at Old Trafford. The Red Devils have the chance to beat them for the first time since 2008.

We also preview two more games from the intriguing knockout round.

Nantes v Juventus

Two teams that have had very poor seasons by their standards, Nantes and Juventus find themselves going into this knockout play-off second leg sat outside the European places in their respective domestic leagues.

For Nantes, it has been an inability to convert draws into wins, taking 10 stalemates over the course of the season and only claiming six victories from 24 matches. It is a far cry from the position they were in at this time last season, and the French outfit will wonder why their fortunes have changed.

Holding Juventus to a 1-1 draw in the first leg of this tie, Antoine Kombouaré’s side played the best football they have all season and showed a glimpse of the side that had managed to qualify for European football the year before. They are significant underdogs in this match at 15/4 and are 7/4 to qualify for the next round, but by the looks of things, Juventus haven’t been as comfortable in this fixture as predicted.

Juventus are seventh in the Serie A and still look to be rebuilding after their dramatic downfall that saw the giants surrender their nine league title win streak. A deduction of 15 points this season has also seen the Old Lady suffer but they still look to be one of the favourites to win the overall competition this year.

Juventus are 2/5 to win the tie and will likely dominate after a shaky first leg, and at 12/1, we could see them win both halves and take the most corners in each half.

Monaco v Leverkusen

The first leg of this tie was arguably the most exciting of the opening round, finishing 3-2 to Monaco with a dramatic 92nd minute winner from Axel Disasi that sent the away fans into bedlam.

The late winner sees Monaco go into this second leg as the favourites at 5/4, but not by much as Bayer Leverkusen are close behind at just 2/1. The German side have not had the best season and sit 10th in the Bundesliga after an incredible 2021/22 that saw them finish third, their highest since 2015/16. Monaco, on the other hand, look to be in great form, sitting third in Ligue 1 and claiming a win in their last league match which put them on a four-game win streak that sees them only seven points behind leaders PSG.

Monaco are heavy favourites to qualify at 2/9, and it is likely we will see the French side come into their own and assert some authority on the match. Monaco are 12/5 to score twice and just 17/2 to score four or more, a punt but one with a high return.

If the game has any of the flavour of their meeting last week, it could be a very tasty tie and odds of 8/1 for both teams to score in both halves seems a great bet. As is with European tournaments these days, it is unlikely that either team will let up, and we could be in for another absolute cracker. It is 4/1 that we witness four or more goals in the match.

Manchester United v Barcelona

Easily the most anticipated tie of the round and perhaps in all of European football this season, the second leg between Manchester United and Barcelona will no doubt offer high class entertainment after a scintillating first leg that saw the two behemoths come away with nothing between them.

Drawing 2-2 at a raucous Camp Nou, United slogged it out with Xavi’s men for 90 minutes in a game that ebbed and flowed from the very beginning. From kick-off, it looked as if Barcelona were going to be the dominant force, before United got a foothold in the game and looked like taking the lead. Marcos Alonso headed in the opener, and the game was flipped again late on with a Raphinha equaliser after United had turned the game on its head with two quickfire goals.

We can only hope we will get another top performance from these two sides who are neck and neck on paper. United are favourites to win at 13/10, with Erik ten Hag’s men also favourites to win the tie at 4/6.

This game will likely be decided by the attackers, and there are none better at the moment than those possessed by these teams. Robert Lewandowski is arguably the best striker in the world, and finds himself in usual great form, whilst United’s Marcus Rashford playing as well as he ever has and scoring for fun.

The two marksmen will be the ones to watch as the pressure builds. Lewandowski is 5/1 with enhanced odds to score first, and Rashford is 10/1 to score two or more goals in 90 minutes. Strap in for a big one.