Manchester United takes on Spanish side Villareal in Gdansk, Poland on Wednesday night, and should they triumph, it will mark the first trophy of the Ole Gunnar Solskjaer era.
United come into this on a high, 2-1 winners at Wolves on Championship Sunday. The Red Devils got goals from 19-year old forward Anthony Elanga, his first for the club, and from crafty veteran, but now fringe player Juan Mata.
Europa League Final FYIs
Kickoff: May 26, Gdansk, 8pm
Key Players to Watch: go here
Starting XI Prediction: Villarreal Manchester United
Team News: Villarreal Manchester United
TV: BT Sport Stream: ManUtd.com
Series History: four previous meetings, all goalless draws
United finished runner-up in the Premier League table, and undefeated on the road, the last team to do that was Arsene Wenger’s 2003/04 “Invincibles.” This season also marked the first time that United were in first place after Jan 1.
Team News for Both Sides
Team captain Harry Maguire is still sidelined with an ankle injury, and he’s losing a race against time to be fit enough to feature here. He’s a strong doubt for this one, as is Frenchman Anthony Martial. Maguire is one of the team’s most important and best performing players this season, and his absence would be a major difference maker.
For the Yellow Submarine, the club remains hopeful that Tottenham Hotspur loanee Juan Foyth can still overcome his hamstring issue and feature in the trophy clash.
Hopes are not as high for Samuel Chukwueze, who like Foyth, suffered injury in the semifinal tie versus Arsenal, and hasn’t featured in any comptition since.
Prediction: United 2, Villareal 1
Party like it’s 2017 United fans. Expect OGS’ men to get their second Europa title in four seasons, and with that, possibly propel themselves to better things in 2021/22.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank, partnered with News Now. Banks, the author of “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry,” has regularly appeared in WGN, Sports Illustrated, Chicago Tribune and SB Nation. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram.