Manchester United are back in European action tomorrow when they host Granada in the second leg of their Europa League quarterfinal tie. Having accrued two away goals from last week, they’re on rock solid footing to progress through, so we’ll see a lot of regulars take a seat for this one.
With a fair amount of suspension and injury news to cover, let’s dive right in, and preview this thing.
Manchester United vs Granada UEL Quarterfinal Leg 2/2 FYIs
Aggregate: United lead 2-0
Kickoff: Thurs April 15, 8pm, Old Trafford
United Starting XI Prediction: go here
Odds: United win -230 Draw +360 Granada win +600
UEL Outright Odds: United -105 Granada +10000
Team News for Both Sides
United will be without at least three players in this clash, as Luke Shaw, Harry Maguire and Scott McTominay must all serve a one-game suspension. This is due to their yellow card bookings in the first leg.
It will be a rare missing out for Maguire, so the captain’s armband will have to be worn by someone else in this match. Maybe Victor Lindelof? Bruno Fernandes and Paul Pogba would be candidates, but they probably won’t feature in a game like this, where we’ll see some reserves and kids get some action.
Daniel James was unavailable for the win over Spurs, due to an unspecified injury, while Mason Greenwood and Marcus Rashford have been dealing with knocks. The latter looked absolutely gassed at the end of the victory over Tottenham, and it’s probably time he get a rest. He’s put in a massive workload this season, often playing through pain, so he’s due for some time off to convalesce.
Meanwhile Anthony Martial is out for the rest of the season. Flipping over to Granada, Striker Roberto Soldado was rested in the 2-1 win at Valladolid over the weekend, so the Spanish side will be hoping he’ll be firing on all cylinders here, as it’s the only way they can overcome longshot odds in this tie.
Domingos Duarte is both banned and injured, so he’ll miss out for two reasons. Yan Brice Eteki will be absent due to suspension, while Neydor Lozano, Luis Milla and Alberto Soro are all doubts.
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.