Manchester United head to LASK Linz tomorrow night to begin their UEFA Europa League round of 16 tie, and they’ll do as heavy favorites. However, the headliner story here is how this match will be played at an empty stadium, due to worries about the spread of COVID-19.
Playing matches behind closed doors, and in some cases, cancellations, are proliferating across Europe, as worries over coronavirus accelerate. Spain is playing all their matches behind closed doors and Italy is suspending football entirely. In England, Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has called for the Premier League to do the same.
We’re seeing more and more UEFA matches being played in front of no supporters, so one really has to wonder if more matches in the near future will be like this one.
United’s current starting striker, Odion Ighalo, was himself delayed in arriving at Old Trafford, due to the fact that he was playing in China, the epicenter of the pandemic.
Manchester United Starting XI Prediction at LASK Linz: Romero; Shaw, Bailly, Maguire, Williams; Fred, McTominay; Matic, Fernandes, Martial; Ighalo
Manchester United at LASK Linz Europa League Round of 16 Leg 1/2 FYIs
United team news for this match: go to this link
Kickoff: 7:30 BST, March 12, Linzer Stadion
TV: BT Sport 2
Official: Artur Dias
Prediction: United 2, LASK Linz 0
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net, which is 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,” regularly appears on WGN CLTV and co-hosts the “Let’s Get Weird, Sports” podcast on SB Nation.
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