Internet Desk: Jose Mourinho’s Manchester United beat Saint-Etienne by 1-0 in the second-leg to seal the tie with a convincing 4-0 aggregate triumph, as they have reached the Round of 16 of UEFA Europa League on Wednesday.
Henrikh Mkhitaryan’s opener left Les Verts needing five goals to progress but the Armenian was replaced soon afterwards with an injury, while Eric Bailly was sent off in the 63rd minute for a second yellow card, moments after Michael Carrick was withdrawn through injury.
The Reds contained the hosts early on and were extremely professional in quelling any initial danger. Not that it quietened the vociferous crowd but Jose Mourinho will have been satisfied his message had been understood as his strong XI showed composure and quality to reach the Europa League last 16.
From the first real attack of any note, after 16 minutes, Mkhitaryan effectively sealed the tie with a top-class finish. A neat build-up saw Juan Mata use Daley Blind’s overlapping run as a decoy and instead drifted inside to guide a lovely cross to the near post. Mkhitaryan did the rest, feathering the ball past Stephane Ruffier with a delicate touch.
Another Mata cross caused problems when Loic Perrin’s clearance hit team-mate Vincent Pajot and forced a diving save out of Ruffier but there was frustration for United when Mkhitaryan was forced off injured in only the 25th minute, with Marcus Rashford taking his place.
Mourinho’s men carved the Saint-Etienne defence open again when Zlatan Ibrahimovic fed Ashley Young but the right-back’s centre flew agonisingly across the face of goal. Les Verts finally started to generate some chances of their own but Bailly blocked a Jordan Veretout shot and Perrin was guilty of directing a free header from a free-kick straight at Sergio Romero.
When referee Deniz Aytekin did not, for once, buy Kevin Malcult’s histrionics in regularly throwing himself to the ground under the slightest pressure, with Rashford using his strength, the substitute set Ibrahimovic up for an opportunity but he fired a powerful effort over the bar. Back came the home side and a combination of Bailly and Romero snuffed out Kevin Monnet-Paquet when he raced towards goal.
Although Henri Saivet’s volley was blocked, United looked very comfortable after the interval with Romain Hamouma making a hash of a free-kick that summed up the hosts’ night. Marouane Fellaini could have doubled the lead when picked out well by Blind but the combative Belgian only managed to find the side-netting from a promising position.
Paul Pogba’s low drive was held by Ruffier but, after Bastian Schweinsteiger replaced Carrick, there was a real negative for the Reds. Bailly made a second late tackle on Hamouma within the space of three minutes and, a little harshly, was booked on both occasions. The Ivorian’s dismissal means he is suspended for the first leg of the Round of 16, while Marcos Rojo came on for Mata to plug the gap.
Sensing they had nothing to lose, Les Verts opened the game up and both sides began to create more chances. Hamouma had a couple of attempts and the Pogba brothers tried their luck at either end, with Florentin’s hammer drive wide and Paul going close with a header that was hacked away. Rashford was also unlucky after nicking the ball past Ruffier but it rolled off target.
Schweinsteiger, who looked composed in midfield, drifted a curler wide after nice work by Paul Pogba as, an injury-time shot by Jorginho that was repelled by Romero aside, United looked the likelier scorers despite being down to 10 men. Nonetheless, the home crowd kept singing until the bitter end, even though it’s the Reds who march on to the last 16.