Solskjaer will be relatively pleased by his side’s first-half display. Aside from the penalty, the Red Devils have looked solid at the back, limiting Sociedad to very few chances. Fernandes grew into the game as the half went on, with the away team struggling to pick him up as he continually drifted into pockets of space. La Reales, on the other hand, will need an early goal if they hope to overturn the existing four-goal deficit in the second half. Oyarzabal has been the brightest spark for the visitors, and he will need to step up after the break if Alguacil’s team are to launch a comeback.
After an evenly-matched first half, there’s nothing to separate Manchester United and Real Sociedad at the break. On 13 minutes, the visitors had a golden opportunity to break the deadlock and pull a goal back from the spot after James impeded Gorosabel, but Oyarzabal steered the penalty wide of the top-left corner. Fernandes then went close for the hosts with an audacious chip that struck the bar, before James had a close-range header kept out by Remiro.
45' + 1' HALF TIME: MANCHESTER UNITED 0-0 REAL SOCIEDAD
44' Telles this time goes down following a tackle from Januzaj and United get another free-kick deep in their own half.
42' Telles fires a cross in from the left-hand side of the field aiming for Greenwood, but Zubeldia rises well to nod the delivery away from danger.
39' Fred cleverly lets the ball run beyond him before being fouled from behind by Zubimendi in the centre of the park. The referee is well placed to award a free-kick.
37' Following a corner from the left, Lindelof concedes a free-kick after climbing over the back of Sagnan at the far post.
35' GREAT SAVE! Fernandes drops into a yard in space just outside of the visitors’ penalty area and swings an inviting cross into the box. James gets ahead of his man, but steers his close-range header straight at Remiro.
33' Oyarzabal attempts to win possession high up the field, but clips Telles in the process. The referee awards a free-kick to the hosts.
31' James is caught from behind by Gorosabel and United win a free-kick in their own defensive third.
30' Since the start of February 2020, Fernandes has hit the woodwork more times in all competitions than any other Premier League player (11).
28' Wan-Bissaka goes down under pressure from Oyarzabal, and United win a free-kick in an advanced position down the right flank. Telles takes it, but the set-piece fails to beat the first man.
26' Fernandes is beginning to pull the strings now. This time he looks to set Martial in behind, but the Frenchman’s first touch sends the ball over the line for a goal-kick.
24' OFF THE BAR! Greenwood plays Fred in behind Sociedad’s defensive line, and the Brazilian returns the ball to the captain after skipping past the onrushing Remiro. Rather audaciously, the Portuguese international looks to chip his effort into the top-left corner, although it cannons out off the bar.
22' GOOD SHOT! Telles picks out Martial just inside the visitors’ box, and he spins away from his marker before drawing a smart save from Remiro at his near post.
21' James drives down the left and picks out Fernandes on the edge of the box, and his right-footed effort deflects behind for a corner off Zubeldia. The hosts work it short before eventually crossing the ball in, but Lindelof’s header back across goal is hooked to safety.
19' Januzaj cuts inside and onto his left foot before steering an inviting cross into the heart of the hosts’ penalty area. Merino peels away from his marker but misses the Belgian’s delivery.
17' United are unbeaten in 14 Europa League matches at Old Trafford (W12 D2). They last lost 3-2 to Marcelo Bielsa’s Athletic Bilbao in 2011-12.
15' La Reales continue to apply the pressure as they seek a breakthrough. After finding a yard of space, Guevera fires a tame effort from the centre of the box over the bar.
12' PENALTY! James gets the wrong side of Gorosabel and brings the full-back down inside the box after some clever play by the away side down the right wing. The referee shows no hesitation in pointing to the spot. Oyarzabal will take it...
11' CHANCE! Bailly launches a well-weighted pass beyond the Sociedad defence for Fernandes. The Portuguese midfielder times his run well, latches onto the ball and opts for a first-time shot, which Remiro saves well at his near post.
10' Solskjaer’s team have settled into their rhythm now and are neatly working the ball around on the halfway line as they look to create space from deep.
8' Greenwood looks to dribble his way out of a dangerous area deep inside the United half and is fouled by Oyarzabal. Free-kick to the home side.
6' Oyarzabal once again looks to drive down the left-hand side of the field, but Greenwood gets back to block the Spaniard’s cross out for a throw-in.
4' Merino and Oyarzabal attempt a neat one-two down the left flank and win a corner off Fred. The resulting set-piece is nodded to safety.
2' The hosts have started the game brightly. Martial gets played in down the left side of the visitors’ penalty area by Fernandes, before cutting onto his right foot and firing a shot straight at Zubeldia.
1' Kick off! The referee, Lawrence Visser, blows his whistle and United get the game underway.
The teams are out, and kick-off will soon be upon us here at Old Trafford.
Manchester United have won just one of their last nine home matches against Spanish opponents (D4 L4), failing to score in their last two. That one win came against Sociedad in the UEFA Champions League group stages in 2013-14.
Heading into this match, Ole Gunner Solskjaer’s team are unbeaten in their last seven matches in all competitions. In that time, the Red Devils have scored 21 goals and kept four clean sheets. Moreover, the last time that United conceded four or more goals at home came back in October against Tottenham in the Premier League. The visitors, on the other hand, have won only once in their previous six Europa League fixtures. Against their hosts, Sociedad remain winless in their three matches with Manchester United across all competitions.
The home side make four changes from the team that recently beat Newcastle in the Premier League. In come Henderson, Bailly, Telles and Greenwood for De Gea, Maguire, Shaw and Rashford, each of whom start from the bench. Imanol Alguacil, on the other hand, makes five alterations for this clash. Rubin Le Normand, Monreal, Asier Illarramendi, David Silva, and Portu are replaced by Sagnan, Munoz, Zubimendi, Guevara and Januzaj.
REAL SOCIEDAD SUBS: Unai Marrero, Unai Ruiz Zeberio, Urko Gonzalez, Nacho Monreal, Jon Guridi, Cristian Portu, Ander Barrenetxea, Martin Merquelanz, Roberto Lopez, Jon Bautista.
MANCHESTER UNITED SUBS: Nathan Bishop, Lee Grant, David de Gea, Brandon Williams, Axel Tuanzebe, Harry Maguire, Luke Shaw, Ethan Galbraith, Amad Diallo, Shola Shoretire, Marcus Rashford.
REAL SOCIEDAD (4-3-3): Alejandro Remiro; Andoni Gorosabel, Igor Zubeldia, Modibo Sagnan, Aihen Munoz; Martin Zubimendi, Mikel Merino, Ander Guevara; Adnan Januzaj, Mikel Oyarzabal, Alexander Isak.
MANCHESTER UNITED (4-2-3-1): Dean Henderson; Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Victor Lindelof, Eric Bailly, Alex Telles; Nemanja Matic, Fred; Mason Greenwood, Bruno Fernandes, Daniel James; Anthony Martial.
Following their first-leg triumph over Sociedad, United defeated Newcastle 3-1 on their return to Premier League action. La Reales, meanwhile, beat Alaves 4-0 in their previous La Liga outing.
Hello and welcome to live match coverage of the round of 32 second-leg clash between Manchester United and Real Sociedad at Old Trafford.
