Henrikh Mkhitaryan returns from injury to score a vital away goal as Manchester United do just enough in the first leg of their Europa League Round of 16 tie.
FC Rostov 1 Manchester United 1
An ugly pitch led to an ugly match in which the two goals were the only moments of quality, with Manchester United’s effort tilting the tie very much in their favour.
Henrikh Mkhitaryan scored for the visitors, sweeping home Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s skilled cut-back as Jose Mourinho’s men produced an assured first-half performance.
The second-half belonged to the Russians, however. They deserved their equaliser and pushed United hard until the final whistle of a niggly match that was high on fouls – 38 between the teams – but low on finesse.
The wind, the cold and that pitch were chiefly to blame, though at least the return of Mkhitaryan afforded Jose something to cheer about.
Because of United’s packed schedule, the Armenian has missed only one league match since injuring his hamstring against Saint Etienne last month. His recovery – and goal – came as the Red Devils embarked on another four-match run across three competitions and ten days.
After the match, though, Mourinho admitted that the former Dortmund man – who was stationed in a central support role before being replaced midway through the second period – isn’t quite up to full fitness due to that stint on the sidelines.
“We know he cannot play 90 minutes. We knew he would only play 60 minutes – it doesn’t matter [what] the result [was], we made that decision together as he is not in the best condition. We gave him freedom to play in attacking positions with Zlatan, to try to find spaces to score. He did well and managed to finish the game without injury, which is important for us.”
Mourinho made seven changes to the side that drew with Bournemouth, but more strikingly moved to a back three in which Ashley Young and Daley Blind were used as wing-backs.
That formation could very well be wheeled out again for Monday’s FA Cup quarter-final tie with Chelsea and offers Fantasy managers the chance to pick from extra defensive options should Mourinho stick with his new tactic when his side returns to league duties in Gameweek 29.
With three clean sheets from their last four starts, United defenders are certainly worth considering in the short term. Once their Gameweek 28 blank is done and dusted, they’ll face Middlesbrough and Sunderland away and West Brom and Everton at Old Trafford.
Their run-in is tough – Chelsea at home in Gameweek 33 ushers in a schedule also involving Arsenal, Spurs and Man City all away before the season ends. However, with at least two double Gameweeks to come, we will surely be calling on United assets and a certain Zlatan Ibrahimovic once again.
In the short-term, the Swede is out of the equations – he now starts a three-match ban that will keep him out of Fantasy action until Gameweek 31.
The predictable exodus is now in full flow – Ibrahimovic has been sold by more than 238,000 managers this week – and the 2.1%-owned Mkhitaryan, while not a like-for-like replacement, could be an alternative route into United’s promising upcoming fixtures, at least as a differential.
Should United, as expected, see off Rostov next Thursday at Old Trafford, their Europa League quarter-final tie would take place on April 13 and 20, either side of that huge home match with Chelsea.
Team: Romero, Jones, Smalling, Rojo, Blind (Valencia 90+2), Pogba, Herrera (Carrick 90+2), Fellaini, Mkhitaryan (Martial 67), Young, Ibrahimovic.
Subs not used: De Gea, Mata, Lingard, Rashford.
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