Manchester United take on Real Sociedad in a crucial Europa League round of 16 tie on Thursday.
Following the FA Cup exit on Sunday, with United losing on penalties against Fulham, the Europa League represents the only chance Ruben Amorim has of winning silverware this season.
United are 14th in the Premier League and they’re facing a Real Sociedad side that is occupying 9th place in La Liga.
The only way United can qualify for the Champions League is by winning the Europa League outright.
Without further ado, here are five things to watch out for when United take on Sociedad in the Europa League.
Manchester United record vs Real Sociedad
In the most recent meeting between United and Real Sociedad, then-manager Erik ten Hag led to the team to a 1-0 win in the group stage of the 2022/23 season, courtesy of an Alejandro Garnacho winner set up by Cristiano Ronaldo.
United have also won two of their three games at the Anoeta.
The biggest winning margin between the two teams was a 4-0 win for United.
Sociedad have just one win of their previous six European encounters against United.
Rasmus Hojlund looking to end goal drought
It has been another difficult season for United striker Rasmus Hojlund.
The Denmark international has not scored a goal in 18 matches and questions are being asked of the young forward.
Aged 22, Hojlund has a lot of responsibility on his shoulders and appears to be struggling with confidence.
Hojlund’s best performances have come in the Europa League as he’s managed 5 goals in the competition so far this season.
Imanol Aguacil under pressure
Real Sociedad come into this game on the back of 1-0 and 4-0 defeats to Real Madrid and Barcelona.
The Spanish side are 9th in La Liga and reports suggest Aguacil is under pressure.
One way to release that pressure would be by knocking United out of the Europa League.
Sociedad go into the tie as underdogs despite United’s inconsistent form this season.
Reds have unbeaten record in Europa League to protect
United are the only unbeaten team left in the competition after finishing third in the league stage.
It has been the only competition in which United have thrived this season with a record of five wins and three draws from their eight games.
This is in contrast to Sociedad, who suffered three defeats in the Europa League.
The Spanish side had to go through the play-offs to reach the last 16, beating Midtjylland in both legs (7-3 aggregate).
Real Sociedad renowned for clean sheets
Only Atletico Madrid (13) have more clean sheets in La Liga than Real Sociedad (12), but they’ve only ever scored once in their six European meetings against United.
That could make for a low scoring affair between the two teams.
One underlying stat to keep in mind is only Galatasaray (22) have scored more than Real Sociedad (20) in the Europa League this season.
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