Manchester United claimed a goalless draw at Sevilla in the first leg of their last-16 Champions League clash on Wednesday night.
Sevilla had the better of the opportunities at the Estadio Ramon, but neither team could make the breakthrough to leave the tie delicately poised ahead of the return match at Old Trafford next month.
Below are four talking points from the European tie.
Pogba starts the night on the United bench
Paul Pogba missed United’s trip to Huddersfield Town on Saturday through illness, but the Frenchman trained on Tuesday, and was expected to come back into the team for the clash with Sevilla.
On Wednesday afternoon, a number of reports claimed that Pogba would start on the bench at the Estadio Ramon, and that was confirmed when the team news was announced a little over one hour before kickoff in Spain.
Pogba’s best position is on the left of a 4-3-3 formation, but Jose Mourinho decided to select Ander Herrera, Scott McTominay and Nemanja Matic as his three central midfielders in a call that was not welcomed by the club’s supporters on social media.
Mourinho claimed that the omission was down to Pogba not feeling 100%, but Herrera has been injured for weeks, and the Spaniard was handed a starting role. It would be fair to say that Pogba has struggled to produce his best form in recent weeks, but the 24-year-old is United’s best player by a country mile when in full flow.
As it transpired, Pogba was needed after just 17 minutes as Herrera was forced off injured; the exile did not last long. It will now be fascinating to see whether the France international, who was steady enough in Seville, is handed a starting role against Chelsea this weekend.
United in a strong position to make the quarter-finals
There was more pressure on United when considering how Liverpool, Manchester City, Tottenham Hotspur and indeed Chelsea performed in the first legs of their respective last-16 ties. All four picked up strong results, with United expected to follow suit in the atmospheric Estadio Ramon.
The Red Devils had won 13 of their last 18 European matches ahead of the match, but they lost 1-0 at Basel during the group stages of this season’s competition, and had only won five of their last 22 matches with La Liga opposition as they entered the clash with Sevilla.
United had to wait until the 25th minute to have their first look at the Sevilla goal, but Romelu Lukaku fired high and wide of the crossbar following a super pass from Alexis Sanchez. McTominay tested Sevilla goalkeeper Sergio Rico for the first time in the 38th minute, and that was just about all that the away side’s supporters had to cheer in the first half of action.
Lukaku remained isolated in the final third as the second period gathered pace, and it was not much of a surprise when Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial came off the bench in the latter stages. Lukaku fired into the back of the net late on, but the striker’s effort was chalked off for a handball as Sevilla prevented the 20-time English champions from claiming an away goal.
Mourinho’s defensive tactics not a surprise
United only had one shot on target in the first period, and it did not trouble Rico as the Sevilla goalkeeper comfortably kept out McTominay’s effort. Sevilla, on the other hand, managed five attempts on target in the first 45 minutes.
Lukaku was left up the field as his teammates pumped high balls into him, with Juan Mata playing more as a wing-back than a right winger in the first period. Sanchez was given licence to roam, but Matic and McTominay both sat in front of Chris Smalling and Victor Lindelof.
While Liverpool and City both scored goals for fun in their respective first legs, United were happy enough to settle for a 0-0, which leaves them well placed to make the quarter-finals. That said, any score draw at Old Trafford in March will take the Spanish outfit into the final eight.
Many will claim that it was the perfect away performance from a Mourinho side in the knockout round of the Champions League, but others will suggest that a team of United’s quality should have offered much more on the night.
David de Gea to the rescue again for Manchester United.
Point blank 🖐
Sevilla still waiting for first Champions League last-16 win
The draw means that Sevilla are still waiting for their first victory at this stage of the Champions League. Indeed, they have lost each of their three previous round of 16 ties, and now face a tough task to book a spot in the quarter-finals.
Sevilla entered the match having won six of their last nine European home matches – suffering just one defeat in the process. Manchester City were the only English team to have won at the Estadio Ramon entering Wednesday’s match, but United never really threatened to make it a Manchester double.
It has been a season of inconsistency in La Liga, but Vincenzo Montella’s side had won their last three in the build-up to this one, and only lost once in Group E as they booked their spot in the knockout round of the competition as runners-up to Liverpool, who managed a 3-3 draw at the Estadio Ramon.
Luis Muriel led the line for the home side, while Pablo Sarabia and Joaquin Correa were selected in the wide positions as former City attacker Nolito started on the bench. Muriel brought a smart save from David de Gea in the fourth minute of the match, but Correa was the main danger as Sevilla had a lot of the ball in the early stages, with Jesus Navas also coming close.
Correa curled one into the arms of De Gea in the 28th minute, before the same two players went head-to-head in the final moments of the first period. De Gea then made two outstanding stops – the second of which was staggering - to deny Steven N’Zonzi and Muriel as Sevilla passed up a couple of excellent chances to make the breakthrough.
Muriel was too often clumsy on the ball, but the striker just missed the post in the 58th minute as Sevilla continued to have opportunities against a United side that were not too interested in committing players forward.
Correa was next to come close for the hosts in the 65th minute – the attacker curling over the crossbar having danced past Antonio Valencia, before Sarabia headed over De Gea’s goal 20 minutes from time. Sevilla had plenty of positive moments against United, but they lacked conviction in the forward areas.
