United ‘one of the best’
Real Sociedad manager Imanol Alguacil has claimed that Manchester United are still one of the best teams in Europe.
He said: “They have a lot of power, they have a lot of potential. They are well assembled, they come together. They force you to do a lot. They deserve much more.
“They are one of the best teams in Europe. You have to be very precise and have a lot of speed.
“They are very competitive there and we were able to hold on and draw, which has a lot of value.”
Stars set for exits
Several Manchester United players are at risk of being axed this summer as co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe plots a complete rebuild.
The British billionaire name-dropped five senior stars when giving a damning assessment on the state of Man Utd this week, admitting they are “not good enough” to represent the club.
During an interview with the BBC, Ratcliffe said: “If you look at the players we are buying this summer, that we didn’t buy, we’re buying Antony.
“We’re buying Casemiro, we’re buying [Andre] Onana, we’re buying [Rasmus] Hojlund, we’re buying [Jadon] Sancho.
“These are all things from the past, whether we like it or not, we’ve inherited those things and have to sort that out.
“For Sancho, who now plays for Chelsea and we pay half his wages, we’re paying £17million to buy him in the summer.”
Amorim responds to Ratcliffe
Ruben Amorim has responded to Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s claims that some of the Manchester United team have not been good enough.
He said: “I think if we are being honest in this moment, everybody, me, all the players, we are underperforming this season.
“So we can always change that and I include myself in that part of the underperforming.
“You are talking about players like Casemiro, for example, that won everything and we know these kind of players can play so much better.
“That is the focus. He was honest on that, the focus is to change his mind and change all the people’s minds.”
Sociedad news
Imanol Alguacil made eight changes to his Real Sociedad team in their 1-0 defeat to Sevilla in LaLiga.
However, Martin Zubimendi should be fit to face Manchester United after missing the first leg with illness.
But there are doubts over the fitness of Luka Sucic and Jon Aramburu.
Full injury list
Here is a look at all of the absentees for Manchester United ahead of the match against Real Sociedad.
- Altay Bayindir
- Jonny Evans
- Lisandro Martinez
- Luke Shaw
- Kobbie Mainoo
- Amad Diallo
- Leny Yoro
- Harry Maguire
Europa can give ‘energy’
Ruben Amorim has insisted that while winning the Europa League would not “change a lot” it would give the team more energy.
He said: “It is also important; it will give us more energy to continue the season.
“It is not going to change a lot, but it can give us energy.
“We have a clear plan to address next season. Of course, we have the Europa League also, and we can reach the Champions League.
“You never know. It can change plans. We have a plan and we know what to do.
“We know what kind of players we need to bring.”
