Manchester United and Barcelona will face each other once again in a week for their second-leg tie in the UEFA Europa League. The last meeting between the two teams ended in a 2-2 draw. Marcos Alonso opened the scoring for the Spanish side in the first tie. That was followed by two back-to-back goals for Manchester United. Marcus Rashford once again got on the scoresheet, while the other goal was an own goal. Raphinha scored an equaliser towards the end to set up an exciting second leg. Now, these teams will go all-in for this crucial encounter at Old Trafford. We now look at some of the stats from the first leg and see what these teams could offer once again in the second leg.
The attacking threat
After a goalless first half, both teams went on to score two goals each in the second half. Barcelona had around 63.11% of the ball possession but were unable to show full dominance.
The home team in the previous leg created 31 positional attacks in total and attempted seven shots from those attacks. They created a similar number of chances from both flanks. However, they were ineffective with most of these attacks and were unable to create enough xG from the shots attempted. Overall, the team attempted 15 shots in the match and had a 46.67% accuracy rate. The xG map above shows that most of the shots came from the left side and targeted the right side of the goalkeeper.
Manchester United on the counter
Erik ten Hag’s had a low share of the ball but were a constant threat towards the opposition’s goal. They have the pace and skills to hit the other team on the counter.
The Red Devils created 24 positional attacks and attempted 11 shots from these attacks. They also hit the Spanish team with five counterattacks, and three shots were attempted from these attacks. Manchester United created most of the chances from the right flank in this match. Overall, the team attempted 16 shots, and five were on target. Barcelona’s players did well to block a few shots.
Ball progression
Barcelona are a team that likes to keep the ball. They attempted 462 passes and had an accuracy rate of 83.33%. Despite having a high percentage of possession, they were unable to rotate the ball more frequently. The ball progression map shows that most of these runs were made from the left side. However, the players attempted more dribbles on the right side to penetrate the opposition’s penalty box. The progressive passing map shows that there was no particular direction of play. A few passes were lateral, while the passes that landed in the opposition’s penalty box were crosses.
Manchester United players attempted 302 passes and had an accuracy rate of 78.48%. They made ball progression from the right side of the field. The Red Devils started making progressive passes from inside their own penalty box. Manchester United are capable of creating chances from the opposite flank as well. However, Bruno Fernandes likes to drift towards the right side, and that changes the direction of play for Erik ten Hag’s men.
Can the players show defensive strength?
Both teams leaked two goals each in the match. They can’t afford to concede more in the coming match.
Manchester United were the first to concede a goal. They conceded goals from both flanks. The above viz shows the defensive territory of the team in the match. It shows that most of the defensive actions have taken place in the defensive half. Manchester United players won 56.3% of their defensive duels and 51.85% of their aerial duels. One of the areas where Manchester United lacked was discipline. They gave away free kicks in the defensive third, and these chances could cost them a goal.
Barcelona players were dominant in winning their defensive duels. Xavi’s men registered a 67.16% win rate for defensive duels and a 44.44% win rate for aerial duels. They also made six crucial blocks and stopped the Red Devils from troubling their goalkeeper. Both teams will look to tighten their defence in this match.
Team news
Manchester United have no new injury concerns. Lisandro Martinez and Marcel Sabitzer have served their suspension bans in the previous leg. They will be in contention to play this match.
Barcelona will be without their impressive duo in the midfield. Gavi is suspended, while Pedri suffered an injury and will miss the match.
Betting Analysis
Manchester United have become the favourites to win this match. As per the 1×2 betting odds, their chances of winning stand at a 2.28 odds rate. Barcelona’s win has an odds rate of around 3.2, while the odds for a draw are 3.5. Things were completely different in the first leg, where Barcelona were the favourites and had odds of under two to win the match. Manchester United have turned the tie in their favour after impressing in the first leg.
This is a crucial battle between these European giants. Manchester United will have the home advantage, and they will look to take advantage of that. The stats show that Barcelona are more dangerous with their attacks and are likely to create more chances. However, Erik ten Hag’s men have been more clinical and found ways to get the result. Expect this to be a high-intensity match.
Visuals via Wyscout and the TFA data viz engine