Manchester Unitedbegin their Europa League campaign at home to Astana at Old Trafford tonight.
United compete in Europe’s secondary competition for the third time in five seasons this term courtesy of another disappointing sixth place finish last season.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaergot his side back on track after an early wobble against Leicester last Saturday but is already seeing his squad tested as injuries set in.
Follow all the action with kick-off at 8pm BST at Old Trafford.
Live Updates
All eyes will be on Mason Greenwood as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer unleashes Manchester United’s next generation in the Europa League.
Solskjaer did little to dampen expectations on the eve of the match when describing Greenwood as one of the best finishers he’d ever seen.
And he believes he can emulate Marcus Rashford’s spectacular rise at United by using Europe as a platform.
Greenwood scored 30 goals in 29 games at youth level last season, which was enough to convince Solskjaer to offload Romelu Lukaku and Alexis Sanchez without bringing in a replacement this summer.
“Mason’s one of the best finishers I ‘ ve seen and I’ve played with a few decent ones, ”said the United manager. “He’s still very young, but he’s maturing in the last six months since I came in.
“I remember the kid who just wanted to play with mates in the under 18 s and now he’s knocking on the door and his appetite for football must be growing.
“I just don’t want to put too much pressure on him. Go out there, enjoy yourself, work hard and make the right finish.
“Just have that enjoyment, express yourself at Old Trafford. There’ll be 11 Astana players living the dream tomorrow, one of the biggest games of their careers, but I want it to be a memorable one for our players as well. ”
So a pretty youthful Manchester United side there, with teenagers Tahith Chong, Angel Gomes and Mason Greenwood starting alongside the elder statesman, 21
Alex Tuanzebe is another academy product in the side, partnering forgotten man Phil Jones in the heart of defense, while Fred also gets a rare start.
Astana team news
Astana XI: Eric; Shomko, Simunovic, Postnikov, Rukavina; Maevski, Tomasevic; Tomasov, Sigurjonsson, Rotariu; Murtazayev.
Subs:Mokin, Muzhikov, Beysebekov, Mubele, Logvinenko, Pertsukh, Janga
Man United team news
Man Utd XI:Romero, Dalot, Tuanzebe, Jones, Rojo, Matic, Fred, Chong, Gomes, Greenwood, Rashford
Subs:Grant, Maguire, Young, Garner, Mata, McTominay, Lingard
We’re expecting team news in the next half an hour, so watch this space.
As we ‘ ve previously suggested, the starting lineup should be young – and the bench could basically be the academy plus Lee Grant.
Man Utd’s predicted lineup
James Robson is at Old Trafford for us tonight, and here’s how he sees Solskjaer setting up …
[4-2-3-1]:Romero; Dalot, Jones, Tuanzebe, Rojo; Garner, Fred; Lingard, Gomes, Chong; Greenwood
Team news
For now at least, Solskjaer will hand chances to youth prospects and fringe members of his squad for what should be a routine group.
Astana, Alkmaar and Partizan represent a favorite Group L draw for United, so there will be plenty of opportunities for players to stake a claim for more regular starts.
Mason Greenwood will lead the attack, with the 17 – year-old impressing Solskjaer with his finishing.
Fred also put in a decent stint off the bench against Leicester last weekend, and will be handed a rare start.
Axel Tuanzebe will start at center-back, while fellow youngster James Garner, Angel Gomes and Tahith Chong should all get the nod.
Is a long Europa campaign worth the risk?
United may not want to be in this competition, but the Red Devils know from recent experience that this tournament represents a golden opportunity to qualify for the Champions League.
Jose Mourinho lifted this trophy back in 2017 to lead United back to Europe’s elite club competition, and with the Premier League top-four race set to be tight again this year, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer faces a big decision over whether to go for broke either domestically or on the continent.
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Team news and line-ups
Man Utd XI: Romero, Dalot, Tuanzebe, Jones, Rojo, Matic, Fred, Chong, Gomes, Greenwood, Rashford
Subs: Grant, Maguire, Young, Garner, McTominay, Lingard, Mata
Astana XI: Eric; Shomko, Simunovic, Postnikov, Rukavina; Maevski, Tomasevic; Tomasov, Sigurjonsson, Rotariu; Murtazayev Subs: Mokin, Muzhikov, Beysebekov, Mubele, Logvinenko, Pertsukh, Janga
Daniel James misses out along with Paul Pogba, Luke Shaw and Anthony Martial.
The fleet-footed winger picked up a knock in Saturday’s win against Leicester and was absent from United’s session on Wednesday, when Pogba (ankle) and Shaw (hamstring) did individual work.
Prediction: Manchester United 2-0 Astana
While Solskjaer plans to field a young and largely experimental side, it shouldn’t prevent United cruising to a relatively comfortable win.
TV channel and live stream information
The match will be televised live on BT Sport 2 and can be streamed live online via the BT app and website.
You can follow all the action and analysis onStandardSport’sLIVE blog with James Robson at Old Trafford.
Head to head (h2h) results and history
This will be the first ever meeting between the two sides.
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