Two managers with varying levels of performance in continental competition prepare their teams for battle in Gdansk, where Villarreal will face Manchester United in the Europa League final on Wednesday. Read more about Villarreal vs. Manchester United here.
The Yellow Submarine dispatched Arsenal 2-1 on aggregate in the final four to progress to the showpiece case, while Manchester United dominated Roma by eight goals over two legs as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer seeks his first piece of silverware since taking office.
Villarreal’s La Liga season came to an end on Saturday with a 2-1 loss to eventual runners-up Real Madrid, while United won the Premier League by the same scoreline over Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Villarreal vs. Manchester United | Team news
Villarreal
- Villarreal’s Samuel Chukwueze looks likely to miss out with a hamstring injury, a major loss for the Spanish club, although Tottenham’s Juan Foyth is also a major doubt.
- Pau Torres has been strongly linked with a move to Manchester United in the run-up to the summer, and he will start at center-back for Unai Emery’s side.
- Carlos Bacca and Paco Alcacer are vying for the starting spot up front alongside Gerard Moreno.
Manchester United
- Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is not optimistic that captain Harry Maguire will recover from an ankle injury in time for the final on Wednesday, but he will give him every opportunity to prove his fitness. Phil Jones and Anthony Martial are both down.
- Axel Tuanzebe is expected to start in place of Eric Bailly in the left-sided center-back role against his former club, and David de Gea is expected to start in goal over Dean Henderson.
- Mason Greenwood will feel cheated if he does not start, particularly because he is better on the right side than Marcus Rashford, but Solskjaer would be foolish to leave the latter on the bench.
Our Prediction
Our Prediction: Villarreal 1-2 Manchester United
- Villarreal is considered underdogs for Wednesday’s Europa League final, but with Unai Emery at the helm, they can be cautiously confident. Emery is the competition’s most prolific boss, having won it three years in a row. This season, the Spanish team has not lost a game in the Europa League.
- The concern for Manchester United is that they have sleepwalked their way to the final after reaching the semi-finals. Now they have to turn it back on, which isn’t easy. The fact that Harry Maguire is also likely to lose out at the back is a major setback for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, who is desperate to win his first title as Manchester United boss.
A game that has traditionally resulted in a dull 90 minutes and a share of the spoils will have a winner and a loser this time around, as 9,500 fans prepare to see Emery’s run of Europa League victories continue or Solskjaer’s first trophy as Man United manager.
Moreno and co can smell blood if Maguire is ruled out, and Villarreal should have no trouble breaking through the Red Devils’ defense, but we can see the trophy returning to Manchester as Solskjaer’s ruthless attackers take their side to victory in Gdansk.
Possible starting lineup:
Villarreal: Asenjo; Gaspar, Albiol, Torres, Pedraza; Trigueros, Capoue, Parejo, Yeremy; Moreno, Alcacer
Manchester United: De Gea; Wan-Bissaka, Lindelof, Bailly, Shaw; Fred, McTominay; Rashford, Fernandes, Pogba; Cavani
