Man Utd vs Roma - Europa League team news and prediction
With the Champions League semi-final first legs out of the way now it is time to focus on the Europa League last four.
Ahead of Manchester United's meeting with Roma, we have all your matchday information in one place, including team news, probable XIs and where you can watch the first leg.
When is kick off?
Thursday 29th April, 20:00 GMT
Where is the match?
Old Trafford, Manchester (England)
What TV channel is it on?
BT Sport 2
Route to the Semi-Finals
Manchester United joined the Europa League from the knock-out stage after dropping down from the Champions League. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's side have had to overcome Real Sociedad, AC Milan and Granada en route to the last four, impressively keeping five clean sheets across those six matches.
Roma breezed through their Europa League group as winners and haven't looked back. The Italian outfit have eliminated Braga, Shakhtar Donetsk and Ajax in the knock-out stage of the competition, though rode their luck against the latter in the quarter-finals. Roma have only lost one of 12 matches in the competition this season.
Team News
Manchester United are only missing Anthony Martial and Phil Jones on Thursday. Eric Bailly is finally available after a spell with COVID-19 and is expected to be the only change in defence from last weekend's draw with Leeds. David de Gea will rotate in goal and Mason Greenwood and Dan James should drop out of the side to make way for Paul Pogba and Edinson Cavani.
Roma's injury problems have eased significantly in recent weeks. The Serie A outfit have notably welcomed back former United duo Chris Smalling and Henrikh Mkhitaryan and both will line up at Old Trafford on Thursday. Former Manchester City striker Edin Dzeko is also set to start against his old rivals. Centre-back Gianluca Mancini misses out through suspension.
Probable XIs
Man Utd (4231): De Gea; Wan-Bissaka, Bailly, Maguire, Shaw; Fred, McTominay; Rashford, Fernandes, Pogba; Cavani
Roma (3421): Lopez; Ibanez, Smalling, Cristante; Karsdorp, Veretout, Diawara, Spinazzola; Pellegrini, Mkhitaryan, Dzeko
Key Battle: Bruno Fernandes vs Henrikh Mkhitaryan
Manchester United have fallen at the semi-final stage in four of five cup competitions under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and they are desperate to end that sorry run here. Bruno Fernandes will be key to their chances of making the next step, having quickly established himself as United's best player over the last year. Fernandes has remarkably played a direct hand in 36 goals across league and European competition this season.
His opposite number on Thursday will be former United creator Henrikh Mkhitaryan, who knows a thing or two about winning this competition. The 32-year-old played a star role in United's Europa League-winning campaign in 2016 but he generally underwhelmed during his spell at Old Trafford. After a failed stint with Arsenal, Mkhitaryan has rediscovered his best form for Roma this season, though is clearly still finding his way back from a recent injury. Mkhitaryan has played a direct hand in 17 goals in 29 Serie A appearances this season and will be keen to prove a point on Thursday.
Scoreline Prediction: Man Utd 2-1 Roma
