Man Utd to Face another Spanish Team in the Europa League

After drawing Sevilla, a champion in the Europa League, in the quarterfinals, Manchester United will now play a third Spanish team in a row. In the Europa League knockout stages, Erik ten Hag’s team has already defeated Barcelona and Real Betis. Now, they will play Seville in the last eight next month. United will play the winner of Juventus’ match with Sporting, the team that eliminated Arsenal on Thursday if they beat Sevilla in the next round.

In another match in the draw, Bayer Leverkusen will play Union Saint-Gilloise, the sister club of Premier League team Brighton, in a rematch of the Europa Conference League final from last year. Jose Mourinho’s Roma will play Feyenoord. Xabi Alonso’s Bayer Leverkusen will play Union Saint-Gilloise. United will face the team that is known as an expert in the Europa League. Sevilla has won the competition six times since 2006. The Andalusian team’s most recent victory came in 2020 when Sevilla defeated United in the semifinals.

In European competition, Manchester United has not defeated Sevilla, drawing once, losing once, and losing once in the Champions League last 16 in 2017-18 and 2020. Sevilla has advanced from six of their past eight European knockout ties (including finals) against English clubs, flopping just against Leicester in the 2016-17 Heroes Association and West Ham in last season’s Europa Association.

Only Real Sociedad, Barcelona, Real Betis, and Sevilla have ever faced four teams from the same country in a major European competition. Leeds United also faced four Spanish teams in the 2000-2001 Champions League (Barcelona, Real Madrid, Deportivo de La Corua, and Valencia). This will be an interesting tie as the club look to perform with fans expecting more success for manager Erik Ten Hag.