Real Sociedad vs Manchester United
Two of Europe’s biggest clubs are in the Europa League spotlight on Thursday as Manchester United head to the beautiful city of San Sebastian in Northern Spain to take on Real Sociedad.
Both clubs are safely through to the knockout phase, sitting first and second in Group E with 15 points and 12 respectively. Sociedad have the 100 per cent record and the Red Devils are looking for revenge after losing the return fixture at Old Trafford. La Real come into the game on the back of a 2-0 home defeat to Real Betis while Manchester United fought hard for a 1-0 victory over West Ham United. And last time out in the Europa League Sociedad beat Omonia Nicosia 2-0 while the Red Devils saw off Sheriff Tiraspol 3-0.
This is a clash between two teams with genuine aspirations of winning the trophy, and it’s a chance for either to set down a marker; but United must win by two clear goals to topple the Spaniards.
Talking Points
Sociedad keen to avoid a serious stumble
Back to back defeats in La Liga have seen Real Sociedad drift to fifth place in La Liga and ten points off the lead. A home match against Real Betis gave them a chance to cement their place in the top four, but they fluffed it and Betis took advantage. Having lost to Valladolid the previous week, you could class this as a stutter. But another defeat would make Real’s predicament start to look like a full on stumble in the run up to the World Cup break.
Head coach Imanol Iguacil has led his team to a perfect set of Europa League 2022 results, so clearly La Real are doing plenty right, but he is using his full squad with a seemingly never ending injury list to manage. Mikel Oyarzabal, Umar Sadiq and Aihen Munoz were are all sidelined against Betis but Brais Mendez and Martin Zubimendi returned after missing out in the win over Nicosia.
Manchester United fans know plenty about Sociedad’s number ten, David Silva, and the former Manchester City man will be a key player sitting in behind strikers Alexander Sorloth and Takefusa Kubo. And midfield man Robert Navarro is another man to watch; the 20 year old Spain U21 star has scored two goals and made two assists already in this competition.
Hope is returning to Manchester
Erik Ten Hag’s first three months in charge have given the Old Trafford faithful reasons to be cheerful, with a decent start in the Premier League, a return to form of Marcus Rashford and a sign that the boss is the first in a while to have full authority over his player, after slapping down Cristiano Ronaldo when CR7 refused to come on in a game against Spurs.
If I were to offer a United fan (maybe my SBOTOP writing colleague James) three things; a trophy in 2023, a top four place in the Premier League and finishing above Liverpool…I suspect he’d bite my hand off!
But Ten Hag’s men are pretty much on track for all three, thanks to the Merseysiders’ miserable start to the Premier League campaign.
Rashford’s bullet header from a Christian Eriksen cross gave the Red Devils their hard fought 1-0 win over West Ham United in Sunday; and there was credit too for David De Gea who made two brilliant late saves to keep the Hammers at bay and ensure Ten Hag’s team could hang on to all three points. Rashford is looking back to his confident best and is top scoring with three goals in the Europa League.
Eriksen has turned out to be a shrewd signing for United and with two assists in this competition and he is providing real creative quality in the final third. And, of course, Cristiano Ronaldo is back in the fold after he resolved his spat with the boss.
Manchester United fans need to manage their own expectations, but at least Ten Hag is giving them hope.
History
The Red Devils have an illustrious history in European football with three Champions League titles and a Europa League win in 2017. But they have the painful memory of the 2021 final which they lost to Villarreal on penalties. The shootout went all the way to the goalkeepers at 10-10, and when Gero Rulli saved David De Gea’s penalty the Spaniards celebrated.
While Real Sociedad are twice winners of the La Liga title, in 1981 and 1982, they are yet to taste European success, but the Europa League 2022 betting odds give Iguacil’s side a decent chance of at least making the last four of the 2022/23 competition.
These two teams have met five times so far and Manchester United have the edge, with two wins to one and there have been two draws. Real Sociedad claimed their victory in the return match in this competition with an impressive 1-0 win at Old Trafford, as Mendez slotted home the winning penalty.
In terms of recent form, both teams have won four of the last six, but while the Spaniards lost the other two, United drew theirs and are unbeaten in eight matches in all competitions.
Betting Tip
The Red Devils are favourites to win this tie at odds of 2.14, while La Real are priced at 2.72 and the Draw is at 3.16. Both teams have been in good form though Real’s recent blip might spark them to make a strong response. Neither side will hand this tie over and I can see a tight match, maybe ending in a low scoring draw.
A SHORT EXPLANATION ON HOW OUR (⭐) BETS ARE WORTH:
⭐⭐⭐= €20 (HIGHLY CONFIDENT)
⭐⭐= €10 (CONFIDENT))
⭐= €5 (SOMEWHAT CONFIDENT)
Disclaimer: Odds are correct at time of publish.
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