Manchester Utd – Athletic Bilbao

The return meeting between MJ and Atletico is unlikely to be a successful one

The Primera Division side started as favourites to face Manchester United. The club from Bilbao had shown themselves quite seriously in the previous stages of the tournament, so the terribly unstable English team was rated lower. In general, both teams were motivated in the most maximised way. Athletic are dreaming of a home final, which a week ago seemed just one step away. Manchester United are keen to win the Europa League not only for the trophy, but also for a place in next season's Champions League. With both rivals extremely motivated unfortunately, the fight for the final was minimised by the outcome of the first encounter. The first half of the match a week ago was the worst for Atletico this season. Garnacho's cancelled goal in the sixth minute was a wake-up call that the Basques didn't heed. From the thirtieth minute until the break, Manchester United made it a match, scoring three unanswered goals and remaining on the power play after Vivian was sent off. The second half did not contain any productive actions - the hosts could not, and the guests did not really want to. Bookmakers have identified the hosts as favourites for the upcoming meeting, offering odds of 1.89 on their victory. For Atletico, the result of the first meeting came as a shock. Fans of the Basque club slept and saw a great event, in which at their home stadium the team takes the European trophy. Having suffered a painful defeat with a score of 0:3, the Basques failed to regain their senses in the ensuing Primera meeting. His team spent away against Real Sociedad and reduced to a 0-0 draw. Four rounds before the finish of the season Athletic Bilbao has a four-point advantage over the nearest competitor in the fight for a place in the top 5 division. Manchester United have not been paying attention to the results of Premier League fights for a long time. Ruben Amorim will be asked for the championship only from the first rounds of the next draw. That is, Sunday's defeat to Brentford has not embarrassed anyone in the Red Devils' camp. Now MU is fifteenth in the Premier League. Atletico's decent masculine character was not cancelled by the defeat in the first meeting, so we expect at least a draw from the guests at Old Trafford.