Europa League news: Manchester Utd vs Athletic Club – Five key battles and score prediction

After a dominant performance in Spain last week, Manchester United welcome Athletic Club Bilbao to Old Trafford for the second leg of their Europa League semi-final clash on Thursday night.

With the first leg ending in a comfortable 3-0 win for the Red Devils, many people have already written off Athletic Club’s chances of making the final, but anything can happen in football.

And with the Europa League providing a path into next season’s Champions League, the pressure is on for Ruben Amorim's struggling side to come up with the goods.

Here, Sports News Blitz writer Dejan Johal assesses five key battles that could prove decisive and offers a score prediction.

Bruno Fernandes vs Íñigo Ruiz de Galarreta

A man of the match performance in the first leg showed that Bruno Fernandes continues to shine as the undisputed talisman in an underperforming United side.

Fernandes grabbed an invaluable brace in Bilbao, taking his goal tally to seven in the Europa League this season.

In a team that has consistently struggled, especially in the Premier League, the Portuguese international now has 37 goal contributions in 52 appearances this term.

With such impressive stats and after a great performance in the first leg, the United captain will be hoping to cap off his season with a European trophy later this month.

On the other hand, having been subbed off in the 46th minute of last week’s clash, Íñigo Ruiz de Galarreta needs to step up in the second leg if Bilbao are to have any chance of progressing to the final.

The Spanish defensive midfielder has four assists to his name in La Liga this season and further boasts an 83.9% pass accuracy and a dribble success rate of 70.6%.

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Alejandro Garnacho vs Yuri Berchiche

Despite the persistence of numerous rumours regarding his potential departure, Alejandro Garnacho remains a United player and continues to show glimpses of his impressive talent.

A perfect example would be his incredible goal at the weekend in the loss against Brentford in the league.

The Argentinian has typically played across two attacking midfield positions on his way to 21 goal contributions this season, and the 20-year-old is clearly still developing and improving.

Up against Garnacho this week is experienced Spanish full-back Yuri Berchiche, who has made 234 appearances for Bilbao in his career.

Berchiche’s passing and defending are key to his game as he offers an 86% passing accuracy and wins 61.3% of his duels.

Those attributes are likely to be key at Old Trafford and he is definitely going to have to be at his best if Bilbao want to get anything from the second leg.

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Amad Diallo vs Nico Williams

Having recently returned to the United team after suffering an injury, Amad Diallo will hopefully pick up where he left off in terms of form.

The Ivorian has seven goals and six assists this season in the Premier League as part of a haul of 18-goal contributions across all competitions.

With a dribble success rate of 52.1% and a passing accuracy of 85.3%, the 22-year-old has consistently shown that he is an emerging talent and breakout star.

In contrast, Athletic Club manager Ernesto Valverde has said that he is unsure whether or not Nico Williams will be fit and available for the second leg.

Bilbao and their fans, it must be said, will be desperate for Williams to be available considering the sheer quality that he possesses.

After his dazzling performances at Euro 2024, far more attention and focus have been diverted Williams’ way and he has continued to grab headlines under immense pressure.

The Spanish winger has five goals in the Europa League this season and is clearly the danger man in this Bilbao team, with 63 successful dribbles racked up in La Liga alone.

If he is fit and available at Old Trafford, then Bilbao might just have a glimmer of hope of progressing to the final.

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Leny Yoro vs Iñaki Williams

At just 19-years-old, French central defender Leny Yoro has already showcased his quality in this United side and continues to develop into a serious talent.

In the first leg, he had a 93% pass accuracy and made three clearances plus two interceptions.

Yoro will hope to continue showing his quality and help United to a European trophy at the end of the season.

Iñaki Williams, meanwhile, continues to amaze everyone with the sheer amount of games he gets through.

Since his arrival in Bilbao in 2014, the 30-year-old has made a remarkable 469 appearances while scoring 110 goals.

Williams has had another good campaign, with 20 goal contributions in all competitions so far as well as 33 successful dribbles in La Liga.

Having both Iñaki and Nico Williams fit and ready for the semi-final second leg is going to be vitally important if Bilbao want to try and pull off a miracle in Manchester.

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Andre Onana vs Julen Agirrezabala

Although he cost United nearly £50million when he arrived in 2023, Andre Onana has been heavily criticised by fans and pundits for his performances throughout his time with the Red Devils.

He has made several high-profile mistakes, which have recently led to him being dropped for a league game. 

Despite the errors, however, Onana has had some good moments this season, making 88 saves in the Premier League in the process.

Bilbao fans, for their part, will be hoping that he makes one or two more mistakes to give them a chance of progressing.

There has also been a lot of talk around the goalkeeper position for Athletic Club.

First-choice Unai Simón has struggled with injuries this term, leading to 24-year-old Julen Agirrezabala being entrusted with goalkeeping duties in European games.

The Spaniard has duly made 27 saves at a save percentage of 67.5% in the Europa League.

However, many people contend that Bilbao would not have shipped three goals in the first leg if Simón was present and thus feel that he should return for the second leg.

Score prediction: Manchester United 2-0 Athletic Club Bilbao

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