Manchester United Football Club head to Spain today, to take on Celta Vigo for the first of our two-legged semi-final against the La Liga team. Jose Mourinho will be wary of the threat they pose, and he must have been worried about our injury situation ahead of the fixture.
However, the self-proclaimed Special One finally had some great news for us in that regard. He has confirmed that Manchester United have welcomed back Chris Smalling, Phil Jones and Paul Pogba. Honestly, it couldn’t have been anymore timely for us, and going forward, at least we have options in key areas of the field.
Particularly where Smalling and Jones are concerned. We finished our last game with a back four of Daley Blind, Matteo Darmian, Ashley Young and Antonio Valencia – talk about makeshift. I guess the concern with the English duo is that they do find it hard to stay fit for long periods of time.
“Chris Smalling and Phil Jones are back, and Paul Pogba,” Mourinho told reporters, as per Manchester United’s official website. “In relation to the Europa League, it’s very important. We have two matches in one week against Celta, it’s important to have everybody back. In relation to the Premier League, I think it’s too late because, in the month of April, we played nine matches, seven of them in the Premier League.”
Who will start out of the trio? Probably Paul Pogba, but I’m not sure about the other two as they’ve been out for so long. The manager also confirmed that Eric Bailly is available, as is Juan Mata, although it’s unlikely he will play for 90 minutes.
At the end of the day, it is all about coming back to Manchester with a positive result. An away goal would be absolutely wonderful, and if we head home with a lead then we’d firmly be in the driver’s seat. To be honest, if you offered me a score draw I would snap your hand off right away, as Celta Vigo are an excellent footballing side.
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