MANCHESTER United will battle Sevilla in the headline tie of the UEFA Europa League quarter-finals, the draw has revealed.
In the other quarter-final pairings revealed by today’s draw, Juventus will play Sporting Lisbon, Bayer Leverkusen and Union St Gilloise will meet, while AS Roma are up against Feyenoord.
Manchester United are facing their fourth Spanish side in this season’s competition, having played Real Sociedad in the group stages, Barcelona in the playoffs and Real Betis in the round of 16.
The Red Devils are only the second side ever to face four different sides from the same country in a single season in a major European competition after Leeds United in the 2000/2001 Champions League (Barcelona, Real Madrid, Deportivo, Valencia), according to Opta statistics.
Erik ten Hag’s side have fared well against the Spaniards this season, winning four of the six games and losing only one, but United have struggled against Europa League specialists Sevilla in recent seasons.
Sevilla knocked United out of the Champions League in the 2017/2018 season at the round of 16 stage and conquered the English club in the semi-finals of the Europa League in 2020.
Also, Sevilla have remarkably won the Europa League four times in the last 10 years, making them the most successful club in the competition’s recent history.
In another high-profile tie in the quarter-finals, Italian giants Juventus face a tough test against Sporting Lisbon, who saw Arsenal off on penalties last night.
Nigerian striker Victor Boniface, who has registered five goals and one assist in eight Europa League appearances this season, will hope to lead Union St Gilloise past another German club Bayer Leverkusen after their victory over Union Berlin in the round of 16.
Feyenoord battle Jose Mourinho’s Roma in a repeat of the inaugural Conference League final last season, which the Italian club won.
The quarter-final ties are billed for April, the semi-finals in May and the final in Budapest, Hungary on May 31.
QUARTER-FINAL PAIRINGS
Manchester United vs Sevilla
Juventus vs Sporting Lisbon
Bayer Leverkusen vs Union St Gilloise
Feyenoord vs AS Roma
SEMI-FINALS
Juventus/Sporting Lisbon vs Manchester United/Sevilla
Feyenoord/Roma vs Bayer Leverkusen/Union St Gilloise
Final Budapest 31 May
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