MANCHESTER, England — Manchester United opened their Europa League campaign in inauspicious fashion, falling to Real Sociedad at Old Trafford, 1-0. A spot kick goal from Brais Méndez was the difference as Erik ten Hag’s side couldn’t muster a response.
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For Sociedad, the win was their first against an English team in a competitive match. Here is ESPN’s Rob Dawson with reaction and analysis.
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Rapid Reaction
1. Manchester United’s Europa League campaign starts with a defeat
Erik ten Hag insisted at his news conference on Wednesday that he would take the Europa League seriously, but despite the Dutchman picking a strong team including Cristiano Ronaldo, Harry Maguire, David De Gea, Christian Eriksen and Antony, Real Socieded still left Old Trafford with three points. Man United ended the night with more shots and more possession than the Spanish side, but goalkeeper Alejandro Remiro was never forced into anything more than a routine save.
It’s not the end of the world for Ten Hag and he will still expect to do enough over the next five group games to progress to the next round, but the result will stall the momentum built up after four Premier League wins in a row.
As well as being a disappointing night for Ten Hag, the defeat won’t do his squad players any favours, either. Ronaldo, Maguire, Fred, Casemiro, Victor Lindelof and Anthony Elanga were all brought into the team after watching the winning run from the bench, but no one did enough to suggest they will keep their place for the next game in the league.
