Champions League: Ranking the round of 16 ties
By Ty Finch
7. Sevilla vs. Manchester United
The potential story lines in the Sevilla v. Manchester United clash are far outweighed by the mundane soccer it’s likely to produce. United don’t allow many goals, let alone scoring chances, and Sevilla don’t score many goals themselves. With the first leg being played in Sevilla, the patented Jose Mourinho move would be to play for a draw and win at home in the reverse fixture. It’s almost too easy to predict.
But soccer is inherently random. Sevilla are a good side, and have a few players that dominated the Champions League thus far. They could surprise United with flashes of individual brilliance, as we saw in the group stage. Wissam Ben Yedder scored six goals in six matches, including at hat-trick against Maribor in September and a brace against Liverpool two months later. Ever Banega and Joaquin Correa added two assists apiece, and the squad as a whole make the most of their chances, even if they don’t create too many overall.
United are clear favorites to make it past the round, as they cruised through their group with five wins and a single loss to second place Basel away from home. They only allowed three goals against in the six matches, and their only worrying injury is Eric Bailly’s ankle, which is likely to keep him out of the round.
The most interesting aspect of this tie is that it places the last two Europa League winners against each other. Sevilla won in 2016 with a 3-1 win over Liverpool and United triumphed over Ajax last year. This is also the first time these clubs will face each other in any competition. Let’s just hope the unknown makes it more compelling than the inevitable.