Seeking to secure automatic qualification for the last 16 of the Europa League, Manchester United travel to Romania to take on FCSB at the National Arena in their final League Phase fixture on Thursday night.
The two teams will face each other for the very first time in Bucharest and are separated by only one point in the 36-team standings.
Match preview
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It has been far from a bed of roses at Old Trafford since the arrival of Ruben Amorim, but positives can be taken from Man United's run of three wins in their last four matches across all competitions, even if their performances were far from convincing.
Since Amorim labelled his Red Devils squad as "maybe the worst" in the club's history following a 3-1 defeat to Brighton in the Premier League, Man United have won by a one-goal margin in their last two matches, with a 2-1 Europa League victory over Rangers last week followed by a 1-0 success at Fulham on Sunday, courtesy of a second-half strike from Lisandro Martinez.
With Man United now sitting 12th in the Premier League table and 11 points behind the top seven, the Europa League arguably represents their best chance of securing European football for next season, and they are in a strong position to secure automatic qualification for the last 16.
Sitting fourth in the 36-team table and two points above Galatasaray in ninth, Man United know that victory against eight-placed FCSB will secure a top-eight finish, but failing to pick up maximum points could put them in danger of slipping into the playoff positions if other results go against them.
Man United will fancy their chances of success on Thursday as they have won five of their last six meetings with Romanian opposition, while they have not lost any of their last six Europa League away matches (W4 D2) since losing 2-1 at Astana in November 2019.
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FCSB have been one of the surprise packages in the Europa League this season and find themselves in contention to qualify for the last 16 for the first time since the 2017-18 campaign.
Elias Charalambous's men have picked up 14 points from their seven matches in the League Phase (W4 D2 L1) and have gone four games unbeaten, with successive 0-0 draws with Olympiacos and Hoffenheim sandwiched between wins over FC Midtjylland (2-0) and Qarabag FK (3-2).
FCSB came from behind twice to beat Qarabag in Azerbaijan last week, helping them climb up two places into eighth spot. Securing a famous victory over Man United would cement their place in the top eight, but either a draw or defeat could see them slip into the last-16 playoffs.
The reigning Romanian Liga I champions followed up their win in Qarabag with a slender 1-0 league victory over UTA Arad last weekend, thanks to a second-half penalty from Florin Tanase, and they have moved level on points with Universitatea Cluj at the top of the table with only seven games of the regular season remaining.
FCSB have now turned their attention back to the Europa League, and although they have lost each of their last seven meetings with English clubs by an aggregate score of 20-2, their head into their first-ever encounter with Man United having lost only three of their previous 22 home matches in the group stage (and now League Phase) of the Europa League (W11 D8), collecting seven points from three home games this season.
Team News
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Man United will be without injured trio Luke Shaw (calf), Jonny Evans (muscle) and Mason Mount (thigh), while Manuel Ugarte will be assessed ahead of kickoff after sustaining a knock in the closing stages of the win at Fulham. Marcus Rashford, meanwhile, is not expected to be involved amidst uncertainty over his future.
Amorim will once again consider freshening up his starting lineup, with goalkeeper Altay Bayindir and defensive duo Leny Yoro and Tyrell Malacia among those pushing for a recall after beginning as substitutes last time out.
Toby Collyer started in Man United's win over Rangers last week, before impressing as a substitute against Fulham, and he could be named in Amorim's midfield on Thursday alongside either Kobbie Mainoo, Casemiro, Christian Eriksen or Bruno Fernandes, while Joshua Zirkzee will hope to start ahead of Rasmus Hojlund up front.
As for FCSB, they are set to be without Mihai Lixandru (muscle), Octavian Popescu (knock) and top scorer Darius Olaru (shoulder) as they continue to recover from injury.
Former Tottenham Hotspur defender Vlad Chiriches has not been involved in the last three matches due to a muscle problem, but the 35-year-old could be ready to return on Thursday.
Daniel Birligea, who has scored 11 goals in all competitions this season, is likely to be recalled to lead the line at the expense of Daniel Popa, while Tanase should also return in the final third after scoring last weekend and could replace Malcom Edjouma in the number 10 role.
FCSB possible starting lineup:
Tarnovanu; Cretu, Ngezana, Dawa, Radunovic; Alhassan, Sut; Stefanescu; Tanase, Miculescu; Birligea
Manchester United possible starting lineup:
Onana; Yoro, Maguire, Martinez; Mazraoui, Collyer, Mainoo, Dalot; Diallo, Fernandes; Hojlund
We say: FCSB 1-2 Manchester United
Each of Man United's last three Europa League wins have come by a one-goal margin and another closely-fought contest could be on the cards on Thursday between two teams determined not to lose as they endeavour to maintain their position in the top eight.
Although FCSB boast an impressive home record at this stage of the competition, Man United will be regarded as favourites and should have enough quality in the side that Amorim selects to secure maximum points in Bucharest.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Oliver Thomas
