If there was ever a question of where Manchester United is at this point, the answer would simply be that they are rising to top form these days. The legendary Red Devils sit at a tie for second place in the Premier League and they have not lost a game since the upset to Sheffield United back on January 27TH. In fact they won two games (which includes the 9 to 0 thrashing of Southampton) and two draws going into today's game against Spanish side Real Sociedad in Turin, Italy for their round of 32 UEFA Europa League game. Sociedad has had a similar run where in the last five games they played they have won two, drawn two, and lost only one match to Real Betis in the Copa del Rey. The question entering the day was who would strike first blood in the match up and while Real Sociedad had most of the possession, Man United made theirs count when they had it. In the 27TH minute, Marcus Rashford would send a beautiful pass into the box to Bruno Fernandes who allowed both defenders and the goalkeeper to crash into each other in an attempt to get the ball before he struck the easy chip in to take the 1 to 0 lead. Manchester looked energized and a lot of the creativity was coming from Fernandes and Rashford. They went into halftime with the lead, but more was still to come for the Red Devils.
The second half was when things begin to spark for Manchester United who had several chances, but none of them broke through until the 57TH minute. Rashford had the ball on the flank and he passed it through the middle to Fernandes who for a moment allowed James to take the pass, but it quickly found Fernandes who didn't miss his mark for his second goal of the game. It however took a minute to review the goal because there was a question of whether Man UTD were offsides, but the goal stood and Sociedad were in trouble. In the 64TH minute, Fred would pick pocket a Real Sociedad player, sends a heat seeking missal to Rashford who is on the breakaway and he slips it past Álex Remiro for the third goal of the game. Real Sociedad was pretty accurate with their passes and the amount of possession they had, but they could utilize the opportunities as Man Utd shut them down. Things would get worse for Sociedad heading into the second leg as Manchester United found the net yet again. After stealing possession, Eric Bailly finds Daniel James along the sideline who has been clawing at a chance to score all second half and he doesn't miss as he drives the ball to the net and squeaks just past the five hole for the fourth and final goal of the game. It's a tall mountain to climb for Real Sociedad come the second leg as Manchester secured four away goals and that is going to take some heavy thinking from manager Imanol Alguacil. My player of the match was a tough one to chose, but it has to go to Marcus Rashford who was creative all game long with his two assists and one goal. This was definitely the boost Manchester United needed heading back into Premier League play as they try to secure their Champions League spot for next year.
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