Good evening! Thank you very much for joining
Sports Mole for tonight's
Champions League showdown between Sevilla and
Manchester United at the Estadio Ramon Sanchez PIzjuan!
It has been so far so good for English clubs in the last 16, with Tottenham Hotspur, Manchester City, Liverpool and Chelsea all picking up decent results so far - and all but Chelsea getting theirs away from home. Manchester United are bidding to join in the fun tonight, but they take on a Sevilla side who have a formidable European record in recent years - albeit not in this competition.
We will have a close look at both teams in a short while, but first let's check out the team news...
SEVILLA STARTING XI: Sergio Rico; Jesús Navas, Mercado, Lenglet, Escudero; Banega, N'Zonzi; Sarabia, Vázquez, Correa; Muriel
MAN UTD STARTING XI: De Gea; Valencia, Lindelof, Smalling, Young; Matic, McTominay, Herrera, Mata, Sanchez; Lukaku
MAN UTD SUBS: Romero, Bailly, Darmian, Martial, Rashford, Lingard, Pogba
What can we make of those two teams, then?
Well, there really is only one place to start, and that is with the man who has dominated all of the headlines around Manchester United in recent days - Paul Pogba. Reports have suggested that the France international has fallen out with manager Jose Mourinho, and that speculation will only intensify this evening as he is left of the bench, despite Mourinho strongly hinting in his pre-match press conference that he would be available to start.
Pogba pulled out of the recent FA Cup win over Huddersfield on the morning of the game due to illness - something he may still be struggling with - but he has now been dropped from two and subbed in two of his last four games for the club. All does not seem to be well for him at Old Trafford.
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As for the players who do start for United tonight, there are some fairly surprising inclusions from
Jose Mourinho in midfield, with Scott McTominay once again handed a start ahead of Pogba and Ander Herrera also coming in for a rare start.
Herrera has missed United's last two games through injury, but his inclusion does raise questions over United's shape this evening. Mourinho has recently played with a 4-2-3-1 formation, but in their last Champions League outing it was closer to a 4-4-2 diamond, which could be what he is going for tonight with Mata at the tip of that diamond.
Should that be the case then United will be boasting a pretty daunting front two for Sevilla to come up against, with Romelu Lukaku and Alexis Sanchez leading the line. The little-and-large partnership could work very well with Sanchez feeding off any Lukaku knockdowns, with the two already seemingly striking up a good partnership at the club.
The Sevilla manager Vincenzo Montella and his players seemed most worried about Sanchez in the build-up to this match, even joking that they may need to tie him up with rope in order to stop him this evening.
At the back,
David de Gea returns in goal after being rested against Huddersfield, despite Romero having started their last two Champions League outings.
In front of him there is a start for Victor Lindelof and Chris Smalling as Eric Bailly has to make do with a place on the bench, having only returned from a lengthy injury layoff as a late sub in the weekend win over Huddersfield. Young makes up the back four, while Matic continues in the middle of the park just in front of them.
SEVILLA SUBS: Carrico, Mesa, Ben Yedder, Soria, Pizarro, Sandro, Nolito
As for Sevilla, their headline piece of team news is that Ever Banega starts in midfield, having only this week returned from a hamstring injury.
Banega - who is one of three Sevilla players, alongside Escudero and Mercado, to be just a booking away from a ban - joins former Stoke City midfielder Steven N'Zonzi in the middle of the park.
Manchester United fans will recognise the name of former Manchester City winger Jesus Navas, but perhaps not his position, with the Spaniard having been deployed at right-back recently - where he stays this evening.
That should give Sevilla more attacking prowess down that side, and his partnership with Pablo Sarabia on the right is something United need to keep a very close eye on this evening. It is, perhaps, why Mourinho has included a relatively defensive midfield lineup.
Pablo Sarabia may well be the main threat for Sevilla tonight, having scored five goals in his last eight appearances across all competitions, including the winner against Las Palmas at the weekend.
However, he is by no means Sevilla's only threat, with Correa and Vazquez also providing support for Luis Muriel who, while not exactly a prolific goalscorer, is very effective when holding the ball up and bringing others into play.
Should Sevilla find themselves needing a goal then they have something of a Champions League specialist in reverse, with Wissam Ben Yedder having scored 50% of the team's goals in this competitions - six of 12. Only Cristiano Ronaldo has scored a higher proportion of his side's goals in the group stages.
Indeed, up to and including the final group game Ben Yedder has scored 13 goals in 18 appearances across all competitions, but in the 12 he has featured in since he has scored just four times. One of those did come against Las Palmas at the weekend, though.
There are players who can hurt Manchester United in the Sevilla ranks, then, but the major question mark tonight could well be which Sevilla turns up. They have been erratic at times this season and have struggled for consistency, which threatens to derail their hopes of appearing in this competition again next season.
Sevilla go into tonight sitting six points off the Champions League places in La Liga, and that is on course to grow even further before they even kick off with Real Madrid currently leading Leganes in their game in hand. Despite being fifth, Sevilla also have a negative goal difference, scoring the fewest in the top eight and conceding the second-most in the top nine.
There are plenty of problems to iron out for Sevilla, then, and in this competition as well they conceded more group-stages goals than any other team who managed to qualify for the last 16, letting in an average of two per game during that time.
Sevilla's tally of only two group-stage wins is also the fewest of any side to have made it through to the last 16, so it is fair to paint them as the underdogs both in this tie and the competition as a whole.
However, it should be noted that Sevilla's group stage came under Eduardo Berizzo, who has since been sacked in controversial circumstances and replaced by
Vincenzo Montella.
Montella has not exactly managed to solve the consistency problems for the Spanish outfit, but they do come into this match off the back of a three-game winning run, and another triumph will make it four on the bounce for the first time since March 2017. Sevilla have only been beaten once in their last nine outings too, so they are not an easy team to get the better of under Montella.
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Sevilla were drawn alongside Liverpool in Group E, as well as Spartak Moscow and Maribor, but before even that they needed to qualify via the playoffs, beating Istanbul Basaksehir 4-3 on aggregate.
The Spanish outfit have only lost one of their eight matches in this season's competition, including qualifiers, but they have never made it further than this stage. They have now reached the knockout stages for the fourth time in their five appearances, but they have been eliminated here in all three previous season, including at the hands of Leicester City last term.
A worrying fact for Sevilla tonight will be that they have never kept a clean sheet in a Champions League knockout game, which seemingly opens the door for United to grab at least one important away goal this evening.
They do, however, boast a very good home record, which is where they have been consistent this season. Indeed, stretching back to last term Sevilla have lost just one of their last 35 outings in front of their own fans - a run which dates back to November 2016.
Eduardo Berizzo's Sevilla won two and drew two of their Champions League home games before Christmas, the most of which was a memorable 3-3 draw against Liverpool in which they came back from three goals down at half time to rescue a memorable point.
Indeed, they have only lost one of their last nine home games in this competitions, although that run began after a defeat here at the hands of United's local rivals Manchester City in November 2015.
Impressively, Sevilla have won 13 of their 18 previous home games in the Champions League - a ratio of 72% which can only be bettered by Real Madrid (76%) and Barcelona (73%) in Champions League history, among teams to have played at least 15 home games.
In all competitions Sevilla have won their last two outings here, and another win this evening would make it three in a row for the first time since November.
It will not be an easy first leg for Manchester United, then, but if they can come away from tonight's game with a score draw or even a win then they would consider that a very good result to take back to Old Trafford, where they have been so impressive this season.
The concern will be that their away form has been nowhere near as good, though, with United losing two of their last three games on the road. Indeed, throughout the entire season United have lost six times away from home, compared to only one defeat at Old Trafford.
There is certainly hope for Sevilla to build a first-leg lead, then, and while they may not be able to match the Champions League pedigree of three-time winners Manchester United, they have graced this stage more recently than the Red Devils.
This will be United's first Champions League knockout game since 2014 and their 10th appearance in the last 16 overall. United lost their first two ties at this stage of the competition, but have only failed to progress from one of the seven since.
United come into this match in patchy form, with two wins and two defeats from their last four outings following a run of eight games unbeaten prior to that.
However, they cruised through their group fairly comfortably with five wins from six against Basel, CSKA Moscow and Benfica, which left them with their best points tally in the group stage of this competition since 2007-08, when they went on to beat Chelsea in the final.
A lot has changed for United since that famous night in Moscow a decade ago, though, and they have won just one of their last six Champions League knockout games ahead of tonight's fixture - although since the retirement of Sir Alex Ferguson they have arguably never been in a better position to go far in this competition than they are now.
In European competition overall United have lost just twice in their last 18 games, with those defeats both coming this season against Real Madrid in the Super Cup and Basel in what was effectively a dead-rubber Champions League tie.
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It wouldn't be too surprising to see United shut up shop to a certain extent this evening and simply try to avoid conceding, as a goalless draw away to Sevilla is not a bad result when they have such a good record at Old Trafford.
It is a tactic which Mourinho often deploys in big matches away from home, and United certainly have the defensive record to suggest that they can pull it off. They have conceded the fewest goals in the Premier League so far this season, and in the group stages of this competition only Barcelona let in fewer, with United keeping three clean sheets along the way.
It is a big ask to hold a home side at bay for 90 minutes in the last 16 of the Champions League, though, and once again United's away record will be a concern in that respect.
The Red Devils have won two of their three games on the road this season, but looking further back they have won only four of their last 14 Champions League away games stretching back to November 2012, and in their nine previous last-16 ties they have only won the away leg twice.
United do, however, have the Mourinho factor, and the Portuguese have taken two clubs to surprise glory in this competition before, with Porto in 2004 and Inter Milan in 2010. Mourinho is bidding to become only the third manager to lift this trophy three times - after Bob Paisley and Carlo Ancelotti - and would be the first to do it with three different clubs should he manage it during his time at United.
This ground will also hold happy memories for him too, as it is where he led Porto to the UEFA Cup in 2003, his first major European trophy.
PREDICTION: Right, we're 10 minutes away from kickoff at the Estadio Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan, which means that it is time for a prediction!
First legs can often be tentative affairs, and the mercurial nature of Sevilla this season makes things even more difficult to predict this evening. United's style of play may be the main factor, though, and I can't imagine Mourinho going gung-ho this evening, so I will go for a low-scoring draw.
SPORTS MOLE SAYS: Sevilla 1-1 Manchester United
This will be the first ever competitive meeting between these two sides in any competition, but they do have plenty of experience against teams from the same country as their opponents this evening.
Sevilla have only ever lost once at home to English opposition, winning three and drawing one of their five such meetings, but that solitary defeat did come against Manchester opposition when City came to town in the 2015-16 group stages.
Sevilla have previously met English opposition in knockout rounds twice before, losing to Leicester City at this stage last season, but beating Tottenham Hotspur 4-3 on aggregate in the quarter-finals of the 2006-07 UEFA Cup, which they went on to win.
Manchester United, meanwhile, have only lost one of their last eight visits to Spain, although that does not tell the full story as the Red Devils have also only won two of their last 11 matches against Spanish opposition home or away - including defeat to Real Madrid in the Super Cup at the start of this season.
Indeed, looking even further back United have only won five of their last 22 games against teams from La Liga, drawing nine of those and losing eight, so they do not have the best record against Spanish clubs.
United did overcome Celta in the Europa League semi-finals last season, but they have won six and lost seven of their 13 previous two-legged ties against Spanish clubs, and have failed to score more than one goal in any of their last 14 Champions League encounters against teams from La Liga.
This will be the 51st time they have come up against a Spanish, and they have won 13 and lost 17 of the previous 50 - including just three wins and 10 defeats from 23 away games.
Right, the players are out, the Champions League anthem is blaring and we're just about ready to go. You've got to love a Champions League night! A quick reminder of the team news before we get started...
SEVILLA STARTING XI: Sergio Rico; Jesús Navas, Mercado, Lenglet, Escudero; Banega, N'Zonzi; Sarabia, Vázquez, Correa; Muriel
MAN UTD STARTING XI: De Gea; Valencia, Lindelof, Smalling, Young; Matic, McTominay, Herrera, Mata, Sanchez; Lukaku
KICKOFF: Here we go, then! Manchester United get us underway for the first leg of this Champions League tie!
This has been a very bright start from Sevilla. They have immediately got on the front foot and are putting United's defence under pressure already.
SAVE! Sevilla follow up their bright start with the first shot as Muriel drills a low strike towards the bottom corner from 25 yards. De Gea is a little slow getting down, but he does get his hand to it and also manages to prevent it from going behind for a corner.
United have barely been able to get a kick in the opening stages of this game. Sevilla are seeing the lion's share of possession and have made a very encouraging start to the game.
Young does well here as he looked to have been beaten by a clever Muriel pass around the corner. Sarabia was the wrong side of Young, but the United man managed to hook his leg around and steer the ball back to De Gea.
Better from United in the last few minutes as they begin to see a little more of the ball, doing so inside the Sevilla half too. The visitors are settling into this one now.
Really good defending from Navas, who shows all of his pace to snuff out the first hint of a chance for Sanchez. The Chilean looked to be through after latching on to a defence-splitting pass, but Navas got across really quickly to mop up the danger.
SHOT! Only long-range shots to speak of so far, and Banega tries his luck from all of 30 yards here. He catches it well enough, but it is always rising over De Gea's crossbar.
At the other end a long ball forward interests Lukaku, who shows really good strength to hold off both Sevilla centre-backs. They are unable to get it clear and Lukaku almost smuggles it through to Mata, but the keeper gathers.
CLOSE! This is the closest we have come so far! Navas drives forward down the right channel and unleashes a good low shot towards the bottom corner, but it fizzes a yard or so past the post.
Early trouble for United here as Herrera seems to pull up after breaking into the box. He takes his boot off immediately and throws it to the ground, which looks at though his evening is over. Paul Pogba is already stripped and waiting to come on.
MAN UTD SUB: There is the change, with Pogba replacing the injured Herrera.
This is a big game for United, and a big game for Pogba. You expect players who came for his price to make the difference on these occasions, and now he has most of the game to prove a point to Mourinho tonight.
Escudero pings a lovely diagonal ball towards the back post where Sarabia is sneaking in, but Young is alert and puts the ball behind for a corner.
YELLOW CARD! The first yellow card of the night goes to N'Zonzi, but it is a harsh one. It was a 50-50 with Sanchez on the edge of the box and both players went in with their foot high, but Sanchez just nicked the ball before N'Zonzi.
Vazquez lifts a ball into the box which causes some problems in the United box as both Lindelof and Smalling fail to cut it out. However, it runs harmlessly through to De Gea, with Correa unable to get to it first.
CHANCE! The first hint of a United chance falls the way of Lukaku, and he should do much better. It is not an easy one as Sanchez lifts a lovely ball over the defence for Lukaku, who has just peeled off his marker and can see it all the way onto his foot. First-time volleys are never easy, but Lukaku should still do better than blazing it well over the crossbar.
That was the first big chance of the night for either side, and United will know that they need to take one of those tonight if they are to take an away goal back to Old Trafford. They may not be too common if the opening stages of this match is anything to go by.
CHANCE! Sevilla respond with their best chance so far as Correa collects the ball on the left flank and cuts inside. Valencia backtracks deep into his own area and doesn't put a tackle in, allowing Correa to dip inside and get a shot away, although it is straight at De Gea.
The referee is not making himself particularly popular with the home fans here. He has had a number of chats with Sevilla's players and has just denied them what they thought was a clear free kick in midfield.
...and as if that wasn't enough to incense them, he turns down more appeals for a free kick before giving United one seconds later!
Important contribution from Smalling as Matic cuts the ball out but then gives the ball away. Sevilla immediately pounce on it but Banega's pass forces Vazquez too far out wide when a better one would have left him with a really good chance. Vazquez does get onto the ball, but Smalling is there to block his cross behind for a corner.
The biggest noise of the night so far greets another trip from Matic on Vazquez. It is a mixture of ironic cheers and calls for a yellow card, and they soon turn into boos when the referee keeps his cards in his pocket.
Sevilla have just edged the possession so far, with 52% to United's 48%. It has been a good, even contest so far.
SAVE! Sergio Rico is called into his first save of the night, but it is a fairly straightforward one. The ball broke to McTominay nicely and his shot is a good one, but Rico's positioning is good and he makes the stop.
Just five minutes left of the first half here and both sides will be pretty content with their performances so far. It is a tight game with no quarter given or asked.
YELLOW CARD! United do finally get a player in the book as Sanchez trips Navas from behind.
SAVE! Correa has looked the most likely for Sevilla down the left flank today. He gets the ball again here and once more Valencia just backs off him and gives him the space to carry the ball into the area and get a shot away. Once again, though, it lacks power and De Gea is able to make the save.
UPDATE: There has been a goal in the other Champions League game tonight, and it is a big one for Roma, who have taken the lead away against Shakhtar Donetsk.
Really good chance for Sevilla to break quickly as Muriel plays the ball inside for Escudero, who tries to pick out a wide-open Sarabia down the right flank. A United defender makes a crucial interception, though.
SAVE! The resulting corner is not dealt with by United and Mercado knocks it back in. N'Zonzi gets his head to it and glances it towards goal, but De Gea makes a really smart reaction save to tip it over the crossbar.
WHAT A SAVE! David de Gea has done it yet again! Seconds after making a howler which almost led to a goal, giving Lindelof a shout but then missing the ball himself, De Gea more than redeems himself with another world-class save. Muriel should score in truth, as he is left completely unmarked inside the area to meet a cross from the right. He gets a firm head to the ball, but he puts it too close to De Gea, who makes a stunning reaction save.
HALF TIME: Sevilla 0-0 Manchester United
The first half comes to an end at the Estadio Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan, and we're still goalless between Sevilla and Manchester United - thanks largely to David de Gea's incredible save at the end of that first half.
It has been an even and well-fought contest so far, with chances fairly few and far between for both sides until the very end of the half. Still all to play for in the second half, but Mourinho will be relatively pleased as things stand.
The best chance of the first half came in the final action of it when Luis Muriel was left all alone inside the area to plant a header towards goal. It looked as though it would be a certain goal - and in truth it should have been - but Muriel's failure to convert it should not take anything away from the heroics of David de Gea.
The United shot-stopper, who has so often been their saviour, produced a quite remarkable reaction save to turn the ball over the crossbar. Just another one to add to his growing collection.
In fact, that De Gea save was so good that you deserve to see it. Feast your eyes on this below...
Just moments before that De Gea save, he made another reaction stop to turn N'Zonzi's header over the crossbar as Sevilla piled the pressure on towards the end of the half.
The Spaniard has been the busier of the two keepers, also making saves to deny two tame Correa efforts and a Muriel strike from range. Jesus Navas has also come close with a long-range drive for the home side.
For United's part, their best chance came after 25 minutes when Sanchez floated a pass over the defence for Lukaku, whose movement saw him drift away from his marker.
The Belgian went for the first-time volley, but opted to open his foot rather than going with his laces and blazed it well over the crossbar. It was not the easiest chance, but Lukaku still should have done better.
KICKOFF: Sevilla get us back underway for the second half!
Half a chance for Sevilla as Muriel takes the ball down inside the box and has a yard or so of space, but he rushes his effort and slices it well off target.
It will be interesting to see how United approach this second half. A goalless draw would be a better result for them than it would be for Sevilla as Sevilla are much worse away and United are much better at home, but an away goal would make things even more comfortable for Mourinho's side at Old Trafford.
SHOT! Vazquez twists and turns away from a United defender on his way inside, but his subsequent curling effort is poor and flies a long way over the crossbar.
SHOT! Another shooting chance for Sevilla, but again it comes from outside the area as Muriel's effort deflects off a defender on its way behind for a corner - Sevilla's 11th of the night.
UPDATE: Shakhtar Donetsk have levelled things up against Roma in Ukraine, with Facundo Ferreyra getting the goal.
Sevilla have been asking all of the questions going forward so far in this second half, but United have stayed firm so far. The latest bright break forward is quickly snuffed out, with the hosts being forced backwards again.
SHOT! It does open up for Muriel this time as he turns nicely before quickly releasing a shot, but he doesn't catch it perfectly and De Gea calmly watches it behind.
Sanchez turns on the afterburners and darts between two players before being brought down. Sevilla are fortunate to get away without another yellow card there.
Lukaku takes on the resulting free kick from a long way out, but fires it straight at the wall.
Sevilla have still enjoyed the majority of the possession in this match, but there really is very little separating the two teams. Sevilla look most like scoring in this second half so far, but the chances are by no means flowing freely.
CHANCE! Lenglet moves away from Lukaku in the box to get on the end of a free kick, but he cannot get enough power on his header to really trouble De Gea, who makes the save.
CHANCE! Correa is giving Valencia all sorts of problems tonight. Once again he dances inside and into the box, but he is off balance when going for goal and slices and effort well off target.
Another chance for Sevilla to test De Gea here as Mata concedes a free kick in a very dangerous position...
SAVE! Banega gets it on target, but it has to be something special to beat De Gea tonight and he just takes one step to his right before catching it with ease.
Just over 20 minutes remaining in this match now and we're still goalless - and in truth there aren't many signs of that changing any time soon.
Pogba tries to change that with a long-range effort on his left foot, but he fires it a long way high and wide of the target.
Brilliant cross from Sarabia as he fires a low ball right into the six-yard box between the defence and the keeper. Muriel throws himself at it, but cannot get anything on it to turn it goalwards.
CHANCE! Chance for Sarabia here as Muriel reaches the byline and stands up a good cross to the back post. Sarabia watches it all the way, but then nods it over the crossbar when he should have done better.
MAN UTD SUB: A second change for the visitors as Marcus Rashford replaces Sanchez.
UPDATE: There has been a third goal in the night's other game, with Fred completing the turnaround for Shakhtar Donetsk as they now lead Roma 2-1.
If United can nick a goal in the closing stages here then they may well regard it as the perfect away performance in Europe. Sevilla have been solid and more than a match for United, but on tonight's evidence Mourinho will not be too worried taking them back to Old Trafford even at 0-0.
MAN UTD SUB: A third and final change for United sees Anthony Martial replace Mata.
SAVE! Muriel again breaks into the box here, but he is forced wide and his low drive is comfortably saved by De Gea, who isn't going to be beaten from there in this form.
United fans think they have taken the lead momentarily as Lukaku puts the ball in the back of the net, but the referee had already blown for a handball against the Belgian.
SEVILLA SUB: The hosts finally make their first change of the night as Muriel leisurely strolls off the field to be replaced by Sandro Ramirez.
CHANCE! Almost a chance for Sevilla to rescue the win as the ball is pulled back for Sandro, who takes his time inside the area before seeing his eventual shot blocked before it can trouble De Gea.
CHANCE! United quickly break up the other end and Rashford exchanges quick passes with Pogba before placing his finish a few yards wide of the target when he probably should have done better.
SHOT! Rashford this time tries his luck with a free kick from a long way out and he hits it well, but Rico has it covered as it flies wide of the target.
SEVILLA SUB: Another change for Sevilla as Guido Pizarro replaces Banega.
There will be two additional minutes at the end of this match.
FULL TIME: Sevilla 0-0 Manchester United
A goalless first leg comes to an end between Sevilla and Manchester United, and that should give United the slight advantage going into next month's second leg at Old Trafford - although Sevilla's lack of subs suggested that Montella was fairly content with a stalemate here too.
It could have been better for the hosts but for a stunning save from De Gea, though, with the United goalkeeper pulling off a truly world-class save to deny Luis Muriel right at the end of the first half.
Right, that is all we have time for this evening!
Thank you very much for joining Sports Mole for tonight's match as heroics from David de Gea help to earn Manchester United a goalless draw with Sevilla in the first leg of their Champions League last 16 tie. I will leave you with our match report, and be sure to stick around for reaction too.
From me, though, it is goodbye for now!
