DULL REDS LOOK POG STANDARD
Big guns flop and United need heroics from De Gea to keep Euro bid on course
PAUL POGBA was handed the perfect chance to prove his quality – but fell flat on a tough night for Jose Mourinho’s men.
Pogba was benched but called into action early in the first-half to replace the injured Ander Herrera – a glorious shot at redemption for Manchester United’s record £89million signing.
Alas the Frenchman, who by Mourinho’s own admission has been horribly out of form, failed to grasp the opportunity to show he is a player capable of running games on this exalted stage.
English teams have turned on the style away from home in the Champions League this season, Manchester City beating Basel 4-0, Liverpool hammering Porto 5-0, and Tottenham coming from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 at Juventus.
But United, who lacked fluency and carried hardly any goal threat, laboured in comparison to their fellow Premier League sides in this competition.
And were it not for the heroics of keeper David De Gea, who produced a remarkable save just before half-time to add to his fabulous back catalogue, United would be going into the second leg with it all to do.
As it is, a 0-0 draw away from home – a scoreline Sir Alex Ferguson always described as “dangerous” – leaves the Reds vulnerable to an away goal at Old Trafford in the return leg on March 13.
The irony of Pogba being benched is that Mourinho made the decision despite switching to a 4-3-3 formation, the one to which the superstar is arguably best suited and enjoys playing.
Pogba played with distinction for Juventus on the left of a midfield three and has had some of his best games for United there, with fewer defensive duties and more freedom to push forward. But the midfield responsibilities fell to Nemanja Matic, Herrera, and youngster Scott McTominay, with Juan Mata, Alexis Sanchez and Romelu Lukaku selected in attack. Sevilla had proved their pedigree in European competition, winning the UEFA Cup/Europa League five times in 12 years, although they had never made it past the last 16 of this tournament. The hosts came out of the blocks quickly, putting United under pressure early on, De Gea needing to dive low to his right to keep out a goalbound shot from Luis Muriel after three minutes. United looked edgy at the start and were unable to establish any rhythm to their play, with the home side spraying the ball around with assurance and speed, and the visitors forced to sit back. When United did manage to get sight of the Sevilla goal, they were
unable to take full advantage. Herrera put Sanchez through after 12 minutes, but his first touch was heavy, allowing the defence to clear.
Former Manchester City winger Jesus Navas (left) dragged a shot wide of De Gea’s right-hand post, as Sevilla continued to push forward in search of the opener, with United looking uncertain.
Mourinho’s decision to bench Pogba dominated the build-up to the game, but he was called into action after 17 minutes when Herrera pulled up with a hamstring injury.
His introduction had a galvanising effect on United, who began to see more of the ball and dictate the pattern of the game, although that revival proved short-lived.
Sanchez (right) was having an influence and picked out Lukaku with a fine ball over the Sevilla defence, but the £75m forward’s volleyed effort was hopeless and sailed high and wide.
De Gea made two fine saves moments before the break to keep the score at 0-0, tipping over a header from Clement Lenglet, then producing an outrageous stop to keep out a point-blank-range header from Muriel.
It was an extraordinary save, so much so that Sevilla striker Muriel was minded to congratulate De Gea as the players walked off the pitch at half-time, with United fortunate not to be going in behind.
It was a familiar story in the second-half, with United forced to defend as Sevilla dominated possession, with hardly any clearcut chances for Mourinho’s side.
Muriel should have put Sevilla ahead with 19 minutes left, but was unable to get on the end of Pablo Sarabia’s dangerous ball into the six-yard box, while United received another let-off when Franco Vazquez headed over moments later.
Lukaku had the ball in the net with seven minutes to go, but the effort was ruled out for handball.