Celta 0-1 Man United: What we learned

Marcus Rashford’s clever free-kick in the 67th minute gave Manchester United the advantage as they secured a hard-fought 1-0 win at Celta Vigo in the first leg of the Europa League semi-final on Thursday.

Sergio Alvarez kept the visitors at bay with a series of saves to deny Rashford, Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Jesse Lingard but was finally undone by the young striker’s effort.

As the two sides prepare to meet again at Old Trafford for the second leg on May 11, here’s a look at what we learned from the first leg.

UNITED SHOULD BE OUT OF SIGHT

On the surface, a 1-0 win away from home in the first leg of a European semi-final is a fantastic result and had you offered that to Jose Mourinho before the game, he’d have been tempted to take it. However, the truth is the visitors should already have one foot in the final but their finishing let them down, again.

Sergio Alvarez must be given credit for the saves he made in Celta’s goal but apart from Rashford’s stunning strike from outside the box in the 20th minute, every other save he made might never have been with better finishing.

Lingard and Mkhitaryan in particular should’ve done better with the opportunities they were afforded. United hold the advantage but its a slender one and they may yet live to regret those wasted chances.

RASHFORD STEPPING OUT OF IBRA’S SHADOW

Once Zlatan Ibrahimovic was sidelined by injury, the onus was always on the 19-year-old to step up and deliver. Over the last few weeks, he hasn’t been fazed by that added responsibility at all. In fact, like the big Swede, he seems to thrive under the pressure rather than be crippled by it.

Once again, he looked like the most likely to score for United. His effort in the 20th minute when he cut inside and curled a strike towards the far post was sublime and superbly saved by Alvarez. After winning the free-kick, he took it upon himself to strike it and gave United a crucial away goal.

Rashford is very much United’s main man at the moment and will be paramount to them ending the season on a successful note. The very fact that Mourinho is putting this much faith in youngster speaks volumes.

POGBA COULD BE KEY IN RETURN LEG

Celta Vigo’s high-pressing game was evident in this first leg and considering that they are now chasing the tie, that won’t change when they travel to Old Trafford.

Apart from that early chance when Wass, inexplicably unmarked, headed wide from near point-blank range, United largely contained Celta’s advances. The hosts also ended up leaving holes in midfield and defence, ones that Paul Pogba always threatened to exploit.

The Frenchman was the perfect candidate to burst into space, carrying the ball forward with his long strides every time possession turned over. A prime example was when he managed to find space and play in Mkhitaryan with a throughball in the 35th minute that deserved a better finish from the Armenian. With Celta chasing the game in Manchester, Pogba may have similar chances to unlock the La Liga outfit’s defence.