UEFA EUROPA LEAGUE : ATHLETIC CLUB VS MANCHESTER UNITED – 01/05/2025 (PHOTO – BRUNO FERNANDES CELEBRATES)

MANCHESTER UNITED HAD A BRILLIANT DAY AT THE OFFICE YESTERDAY IN THEIR MATCH AGAINST ATHLETIC CLUB!  MAN U MADE 631 PASSES, WITH AN 89% PASS ACCURACY, (HAD 73% POSSESSION), AND 14 SHOTS WITH 7 ON TARGET, INCLUDING A STUNNER FROM CASEMIRO AT 30 MINS., AND A BRILLIANT BRACE FROM BRUNO FERNANDES AT 37 MINS. FROM A PENALTY, AFTER SOME ARGEY-BARGEY BETWEEN DANIEL VIVIAN AND RASMUS HOJLUND, (WHO ENDED UP ON THE FLOOR), AT WHICH POINT THE REF PROMPTLY GAVE VIVIAN HIS MARCHING ORDERS WITH A STRAIGHT RED CARD.  BRUNO FERNANDES TOOK THE PENALTY, AND IT WAS A BEAUTY.  FOLLOWED SHORTLY AFTERWARDS BY ANOTHER STUNNER JUST BEFORE HALF-TIME AT 45 MINS!  ATHLETIC CLUB MADE 228 PASSES, WITH A 70% PASS ACCURACY, AND HAD 9 SHOTS WITH 3 ON TARGET, BUT WITH NO FURTHER GOALS DURING THE MATCH, IT ENDED IN A 3 – 0 WIN TO MANCHESTER UNITED! THE SECOND LEG WILL TAKE PLACE AT OLD TRAFFORD, MANCHESTER ON 8TH MAY. THE WINNING TEAM WILL FACE THE WINNER OF THE SECOND LEG SEMI-FINAL BETWEEN TOTTENHAM VS BODO GLIMT IN THE FINAL ON WEDNESDAY 21 MAY AT SAN MAMES STADIUM IN BILBAO, SPAIN.

UEFA EUROPA LEAGUE : ATHLETIC CLUB VS MANCHESTER UNITED  – 01/05/2025

IN ADDITION TO ALL THE GOALS, ATTENTION MUST BE PAID TO HARRY MAGUIRES’ SUPERB “BACKWARDS AND A FORWARDS, FORWARDS AND A BACKWARDSING” WITH THE BALL – AND FOR THAT, HE, AND THE WHOLE TEAM DESERVE THIS…! THE SHAMEN AWARD FOR BEING “EBENEEZER GOODE”

BY AMANDA WATERS