FC Barcelona welcomed Manchester United at Camp Nou to play in the UEFA Europa League. Despite scoring first, FC Barcelona tied with Manchester United at their home ground. However, Manchester United will host the second leg at Old Trafford on February 23.
As it happened
In the first leg, Barcelona hosted Manchester United last night. Man United boss Erik Ten Hag missed several key players in this match due to injuries. Anthony Martial, Antony, Marcel Sabitzer, Eriksen, and Lisandro Martinez were among them.
Therefore, the manager deployed Luke Shaw in the center-back position, pairing up with Raphael Varane, while Tyrell Malacia and Wan Bissakka played as the two full-backs. In the absence of Eriksen and Sabitzer, Fred played with Casemiro in the midfield. Meanwhile, Marcus Rashford led the attack with Weghorst and Jadon Sancho.
As for Barcelona, manager Xavi Hernandez played his team in a 4-2-3-1 formation.
Anyway, the game started with two teams aiming for an early goal. The home team tried to dominate, keeping more possession under them. But Manchester United focused on counter-attacking football. The Red Devils looked very dangerous whenever they got the ball. Bruno Fernandes and Marcus Rashford were ruthless against the home side. However, despite the first-half thriller, no one could find the net in the first 45 minutes.
Coming back from the break, FC Barcelone hit first with Marcos Alonso’s header defeated David De Gea in the 50th minute. Conceding this goal, Manchester United became desperate to find the equalizer. They took only two minutes to level the scoreline. The goal scorer was none other than the in-form player Marcus Rashford. Rashford found the net in the 52nd minute with a beautiful strike.
Moreover, Manchester United took the lead for the first time as they got another goal within seven minutes. The builder was Rashford once again. He dribbled a player and crossed the ball into the box. Instead of clearing the ball, Barca defender Kounde put the ball into his own net. Therefore, Manchester United took the lead in 52 minutes.
It seemed Man United could secure all three points at Camp Nou. But the drama was not over. In the 76th minute, Barca forward Raphinha found the net with a brilliant strike. His curl shot outside from the box found the net in the 76th minute. This goal earned Barcelona one point at home. However, they have a tough task ahead as they will face Manchester United at Old Trafford without Gavi and Pedri.
