“Can still make the difference” – Barcelona boss vary of Cristiano Ronaldo threat in tie against Manchester United at Europa League
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After his team drew Manchester United in the Europa League, Barcelona manager Xavi lauded Cristiano Ronaldo. On Monday morning, United was drawn to play Barcelona in the Europa League knockout round. Last week at San Sebastian, United were one goal away from defeating Real Sociedad to win their group.
Barcelona crashed into the Europa League to face United after placing third in their Champions League group. They are second favourites to win the competition and presently sit on top La Liga despite a recent humiliating loss to Real Madrid. As a result, Ronaldo will once more play Barcelona, a team he defeated 20 times when playing for Real Madrid during his nine-year career.
When questioned about taking on Ronaldo on Monday afternoon at his news conference, Barcelona manager Xavi brushed off talk of his “decline.” Xavi said: “Barcelona have never won the Europa League. It’s a challenge, we are going to try and win it. Ronaldo in decline? He seems to me to be a great player, who has marked an era in world football and can still make the difference.”
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When will Manchester United & Barcelona face off in Europa League knockout stages?
The two European powerhouses will face off in a play-off on Thursday, February 16, 2023. The second leg will be played a week later on Sunday, February 23, and United will host that match at Old Trafford. When the two teams last faced off, it was in the Champions League quarterfinals of 2019 where United lost to Barcelona 4-0 on aggregate.
Erik ten Hag’s team was heavily linked with Frenkie de Jong, a midfielder for Barcelona, in the summer, which made for another intriguing subplot to the game. Nevertheless, he took the decision to remain at the Camp Nou, and this season he has made 16 appearances in all competitions, scoring two goals.
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Sujeeth Shetty
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