[Manchester United](https://thebusbybabe.sbnation.com) still have something to fight for.
The Reds beat Real Sociedad 4-1 at Old Trafford on Thursday, overcoming an early penalty concession to advance to the quarterfinals of the UEFA Europa League. Bruno Fernandes netted a hat-trick, scoring twice from the spot to push United over the line. It was a solid performance from Ruben Amorim’s squad against a struggling Sociedad team, though it didn’t come without some worries early on.
The referee pointed to the spot early after a VAR review on a clearance by Matthijs De Ligt. The Dutch defender appeared to have been fouled while reaching the end of a low cross, but the referee determined somehow that he was at fault for the exchange. Mikel Oyarzabal dispatched the penalty and gave his side the early advantage, but it wasn’t long before United had a penalty of their own.
Rasmus Hojlund was brought down in a similar fashion to De Ligt while attacking a cross and Bruno happily stepped up to equalize just moments later. It set the tone for the officiating on the day, but most of it went United’s way after that as the visitors struggled to get out of their own way.
The two sides were level at the halftime break, but just five minutes after the restart Bruno was standing 12 yards out again. He gave United the lead on the night and in the tie and set the tone for a rampant second half.
The visitors were reduced to 10 men just after the hour mark, with Jon Aramburu seeing red for a clumsy last-man tackle on Patrick Dorgu. The Danish wing-back had a good night for the Reds and was just a couple of decisive moments away from having a goal for himself. His speed is a welcome addition to United’s left-hand side and hopefully, this is the first of many good performances.
Despite the dominance, United struggled to find another goal. Rasmus Hojlund’s low confidence was on display with poor finishing and instincts again and Joshua Zirkzee was denied twice by the keeper despite playing a solid game. Alejandro Garnacho looked good again, though he sometimes passed when he should have taken a shot himself.
Eventually the third goal came from Bruno, completing his hat-trick with a clinical example for his teammates to follow.
The Reds wrapped up the win nicely in stoppage time with a goal from Diogo Dalot. Hojlund failed to find a shot for himself but showed good awareness to create a shot for the Portuguese full-back crashing into the center of the box.
Job done. Now, onto the quarterfinals, where United will face Ligue 1 side Lyon at the start of April.