Manchester United fans came away from Old Trafford with few complaints after an encouraging display against Real Sociedad.
A win was vital to keep this season’s hopes alive and that was secured as Manchester United beat Real Sociedad 4-1 in the second leg of their Europa League round of 16 tie.
Old Trafford was loud and pyrotechnics were used in front of the Stretford End pre-match, before a reused surfer flag was unveiled. United fans were out in force to get behind the team as they should be, and it showed on the pitch.
Manchester United rarely get the job done straightforwardly, and that was the case again on Thursday night with a dubious penalty given to Real Sociedad early on which Oyarzabal converted to give the visitors a shock lead.
The Reds responded quickly when Rasmus Hojlund was fouled inside the box, before Bruno Fernandes stepped up to the spot to draw level.
Ruben Amorim’s side kicked on early in the second half when United won a second penalty for a foul on Patrick Dorgu, only for Fernandes to deliver again.
Fernandes sealed a late hat-trick on the counter-attack after a stunning pass by Alejandro Garnacho.
United topped off the evening with a fourth when Hojlund provided an assist for unlikely scorer Diogo Dalot.
Photo by Jean Catuffe/Getty Images
Photo by Jean Catuffe/Getty Images
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Imanol Alguacil unhappy with referee
Real Sociedad are out of the Europa League and the defeat to United has sparked a furious reaction from their manager Imanol Alguacil.
The 53-year-old chose to berate referee Beniot Bastien in his post-match interview, as quoted by Diario AS.
Although Alguacil accepts La Real were beaten by the better side, he claims the Spanish side were not allowed to compete against United’s first-team because of the French official.
“It’s cruel, you don’t even know how to explain it without making excuses. United were better, but I would have liked to compete on a one-to-one basis.
“The referee didn’t want to whistle the only penalty that was and he whistled the ones that weren’t. We didn’t deserve a referee like that, neither us nor Manchester United.”
Continuing his rant towards the referee, La Real’s boss said: “There was not a neutral referee performance. I feel very sorry for the fans, there was no possible match – not only because of those decisions, from the 14th minute it has been continuous, it is a shame.
“There is nothing to blame on the players, the referee has not let us compete. We started the game well, I don’t know what would have happened.”
A wild accusation to make after Hojlund was denied a clear chance on goal because a defender from La Real ran from behind into his elbow.
Matthijs de Ligt questioned Real Sociedad penalty
Manchester United centre-back Matthijs de Ligt was at the centre of a dubious penalty incident against Real Sociedad, which even Imanol Alguacil questioned in his post-match interview.
The Netherlands international was penalised for a foul on Mikel Oyarzabal but replays suggest the Real Sociedad striker simply got into the right position to make a penalty claim.
After a long check by the referee, he awarded a penalty in favour of La Real.
During a live broadcast, TNT Sports cameras picked up on De Ligt’s reaction as he confronted the match official.
In a friendly manner, De Ligt expressed his views by saying: “Bit soft that,” but it was never going to change the referee’s mind following a questionable VAR check.
At least United kicked on after their early set-back and convincingly booked their place in the Europa League quarter-finals, where a two-legged affair against Ligue 1 side Lyon awaits.