The Football Faithful
·7 November 2024
The Football Faithful
·7 November 2024
Manchester United return to European action as they welcome Greek outfit PAOK to Old Trafford.
Tonight’s game will be interim manager Ruud van Nistelrooy’s penultimate match in charge of the Red Devils before Ruben Amorim commences his reign on November 11th.
United find themselves in a concerning situation in the Europa League as they have drawn all three of their games so far.
Leny Yoro was spotted in training at Carrington on Wednesday afternoon, as the 18-year-old nears his return from the injury he sustained in pre-season.
Tyrell Malacia has also been training with the squad over the last few weeks after being unavailable for almost 18 months. Van Nistelrooy confirmed the 25-year-old will be slowly integrated back into the first team after regaining match fitness with the u-21 side. Harry Maguire and Luke Shaw remain unavailable.
Manchester United: WDLWD
Van Nistelrooy has steadied the ship in Manchester with the players performing with a renewed sense of purpose.
The Red Devils appeared a team unchained from shackles after putting five past Leicester in their first game post-Erik ten Hag, with the 5-2 win booking a place in the Carabao Cup quarter-finals.
United followed that performance up with an important point at home to Chelsea, as Bruno Fernandes recorded his first Premier League goal of the season.
However, they still find themselves without a win in Europe and in 13th place in the league. A victory tonight will stand them in improved stead for Amorim’s arrival next week.
PAOK: DDLWW
PAOK are also still searching for their first triumph in the Europa League this campaign.
Defeats to Galatasaray and FCSB preceded a hard-fought point against Viktoria Plzen, where former Chelsea defender Abdul Rahman Baba scored a 93rd-minute equaliser.
In the Greek Super League, they sit second and are currently in a heated tussle with fierce local rivals Aris Thessaloniki. Only one point separates the pair after 10 league matches.
Razvan Lucescu’s side boasts some recognisable names in their ranks including former Chelsea midfielder Tiemoue Bakayoko, ex-Wolves defender Jonny and one-time Liverpool centre-back Dejan Lovren.
The most familiar face to Machester United will be Shola Shoretire. The 20-year-old joined PAOK from Manchester United in the summer
Last Meeting: N/A
Tonight will be the first-ever encounter between the Red Devils and PAOK Thessaloniki.
Manchester United: Bayindir; Mazraoui, Lindelof, Evans, Amass; Casemiro, Ugarte; Amad, Fernandes, Garnacho; Zirkzee
PAOK: Pavlenka; Jonny, Colley, Lovren, Baba Rahman; Camara, Schwab; Zivikovic, Taison, Shoretire; Tissoudali.
Romanian referee Radu Petrescu will be the match official. He will be assisted by Radu Ghinguleac and Mircea Mihail Grigoriu while Marcel Birsan will be the fourth official. The VAR will be Daniele Chiffi and he will be assisted by Aleandro Di Paolo.
Manchester United vs PAOK will be available to watch on TNT Sports 2 and Discovery+.
Kick-off at Old Trafford will be at 20:00 GMT on Thursday 7th November 2024.
Odds
Manchester United – 1/4
Draw – 21/4
PAOK – 9/1
Live
Live
Live