Manchester United handed instant boost vs Real Sociedad as star ruled out for both legs

Manchester United have been handed an instant boost as one of Real Sociedad’s star midfielders has been ruled out of both legs of their Europa League knockout battle.

Manchester United will take on Real Sociedad in the Europa League round of 16 as Rúben Amorim aims to claim his first trophy as head coach at Old Trafford.

United’s campaign started with three consecutive draws under Erik ten Hag, facing FC Twente, FC Porto, and Fenerbahce. Their first victory in the competition came after Ruud van Nistelrooy was appointed caretaker manager, leading them to a win over PAOK.

Once Amorim took charge, United hit their stride, winning their final four group-stage matches against Bodo/Glimt, FC Plzen, Rangers, and FCSB. That late surge secured a third-place finish in the league phase, allowing them to skip the qualification round for the knockout stage.

Their next challenge comes against Real Sociedad, who eased past FC Midtjylland 7-3 on aggregate after finishing 13th in the standings.

Sociedad hit with fresh injury blow

With the first of the two games set to take place in San Sebastian on 6 March and the return leg coming at Old Trafford a week later, United fans are worried, considering the club’s historic record against Spanish opposition.

However, Sociedad have been hit with an injury to a key player after midfielder Luka Sucic suffered an injury to his knee that has left him out of both legs of the upcoming Europa League tie.

Further, he will also miss the Txuri-Urdin’s Copa del Rey semi-final with Real Madrid.

As per Spanish outlet AS, “This is a very sensitive loss for the San Sebastian team, due to the role he plays in the midfield and because he was already going through his best form since he arrived at Real Sociedad.”

United suffering from problems of their own

While Sociedad will no doubt miss Sucic against United, Amorim is struggling with significant problems of his own.

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Star players Lisandro Martínez and Amad will miss the tie having been ruled out for the season, while it’s also expected that Kobbie Mainoo will be out until next month after suffering a calf injury in training two weeks ago.

Mason Mount is expected to return at some point in March, but it’s unclear when this will be, while Noussair Mazraoui is nursing a potential knee injury sustained against Everton.

Toby Collyer and Altay Bayındır are expected to return in the coming weeks and may be fit to play if needed, while Jonny Evans and Tom Heaton have not been spotted of late with little known about their return dates.

Luke Shaw returned to training for a few days two weeks ago but has not been seen since, with no indication of when he may next play for United.

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