Manchester United vs. FC Midtjylland: Team News, Preview, Live Stream, TV Info

Manchester United versus FC Midtjylland on Thursday will see the Red Devils attempt to dig themselves out of the hole they were left in following their dismal performance in Denmark on Feb. 18. 

A well-organised Midtjylland side did enough to get past Louis van Gaal's men with a 2-1 victory in the UEFA Europa League round-of-32 first leg.

After the game, match-winner Paul Onuachu said, per UEFA.com:

"

It is a dream come true. It was like time stopped still when the ball went in. I just have to thank God. You cannot imagine it. [The atmosphere in the dressing room] is amazing.

Now we just have to enjoy this moment before we think of Old Trafford.

"

Per UEFA, the Danish club's sporting director, Claus Steinlein, said:

"

It is fantastic! Winning against Manchester United, can you believe it? Now we can dream of going through to the next round. I think we were actually unlucky that we didn't win by a bigger margin. It could have been three or 4-1. Only thanks to their goalkeeper did they keep it at 2-1.

"

UEFA also recorded that Pione Sisto, the man who scored Midtjylland's opener, said: "They must have underestimated us. We took advantage. We stood together as a team and that helped us. It is a pleasure to see that when you work together, you can achieve big things."

Tobias Nicolai Kvist Larsen/Associated Press

Ahead of the second leg, speaking about how United could improve, Van Gaal said, per the Mirror: "We have to keep the ball better and we have to move the ball quicker—that’s always what we have to do. And especially when the opponent is so well organised."

Date: Thursday, February 25

Time: 8.05 p.m. GMT/3.05 p.m. ET

Venue: Old Trafford, Manchester, England

TV Info: BT Sport 2 (UK only)/Fox Sports 2 (U.S. only)

Live Stream: BT Sport (UK only)/Fox Soccer 2Go (U.S. only)

Form Lines

Manchester United: WWDLLW

FC Midtjylland (only one competitive fixture since December 10 because of Denmark's winter break): WDLLDW

Team News

In an interview with MUTV (h/t United's official website) Van Gaal revealed David De Gea is not yet ready to return to action.

Marcos Rojo returns, though he is only ready for 20 minutes of substitute action. Antonio Valencia has been "training individually as part of his recovery programme but the Ecuador international is not yet available for selection."

The team's website also reported: "Luke Shaw, Phil Jones, Cameron Borthwick-Jackson, Ashley Young, Marouane Fellaini, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Adnan Januzaj (cup-tied) and Will Keane are all set to miss out. Chris Smalling did not train with the group on Wednesday."

Finally, Van Gaal told MUTV that 18-year old striker Marcus Rashford was being considered for a place in the absence of Rooney and Keane. Samuel Luckhurst of the Manchester Evening News listed Rashford among United's 18-man squad.

According to the Telegraph, Midtjylland "are missing Petter Andersson so are likely to name the same starting XI as last week."

Predicted Lineups

Manchester United will have two young full-backs in action, presumably Joe Riley and Guillermo Varela, both of whom did well against Shrewsbury Town on Monday.

The midfield will consist of two from Ander Herrera, Michael Carrick and Morgan Schneiderlin. Hopefully Herrera—who was in better form against the Shrews than he was in Denmark—will retain his place.

Assuming the aforementioned Telegraph report is correct, Midtjylland will keep the same side that beat United in Denmark, meaning the XI above will take the field at Old Trafford.

Players to Watch

Juan Mata has been in better form since moving to No. 10 in January and was impressive against Shrewsbury after a lacklustre showing in Denmark. He will be keen to build on his eight-key-passes performance in the FA Cup against higher-quality opposition.

Assuming the Danish side again looks to play on the counter, Daley Blind's role will be crucial to United.

In an attacking sense, this is an unadulterated positive—his vision and range of passing contribute beautifully to United's possession play. In a defensive sense, while he may well have outperformed expectations this season, there is still the potential for his lack of speed to be exposed if he gets caught upfield.

For Midtjylland, Sisto—picked as a key threat ahead of the first game—demonstrated his importance with his goal. Elsewhere in their side, Kristoffer Olsson was a vital cog, making four tackles, five interceptions and providing two key passes. The Swede's steel and guile will be needed again at Old Trafford. 

Key Battle

Mata's battle with Olsson and Tim Sparv will be crucial in terms of chance creation, but United's midfield will have to deal better with Midtjylland's counter-attacking threat than they did in Denmark. Once they lost possession, the Red Devils were far too permeable.

Odds

Manchester United: 1-4

Draw: 31-5

Midtjylland: 15-1

Odds for the game correct at the time of writing, per Oddschecker.

Advanced statistics per WhoScored.com.