Man United's Casemiro, Fernandes and Sancho train for Barcelona clash - in pictures


Stuart James
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Manchester United return to the scene of their greatest triumph as they face Barcelona in the Europa League play-offs at the Camp Nou stadium on Thursday.

In May 1999, Sir Alex Ferguson's United side beat Bayern Munich 2-1 in a dramatic Champions League final to clinch a historic treble.

Now new United manager Erik ten Hag leads his team into a mouth-watering clash against Barca in the Europa League play-offs first leg.

The Reds, who finished second in their group, will face Xavi Hernandez's team, who were third in their Champions League group, for a place in the knockout stages of Europe's second-tier competition.

The two sides have met 13 times in the past, with Barca defeating United in the 2009 and 2011 Champions League finals and the Reds winning the 1991 European Cup Winners' Cup final.

United won the Europa League against Ajax under Jose Mourinho in 2017 but lost the 2021 final to Villarreal on penalties during Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's reign.

The good news for manager Ten Hag going into Thursday's clash against Barca is the availability of Brazilian midfielder Casemiro, who picked up a three-match Premier League suspension for a red card against Crystal Palace.

With Marcel Sabitzer suspended for the game at Camp Nou and Scott McTominay injured, fellow Brazilian Fred looks likely to partner Casemiro in midfield.

Anthony Martial and winger Antony both missed United training on Wednesday, meaning either Wout Weghorst or Marcus Rashford is likely to lead the line at Camp Nou.

Lisandro Martinez is also suspended for the game, although he joined training on Wednesday, so Harry Maguire looks set to partner Rafael Varane in central defence.

Ten Hag said when the fixture was announced: "It's going to be a good challenge. We will see a game played at the highest level.

"I think Barcelona and us as well would have preferred to play this match in the final. We are looking forward to it."

You can see the United players training for the game against Barcelona in the gallery above. To move to the next photo, click on the arrows or swipe if using a mobile device.

MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – FINAL RECKONING

Director: Christopher McQuarrie

Starring: Tom Cruise, Hayley Atwell, Simon Pegg

Rating: 4/5

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Why seagrass matters
  • Carbon sink: Seagrass sequesters carbon up to 35X faster than tropical rainforests
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%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Clinicy%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202017%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Prince%20Mohammed%20Bin%20Abdulrahman%2C%20Abdullah%20bin%20Sulaiman%20Alobaid%20and%20Saud%20bin%20Sulaiman%20Alobaid%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Riyadh%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20staff%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2025%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20HealthTech%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETotal%20funding%20raised%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20More%20than%20%2410%20million%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Middle%20East%20Venture%20Partners%2C%20Gate%20Capital%2C%20Kafou%20Group%20and%20Fadeed%20Investment%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
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Name: ARDH Collective
Based: Dubai
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Sector: Sustainability
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Number of employees: 4
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Updated: February 16, 2023, 9:50 AM