Manchester United will host Athletic Club Bilbao in the second leg of their Europa League semi-final on Thursday.
The Red Devils have a 3-0 advantage from the first match. The La Liga side are without some of their key players such as Nico Williams, Iñaki Williams, Oihan Sancet and Dani Vivian for the trip to England.
Ahead of Athletic’s crucial clash against Manchester United, Marca had a chat with Boca Juniors’ Ander Herrera, who was talking as part of his commercial arrangement with a car-hire company.
The midfielder had two spells with the Basque club and the first one was between 2011 and 2014. He left them to join the Premier League club and even won the Europa League with them in 2017.
Marca spoke to Herrera to preview today’s tie, and the focus was mainly on Athletic and if they can overcome Manchester United.
Despite trailing 3-0 from the first leg, the 35-year-old claims Athletic Club Bilbao can still beat Ruben Amorim’s side by exploiting their mental weakness.
“If there’s a team that can do it right now, it’s Athletic,” he said.
“They’re a team that has something special and something unique about knockout ties. They’re going to give them a hard time. I’m convinced that if Athletic manages to score a goal in the first 15 or 20 minutes, it’s possible. I have some hope.
“I’ve played for both clubs; I also know that Old Trafford is special. But I think Athletic can take advantage of that moment of doubt that United sometimes has.”
When the Spanish newspaper asked him to explain what will be key for Athletic, Herrera explained: “Trying to attack, for Athletic to attack; they don’t know how to play any other way.
“You could see in the first leg that they had two or three very clear chances, but it’s true that they suffered all the misfortunes that can happen in football. I think the players have to go into the match with the mentality that United has shown both sides of the ball lately and take advantage of that.”
The fixture is crucial for Manchester United as they can only qualify for Europe by winning the Europa League.
