OLE GUNNAR COULD WIN HIS FIRST TROPHY AS MAN UTD MANAGER

Villarreal have been a part of the UEFA Europa League since the group stages, topping Group I to seal a berth in the Round of 32. In the knockout stages, the Yellow Submarine eased past Red Bull Salzburg, Dynamo Kyiv and Dinamo Zagreb in the first three rounds before grabbing a hard-fought 2-1 aggregate win over Arsenal in the semi-finals to set up the finale date with Manchester United.

Speaking of, the Red Devils dropped down to the Europa League after finishing third in the UEFA Champions League Group H, losing three of their final four games. Manchester United, though, have been imperious in the second-tier competition, beating Real Sociedad, AC Milan, Granada and AS Roma to reach the final.

As for recent form, both sides head into the final with a similar run, having won just two of their last five matches, although Manchester United could afford to take a step back in the Premier League after having already secured a second-placed finish. Villarreal, though, ended up missing out on a top six spot after going down 2-1 to Real Madrid this past weekend.

Villarreal and Manchester United have clashed four times previously, with each of the fixtures incredibly ending in a goalless draw. Ahead of the latest meeting between the two sides, The Hard Tackle takes a closer look at the encounter.

Unai Emery does not have many pressing injury concerns hampering his preparations ahead of the UEFA Europa League final against Manchester United. In Gdansk on Wednesday, the Villarreal boss is only likely to be bereft of the services of one first-team player.

Juan Foyth is facing a race against time to be declared fit to take on Manchester United, but could miss out, with captain Mario Gaspar starting in his stead as the right-back. However, it looks like Samu Chukwueze, who has been linked with Manchester United lately, is set to be fit enough to make the matchday squad.

Chukwueze, with his burst of pace and creative nous, will be the X-Factor for Villarreal and will look to put pressure on Luke Shaw. On the left flank, Manu Trigueros is a certainty, with Dani Parejo being the key man in midfield for the Spanish outfit due to his tenacity and big game acumen.

Parejo ought to have Etienne Capoue as his partner in the middle of the park, with the Frenchman set to start after missing the semi-final second leg against Arsenal due to suspension. Meanwhile, there are two key decisions that Emery has to make on either end of the pitch.

Firstly, the Villarreal boss has to decide between Paco Alcacer and Carlos Bacca as to who partners top scorer Gerard Moreno upfront, with the former likely to get the nod. The other big decision will be the choice of goalkeeper, with first-choice shot stopper Sergio Asenjo likely to pip Geronimo Rulli between the sticks.

Finally, in defence, the key man will be Pau Torres, who is another target for Manchester United, with the Spanish international being tasked with the responsibility of keeping a check on Edinson Cavani. Torres will have Raul Albiol for company at the heart of the Villarreal backline, with Alfonso Pedraza the left-back.

Manchester United

Like his counterpart in the Villarreal dugout, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has been sweating over the fitness of a key pla

yer ahead of the trip to Gdansk. On Wednesday, the Manchester United manager will have to make do without as many as three first-team players.

Anthony Martial and Phil Jones continue to recover from their respective fitness issues and are not a part of the travelling squad. One player who did make the cut is captain Harry Maguire, who has been missing in action since sustaining an ankle injury earlier this week against Aston Villa.

However, Maguire missed the training session on Tuesday and is set to watch on from the sidelines when Manchester United take the field against Villarreal, with Bruno Fernandes expected to don the captain’s armband in his stead.

Key Stats

• Villarreal and Manchester United will face for the fifth time, with each of the previous four meetings finishing 0-0 in the UEFA Champions League between 2005/06 and 2008/09. Manchester United have faced Villarreal more times without ever scoring than they have any other opponent in their history.
• This will be Manchester United’s eighth major European final, the second-most of any English club after Liverpool (14). They have been crowned winners in five of the previous seven finals, losing only against Barcelona in the UEFA Champions League in both 2008/09 and 2010/11.
• Villarreal have reached a major European final for the first time in their history, becoming the 11th different Spanish side to do so. The previous two Spanish sides to reach a major European final for the first time also faced an English opponent in that match (Alaves 4-5 Liverpool in the 2000/01 UEFA Cup and Sevilla 4-0 Middlesbrough in the 2005/06 UEFA Cup).
• Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will contest only his second final in his managerial career, having won the 2013 Norwegian Cup with Molde. Solskjaer would be the first Norwegian manager to win a major European trophy. By contrast, this is Unai Emery’s fifth final in the UEFA Europa League alone, with the Villarreal boss winning the competition thrice previously.
• Carlos Bacca scored twice in the 2014/15 UEFA Europa League final for Sevilla; he could become the first player to score in a major European final for two teams from the same nation since Hernan Crespo (1998/99 UEFA Cup with Parma, 2004/05 UEFA Champions League with AC Milan). Bacca would be the first player to do so for two Spanish teams.