Pre-match Talking Points: United v Celta Vigo

Manchester United will welcome Celta Vigo to Old Trafford on Thursday, with a place in the Europa League final in Stockholm on 24 May up for grabs. Here are six talking points to discuss ahead of kick-off…

1: BIGGEST GAME OF THE SEASON
Jose Mourinho has admitted United's best chance of qualifying for the Champions League is by winning the Europa League, after hopes of finishing in the Premier League’s top four diminished with recent results against Swansea City and Arsenal. That has placed a much sharper focus on this semi-final second leg that carries the hallmarks of a season-defining occasion. It’s do-or-die for the Reds.

2: TEAM SELECTIONS 
The boss made eight changes to the starting XI for Sunday’s domestic trip to Arsenal, with his mind fixed firmly on this crucial European tie against Celta. For example, Paul Pogba, Antonio Valencia, Eric Bailly and Daley Blind did not feature at all, while Marcus Rashford and Jesse Lingard merely made short cameo appearances from the bench. Will they all start on Thursday as part of a full-strength team? 
Celta also rotated heavily at the weekend, a policy the Spanish club have been executing now for several weeks with nothing to play for in La Liga due to sitting in 12th place. They were beaten 3-0 away to Malaga, suffering their fifth defeat in six games across all competitions, but star man Iago Aspas and several other key players recharged their batteries for Old Trafford. The Europa League is also their main focus.

3: DE GEA OR ROMERO?
This has been a long-running talking point, given that Sergio has now started in 10 of 13 Europa League matches. In total, the Argentina international has tallied 15 appearances in all competitions this campaign and only conceded five goals, emphasising his quality as a back-up. Mourinho recently denied he has a designated ‘European goalkeeper’, so it will be fascinating to see who gets the nod on Thursday.

4: CELTA MUST ATTACK
United hold a 1-0 lead from the first leg in Spain thanks to Marcus Rashford’s excellent second-half free-kick, which means Celta must score and indeed win the second leg at Old Trafford. They'll be encouraged by the fact they have scored in all six of their European away matches this season, including an excellent 2-0 win at Shakhtar Donetsk in the Round of 32 (which, we might warn you, followed a 1-0 first-leg home defeat). Fans may recall Pione Sisto scored against the Reds twice, home and away, with FC Midtjylland last season.
The visitors' need to attack could play into United's hands, given how many teams have opted to defend at the Theatre of Dreams this season. It’s worth stating a period of extra time will only be necessary if the visitors are up 1-0 after 90 minutes. Otherwise, the tie will be decided in normal time.

5: LYON OR AJAX AWAIT
Dutch giants Ajax are heavy favourites in the other semi-final tie, after beating Lyon 4-1 in Amsterdam last week. Yet the Ligue 1 side will not give up, especially with star striker Alexandre Lacazette set to return from injury this week. They may also be encouraged by the fact that Ajax were at one point losing 3-0 in their quarter-final, second tie at German team Schalke, before scoring twice to go through on aggregate. 

6: TICKETS FOR A POTENTIAL FINAL
Due to the short turnaround between the semi-final and final, it's understandable if many confident fans are already planning their travel arrangements. The ticket allocation for the two finalists at Stockholm's Friends Arena has not yet been confirmed by UEFA. However it is only likely to be around 8,000 to 9,500 seats each due to segregation plans that cannot be confirmed until the two finalists are known.

United's tickets will be allocated via a ballot with applications only accepted from season ticket holders who have purchased all home cup games this season and applied for or attended at least one European away game since the start of the 2015/16 season, and executive club members who have applied for or attended at least one European away game since the start of 2015/16.

Credit: Manutd.com