Athletic Bilbao promises a stiff test for Manchester United as their two-legged tie kicks off a blockbuster round of 16 this Thursday in the Europa League.
Elsewhere, Manchester City travel to Sporting Lisbon. The Portuguese giants must face streaking City without injured American defender Oguchi Onyewu.
Americans in action include Jozy Altidore and AZ Alkmaar, which faces a difficult test against Udinese; Jermaine Jones’ Schalke is up against FC Twente; and Steve Cherundolo’s Hannover will travel to Belgium to face Standard Liege.
Fox Soccer is the new home of the Europa League, with television coverage beginning next season. This year, every game can be seen on DirecTV or GolTV, and every game is tracked in real-time via Twitter @FoxSoccerTrax.
Fans of the Red Devils might be looking past the Spaniards because of Bilbao’s struggle to get past Lokomotiv Moscow in the last round. That’s a mistake. United will face one of their toughest tests of the season against what is a swarming and smart Athletic side.
Led by eccentric manager Marcelo Bielsa, rightly known as the 'Madman', Athletic will be well-prepared to strike at United’s weak spots. They will run right at Rio Ferdinand, force Michael Carrick to chase and they will contain Wayne Rooney.
Anyone who doubts this doesn’t know of Bielsa’s manic devotion to tactical preparation. If there is anyone close to a Bill Belichick in Spanish soccer, it’s this guy. Bielsa, who has had notable success at both club and national team level, is notorious for overwhelming his players with videos of upcoming opponents. Some of his players have expressed exasperation with the hours of film, but few of them doubt the results. In a fiercely competitive La Liga utterly dominated by two teams, Bielsa has made Athletic one of the best of the rest.
At most positions, Athletic is more than a match for a United side that can be clinical at home but has yet to convince in Europe. Javi Martinez and Andoni Iraola have been very slick in front of keeper Gorka Iraizoz and young back Jon Aurtenetxe has belied his age with a series of solid performances. Currently fourth and riding a four-game unbeaten streak, Bilbao will try to use their speed to atomize United’s midfield, running Iker Munaian, Markael Susaeta, Fernando Llorente and Ander Herrera at them.
All that allowed, this modern United side have shown they can win games despite not playing very well, with their 3-1 win over Tottenham Sunday being a case in point. There, two great goals from Ashley Young paced the team in a game that most observers thought Spurs had dominated.
In fact, United have strung together four wins in five games, with the lone blemish being their loss at Old Trafford to Ajax in the previous Europa League round. They will have to do it Thursday without Paul Scholes who is set to miss the match, meaning a possible return for Tom Cleverley and a sure role for Ryan Giggs. Chris Smalling, who took a concussion and a bad head wound in England’s friendly against Holland, is questionable.
Phil Jones has been very solid and David De Gea has overcome his early-season struggles to become a reliable shot-stopper for his side. Although Nani and Chicharito have not displayed the consistency needed to make United an overwhelming side, the belief the team takes into every game is impressive.
United have also managed to keep the pressure on Manchester City, who take their recent torrid form to Portugal to face a Sporting side that is starting to wilt. The title is out of reach for Sporting and they were unimpressive in their win over Legia last time out. Ricky van Wolfswinkel, Matias Fernandez and Emiliano Insua are all quality players, but they haven’t faced anything like the buzzsaw that is City.
City of course destroyed Portuguese league leaders Porto 4-0 in their last European game; expect David Silva, Sergio 'Kun' Aguero and Mario Balotelli to do the damage once again. The only loss for City is Yaya Toure, who is suspended for the match.
Free-scoring Metalist, who racked up eight goals against Red Bull Salzburg, will host the stingy, stodgy and rather dull Olympiakos at Kharkiv. Metalist, with a fairly solid team that includes Taison and Jonathan Cristaldo will be looking for a fast start against the Greek league leaders.
Atletico Madrid are expected to see off Besiktas at home, with red-hot Falcao leading the line out against a Turkish side that have never won in Spain. Besiktas, who saw off a tepid Braga side to get here, have talent in Tomas Sivok and Simao but lack the organization to deflect a determined attack.
The other match to keep an eye on is Valencia’s meeting with PSV Eindhoven. Valencia handled Stoke with aplomb in the last round and have so far weathered the loss of Ever Banega for the rest of the season. Banega, of course, was hurt in a truly bizarre mishap at a gas station that left him with a smashed ankle and a new respect for the parking brake. Unai Emery’s side still has plenty of talent with Mehmet Topal, Daniel Parejo and Sofiane Feghouli all expected to figure. PSV has Tim Matavz to keep an eye on, and they will want to make amends after a dismal weekend that saw them thumped 6-2 by Twente at home.
