Manchester United FC have qualified for the Champions League next season with a top-four finish in the Premier League. With the Red Devils getting a third-place finish in the league, the club will not have to win the Europa League to play Champions League. It is now being reported that Solskjaer will play a weakened side in the Europa League.
Manchester United play their second leg of the Round of 16 tie against LASK on the 5th of August. The Red Devils are already leading with five goals courtesy of a 5-0 win in the first leg of the tie. Thus, it is a given that Solskjaer will field a weakened side against LASK and might do the same for the entire tournament.
United have granted players a leave to go abroad on holidays after a long and horrid season. Since the restart, the likes of Maguire, Lindelof, Fernandes, Wan Bissaka and Pogba have played almost every minute and looked weary. The players deserved a break, especially after getting the club back into the Champions League next season.
The players who haven’t heavily featured since the restart in the Premier League will be given game-time in the Europa League. Players like Ighalo, Fred, Mctominay and Lingard are believed to get a lot of game-time in the remaining fixtures of the Europa League. But this will also mean that the Red Devils might end up without a trophy this season.
Solskjaer doesn’t prioritize the Europa League and is ready to rest his main players for the upcoming Premier League season. Some of the players might take this as an opportunity to cement their places in the side also. On the other hand, some might also use it as a chance to impress other clubs and get a move elsewhere this transfer window.
The English FA is in talks about giving the clubs in the European leagues a break of about 30 days if they move further. This means that United might start the Premier League 30 days later than the other clubs have to. With the Europa League games starting next week, only time will tell United’s final position in the tournament.
