Barcelona vs Man United

They've won eight Champions Leagues and a whopping 46 league titles between them, producing some of the greatest teams and players in the history of the game.

The clubs wouldn't meet again until they were pitted against each other in the Champions League semi-finals a decade later. Barcelona vs Man Utd H2H record Barcelona vs Man Utd head-to-head record

Barcelona welcome Manchester United at Camp Nou on Thursday, February 16, 2023, in a duel of the 2022-23 UEFA Europa League.

Another reason to worry is that they got some injury woes, especially in the center of the pitch. Jessie is our resident sports specialist with over 4 years of experience in sports journalism. Manchester United won’t be able to hold the ball in their possession for a significant period of time on Thursday. With Marcus Rashford in the form of his life, the Red Devils have scored two or more goals in each of their last seven games in all competitions. Sensational is the word that best describes how Xavi’s team has been playing in 2023. Both teams are playing great soccer since the start of 2023, so we can only assume their clash on Thursday is going to be a fun one.

Man Utd face Barcelona in the first leg of their Europa League play-off on Thursday.

Barcelona manager Xavi has warned his team that they must be at their best if they are to knock Manchester United out of the Europa League. Whichever team comes through the two-legged encounter will be one of the favourites to go on and win the competition, as both sides look to add another European trophy to their collection. United are next in action when they travel to face the La Liga giants in the first leg of their play-off tie this week, with a place in the knockout stage proper up for grabs.

Barcelona are preparing for their return to European action on Thursday. Although it is the Europa League playoff round, it could scarcely be a bigger tie ...

A large part of the Blaugrana’s success in this tie will be transferring that solidity to Europe, and Garnacho’s game-breaking off the bench might be one of the larger obstacles. “He has learned in the last few months how to play as part of a team, how to live, how to have the right attitude… Formerly of Atletico Madrid, Garnacho has already trained with Lionel Messi and the senior Argentina side.

Manchester United have two fixtures on the horizon this week in both the Europa League and Premier League.

The two clubs meet for the first time this league season on Wednesday – a match that United will be paying close attention to due to its significance in the title race. The two-legged tie is a nuisance for both sides given their already packed fixture schedule, but the managers will know the trophy is a realistic prospect of silverware whilst they continue to build their respective projects. First up for United is a trip to Spain to take on a rampant Barcelona side at Camp Nou.

Marcel Sabitzer will miss Manchester United's Europa League knockout tie against Barcelona on Thursday, with the Austrian midfielder suspended for the match ...

But it does mean he will miss the first of two crunch playoff games against Xavi's side - leaving Erik ten Hag with limited options in midfield following the injuries picked up by Christian Eriksen and Scott McTominay. That is because his ban has been carried over from his final Champions League match for Bayern Munich, with a yellow card received back in November against Inter Milan. Sabitzer has shown himself to be an impressive midfielder since his deadline day move from Bayern Munich and played well alongside Fred in United's midfield in Sunday's 2-0 win against Leeds.

Manchester United will face Barcelona in the first leg of their Europa League play-off tie on Thursday but Erik ten Hag won't be able to call upon Marcel ...

While their priority remains fending off bitter rivals [Real Madrid](https://www.mirror.co.uk/all-about/real-madrid-cf) domestically, Barcelona will be hoping to give their fans something to cheer about after humiliatingly being dumped out of the Champions League at the first hurdle, as they finished third in a group containing Sabitzer's Bayern and Italian giants [Inter Milan](https://www.mirror.co.uk/all-about/inter-milan). [Harry Maguire](https://www.mirror.co.uk/all-about/harry-maguire) was handed a start during the Red Devils' hard-fought 2-0 victory over [Leeds](https://www.mirror.co.uk/all-about/leeds-united-fc) on Sunday, but didn't look overly convincing. [Casemiro](https://www.mirror.co.uk/all-about/casemiro) likely to partner Brazilian compatriot [Fred](https://www.mirror.co.uk/all-about/fred) in midfield, Sabitzer's omission isn't a major blow but does mean that United may not be able to call on any senior midfielders from the bench. [UEFA](https://www.mirror.co.uk/all-about/uefa) rule 52.03, Sabitzer is banned from facing Barcelona in the first leg but can play when the two European heavyweights meet again at Old Trafford a week later on the 23rd. The Austrian midfielder, who recently joined the Red Devils on loan until the end of the campaign, was yellow carded three times while playing for parent club [Bayern Munich](https://www.mirror.co.uk/all-about/bayern-munich) earlier this season. While Xavi will be without midfield linchpin [Sergio Busquets](https://www.mirror.co.uk/all-about/sergio-busquets) and electric winger [Ousmane Dembele](https://www.mirror.co.uk/all-about/ousmane-dembele), Ten Hag has also learned that he'll be missing a key duo of his own. [It's long been known that Argentine defender Martinez won't feature in](https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/man-utd-barcelona-squad-martinez-28433718) Spain after picking up three yellow cards in the group stage. Whoever lines up for the Red Devils will have a difficult task against an in-form Barcelona. His third booking - one which many fans and pundits believe was a soft decision - came during [United's 1-0 win](https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/man-united-alejandro-garnacho-goal-28404216) away to [Real Sociedad](https://www.mirror.co.uk/all-about/ousmane-dembele), a result which wasn't enough to see them finish top of their group and ensure automatic qualification to the round of 16. Regular left-back [Luke Shaw](https://www.mirror.co.uk/all-about/luke-shaw) was his surprise partner, as first-choice centre-back [Raphael Varane](https://www.mirror.co.uk/all-about/raphael-varane) was afforded a rest. [Europa League](https://www.mirror.co.uk/all-about/europa-league) play-off tie, as [Erik ten Hag](https://www.mirror.co.uk/all-about/erik-ten-hag) and [Xavi Hernandez](https://www.mirror.co.uk/all-about/xavi-hernandez)'s sides square off for a place in the last 16. [Marcel Sabitzer](https://www.mirror.co.uk/all-about/marcel-sabitzer) has joined [Lisandro Martinez](https://www.mirror.co.uk/all-about/lisandro-martinez) in being suspended for [Manchester United](https://www.mirror.co.uk/all-about/manchester-united-fc)'s mouth-watering clash with [Barcelona](https://www.mirror.co.uk/all-about/fc-barcelona).

UEFA has confirmed Marcel Sabitzer will be suspended for Manchester United's Europa League first leg against Barcelona.

[United In Focus](https://www.unitedinfocus.com/news/can-marcel-sabitzer-play-in-the-europa-league-eligibility-and-suspension-explained/) earlier reported Sabitzer was set to be suspended for the first leg of this month’s Europa League knockout play-off. [Let us know](https://grv.media/feedback/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.unitedinfocus.com%2Fnews%2Fuefa-confirm-marcel-sabitzer-suspended-for-manchester-united-v-barcelona-first-leg%2F) [Carabao Cup final](https://www.unitedinfocus.com/news/when-is-the-2023-carabao-cup-final-date-and-kick-off-time-of-wembley-showpiece/). [UEFA’s website](https://www.uefa.com/uefaeuropaleague/news/027e-17416eb78966-397aaa625529-1000--barcelona-vs-man-united-europa-league-knockout-round-play-of/) has confirmed Sabitzer will miss the upcoming fixture in the Nou Camp. [UEFA ](https://www.uefa.com/uefaeuropaleague/news/027e-17416eb78966-397aaa625529-1000--barcelona-vs-man-united-europa-league-knockout-round-play-of/)has confirmed [Marcel Sabitzer](https://www.unitedinfocus.com/tag/marcel-sabitzer/) will be suspended for Manchester United’s Europa League first leg against Barcelona. [Confirmed Manchester United transfers in, out, loan deals for January 2023](https://www.unitedinfocus.com/news/confirmed-manchester-united-transfer-deals-for-january-2023-ins-outs-loan-moves/)

Barcelona and Man United go head-to-head in the Europa League this week, and the match will be broadcast live on TV in Ireland.

The Europa League was the last trophy that Man United won, when they did so under Jose Mourinho in 2017, while Barcelona have never won the competition in its current guise, nor when it was known as the Uefa Cup. Both Ten Hag and his counterpart Xavi Hernandez will know that success in the Europa League will help to bring back a winning culture, and for that reason they will want to go as far as they possibly can. Barcelona and Man United go head-to-head in the Europa League this week, and the match will be broadcast live on TV in Ireland. As mentioned previously, a Europa League play-off round isn’t the usual setting for clashes between Barcelona and Man United. Barcelona started the season in the Champions League, but have now dropped into the Europa League play-off round, by virtue of finishing third in their group behind Bayern Munich and Inter Milan. Barcelona and Man United have taken different routes to this two-legged Europa League play-off round tie.