How Manchester United should line up vs Barcelona in Europa League fixture

Manchester United take on Barcelona in the first leg of the Europa League play-off on Thursday evening.

United failed to win their Europa League group and Barcelona finished third in their Champions League group earlier this season, which means the two clubs will now meet in a play-off round over two legs at Camp Nou and Old Trafford.

Erik ten Hag's side head into the clash after a 2-0 victory against Leeds, but Barcelona promise to be tricky opposition to overcome, as they have only conceded seven goals in La Liga, which is the fewest of any team in Europe's top five leagues.

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Regarding the early team news, Anthony Martial, Antony and Scott McTominay are still expected to be unavailable. Lisandro Martinez and Marcel Sabitzer are also serving one-match suspensions but Casemiro will be available for selection again.

Our writers have had their say on how United should line up against Barcelona...

Samuel Luckhurst

Diogo Dalot is a more complete full-back for the occasion than Aaron Wan-Bissaka and has two starts under his belt in preparation for the game. Raphael Varane and Casemiro are two world-class players who will be pivotal if United are to get a positive result.

Wout Weghorst only gets a pass as if Alejandro Garnacho started United would be lacking an obvious game-changer to turn to. Garnacho responded well to his performance against Leeds at Old Trafford in the reverse fixture on Sunday.

Tyrone Marshall

The loss of Martinez is an obstacle to overcome for United, given how vital his forward passing was when he came on against Leeds at the weekend. Ten Hag loves the left-footed option in the centre of defence so that means Shaw