Manchester United players respond to Ruben Amorim's early touchline demands in Real Sociedad win

The pre-match pyro, with red and white smoke floating innocuously into the sky, petered out quickly. But Manchester United did not go out of Europe.

The manufactured effort to generate an atmosphere was unnecessary. United supporters were vocally befitting the occasion, their biggest game since the Europa League final in 2017. The players rose to it.

United's season will have something riding on it after the clocks go forward. As pleasing as their progression to the quarter-finals was the performance. There were flickers that the players are starting to master Ruben Amorim's system. In Europe, at least.

This was one of United's most enterprising and assured performances since their head coach touched down in Manchester four months ago. Given the magnitude of the match, it augurs well for the last eight against Lyon next month.

It is not a coincidence United operated so slickly with both of their winter transfer window signings in the starting XI for the first time. Ayden Heaven and Patrick Dorgu were instrumental.

Heaven, only 18, was preferred over Victor Lindelof for his first career start and looked as much of a veteran as the Swede on his third United appearance. There is already a tremendous amount of goodwill towards the teenager who was so unconvincing for Arsenal when pitted against United in pre-season less than eight months ago.

Dorgu had little joy with a lot of shots yet his relentless running took the game away from Sociedad. He cutely gained the tie-winning penalty before he was later upended by substitute Jon Aramburu, dismissed for a deliberate denial of a goalscoring opportunity. Amorim applauded the latter, as much for Dorgu's relentless running as Aramburu's expulsion.

It is a minor footnote that