Despite beating Real Sociedad 1-0, Manchester United were forced to settle for second place in Europa League Group E, handing Txuri-urdin a spot in the competition’s last 16.In order to secure direct passage to the UEL Round of 16 at Sociedad’s expense, United needed to win by a two-goal margin, and they made the most of an open start to proceedings. Alejandro Garnacho became the youngest-ever non-English goalscorer in Europe, latching onto Cristiano Ronaldo’s through ball and driving towards goal, before firing beyond Álex Remiro’s reach.The Red Devils probed throughout the first period with Ronaldo coming closest to a second, lifting the ball over Remiro and onto the roof of the net. Yet, despite being relatively untroubled, United had David de Gea to thank for keeping their lead intact, displaying sharp reflexes to produce a double-save at the end of the half.The game, and indeed the group, remained on a knife edge as the hour mark ticked by, with clear-cut chances very much at a premium. The temperature then began to rise in the Reale Arena after a flurry of yellow cards were brandished, but still, the identity of Group E’s winner remained far from clear. Casemiro was heavily involved in a late goalmouth scramble, but the ball wouldn’t fall for the Brazilian, and the passage of play was made redundant by the offside flag as Erik ten Hag’s side became increasingly desperate.Alejandro Garnacho did Ronaldo’s celebration 🔥His influence 😱 pic.twitter.com/I341FJvQDM— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) November 3, 2022 Ultimately, Sociedad remained resolute, defending their one-goal deficit, knowing it would clinch top spot in Group E and secure a place in the last 16 of a UEFA competition for the first time in almost two decades. As for Manchester United, a potentially tricky knockout round play-off against the likes of Barcelona or Juventus awaits.EUROPA LEAGUEGroup stage – Round 6ThursdayMonaco – Crvena Zvezda 4-1 (2-0)/Volland 5, 27, 87, Rodic 50 og – Kanga 54 pen/Sociedad – Man.Utd. 0-1 (0-1)/Garnacho 17/Sheriff Tiraspol – Omonia 1-0 (0-0)/Akanbi 88/Feyenoord – Lazio 1-0 (0-0)/Gimenez 64/Midtjylland – Sturm 2-0 (1-0)/Dreyer 15, 72/Olympiakos – Nantes 0-2 (0-0)/Mostafa Mohamed 79, Blas 90/Qarabag – Freiburg 1-1 (0-1)/Owusu 90+2 – Petersen 25 pen/Trabzon – Ferencvaros 1-0 (1-0)/Bakasetas 7/23:00: (1.21) Arsenal (8.00) Zurich (14.0)23:00: (3.40) Bodo (3.60) PSV (2.24)23:00: (4.30) Dynamo Kyiv (3.50) Fenerbahce (1.93)23:00: (1.24) Rennes (6.75) AEK Larnaca (14.0)23:00: (1.38) Roma (5.50) Ludogorets (9.50)23:00: (1.29) Betis (6.50) Helsinki (10.0)23:00: (1.34) Braga (5.50) Malmo (10.0)23:00: (4.20) St.Gilloise (3.60) Union Berlin (1.99)***odds are subject to change***©FlashScore
