Manchester United v Rangers 23rd January 2025: Europa League Preview
Rangers arrive at Old Trafford amidst a period of monumental disarray for Manchester United, bringing with them the belief that, on their fifth attempt in European competition, they can finally defeat the English side in the latest instalment in the ‘Battle of Britain,’
Despite being thirteen points behind Celtic in the Scottish Premiership, Rangers will arrive at Old Trafford knowing they face a team scraping the barrel for scraps of confidence after another embarrassing home league defeat to Brighton & Hove Albion.
This led manager Ruben Amorim to remark that his team were 'maybe the worst' in the club's history.
Previous Meetings and Form
The last meeting between the two teams was a pre-season friendly in July 2024 when Amad and Joe Hugill scored for United, beating Rangers 2-0 at Murrayfield.
In competitive matches, you have to go back to November 2010 when Wayne Rooney scored a late winner to vanquish Rangers at Ibrox in the Champions League.
United enter the game with only one win in their last five matches, with their recent 3-1 home defeat to Brighton incensing Ruben Amorim so much that he allegedly smashed a dressing room television during a post-match tirade.
Despite being too far behind Celtic to think about winning the Scottish Premiership, Rangers are undefeated in their last five games across all competitions, winning their last three.
Previous Europa League Match and Position
In their last outing in the Europa League, United defeated Viktoria Plzeň thanks to a late strike from Rasmus Højlund, saving the blushes of André Onana who had made an error to gift the Czech side the lead.
Rangers drew 1-1 with Tottenham Hotspur in their last Europa League outing, with a strike from Hamza Igamane securing them a share of the spoils in a gripping encounter at Ibrox.
United and Rangers sit seventh and eighth respectively, and a win for either side would strongly bolster their chances of staying in the top eight and gaining direct entry to the last 16.
Team News
United have no players suspended but are still without Mason Mount, Jonny Evans, Luke Shaw, and Victor Lindelöf due to injury. Amorim may give a run out to Altay Bayındır, given his impressive performance against Arsenal in their FA Cup 3rd Round win, coupled with Onana's awful errors against Brighton on Sunday and in United’s last Europa League match against Plzeň.
Højlund is likely to return also, being in rich form in Europe this season, scoring five goals in six games.
Rangers will be without key player Mohamed Diomande, with the Ivorian suspended after picking up his third league stage yellow card against Tottenham Hotspur.
Goalkeeper Jack Butland is hoping to play against his former club, but John Souttar, Tom Lawrence, Dujon Sterling, Oscar Cortes, and Danilo will all miss out through injury.
How to Watch and Kick-Off time
The ‘Battle of Britain’ will be shown live on TNT Sports 1 in the United Kingdom, kicking off at 8pm. If you are outside the UK, please check local listings for broadcaster and kick-off times.