UEFA Europa League quarterfinals draw for 2020/21 has been conducted on Friday in Nyon, Switzerland.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s Manchester United have been drawn to face La Liga side Granada in the quarterfinals of the Europa League.
United booked a place in Friday’s draw by overcoming AC Milan 2-1 on aggregate, after the first leg at Old Trafford ended in a 1-1 draw. A Paul Pogba goal in the return fixture at San Siro gave United a spot in the quarter-finals.
Granda sneaked past Solskjaer’s former side Molde on a 3-2 aggregate, with 35-year old former Spurs striker Soldado scoring twice.
Solskjaer will be happy with the draw as United will go into the game as favorites looking to repeat their 2017 Europa League success under Jose Mourinho, when they beat Ajax 2-0 in the final.
Meanwhile, Arsenal will take on Czech side Slavia Prague in another quarter-final match. Prague overcame English side Leicester City and Scottish League Champions Rangers in the last-32 and last-16 rounds respectively.
Arsenal’s 3-2 aggregate victory over Olympiacos gave them a position in the last-eight of the Europa League.
Gunners (Arsenal) progressed despite losing 1-0 in the second leg tie against the Greek side. Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal have now reached the Europa League quarter finals three times in their last four seasons.
Also, Dinamo Zagreb are to face Spanish side Villareal. Dinamo Zagreb progressed into the last-eight by knocking out Jose Mourinho’s Tottenham Hotspur 3-2 on aggregate.
Tottenham were 2-0 victors over the Croatian side in the first leg tie of the last-16, but an Mislav Orsic hat-trick gave Dinamo Zagreb a 3-0 win in the second leg.
AS Roma will face Dutch Champions, Ajax in the last-match of the quarter final, their first meeting in nearly 20 years. After cruising past Braga in a 5-1 aggregate win, Roma went on to also defeat Shakhtar Donetsk 5-1 on aggregate in the last-16. The Italian side have scored 23 goals so far in this Europa League campaign, conceding seven on the way.
The current leaders of Eredivisie, Ajax knocked out Lille and BSC Young Boys in the last-32 and last-16 respectively and will be hoping to replicate 2017 run in the competition, which saw them lose in the final to Manchester United.
The first-leg matches will be played on Thursday April 8, 2021. The second legs are scheduled for Thursday April 15, 2021.
See full draw below;
Granada vs Manchester United
Arsenal vs Slavia Prague
Ajax vs Roma
Dinamo Zagreb vs Villarreal.
