Sevilla steeled for Manchester United visit

Sevilla FC have never won a UEFA Champions League round of 16 tie and could find improving on that record a tall order against Manchester United FC.

• The Spanish side finished second in Group E and, with Vincenzo Montella having replaced Eduardo Berizzo as coach in December, will now look to make it through to the quarter-finals at the fourth attempt (having previously reached that stage in the European Champion Clbus' Cup).

• Manchester United, the Group A winners, are at this stage for the first time since 2013/14 but have plenty of cause for confidence having lost only once in their last eight visits to Spain.

Match background

Sevilla
• The Spanish side have lost all three of their previous round of 16 ties. In 200708 they were beaten 3-2 on penalties by Fenerbahçe SK after a 5-5 aggregate draw (2-3 away, 3-2 home); two years later they lost 3-2 over two legs against PFC CSKA Moskva (1-1 away, 1-2 home) and they lost 3-2 to Leicester City FC 12 months ago (2-1 home, 0-2 away).

• Sevilla picked up seven points at home in Group E. A Wissam Ben Yedder hat-trick secured a 3-0 victory over NK Maribor on matchday two before FC Spartak Moskva were beaten 2-1. That record looked under threat when Liverpool FC raced into a three-goal half-time lead on matchday five, but Sevilla staged a remarkable fightback to snatch a 3-3 draw.

• The Spanish club have won six of their last nine European home matches, losing one and drawing the other two, against Liverpool and İstanbul Başakşehir in this season's play-offs (2-2).

• Sevilla suffered their first, and only, home loss to English visitors when succumbing 3-1 to Manchester City FC in the 2015/16 UEFA Champions League group stage. They were 2-1 winners against Leicester in last season's round of 16 first leg, but bowed out after going down 2-0 away.

• The Andalusian club's record at home to English teams is W3 D1 L1.

• Sevilla's record in two-legged knockout ties against Premier League sides is W1 L1. Aside from last season's defeat by Leicester, they beat Tottenham Hotspur FC 4-3 on aggregate in the quarter-finals of their victorious 2006/07 UEFA Cup campaign (2-1 home, 2-2 away).

Manchester United
• This is the English club's tenth round of 16 tie (W6 L3), and their first since facing Olympiacos FC in 2013/14 (0-2 away, 3-0 home). Having lost their first two last-16 contests, United have won all but one of the most recent seven.

• The Manchester outfit have won only two of their nine away games at this stage (D4 L3).

• United's record in two-legged ties against Spanish clubs is W6 L7.

• This is United's eighth European match this term and their second against Spanish opposition, their campaign having started with a 2-1 loss to Real Madrid CF in the UEFA Super Cup in Skopje on 8 August. That ended United's 11-game unbeaten run (W8 D3) since a 2-1 reversal at Fenerbahçe SK on matchday four of last season's UEFA Europa League. The defeat in Istanbul had been their fifth in nine European fixtures.

• The Red Devils won all but one of their six Group A games; away from home they beat CSKA Moskva 4-1 on matchday two before a 1-0 success at SL Benfica in the third round of fixtures.  The sole blemish was their 1-0 matchday five reverse at FC Basel 1893.

• Those losses to Madrid and Basel are United's only reverses in their last 18 European matches, home and away (W13 D3). The Basel loss ended a seven-game unbeaten European away record (W5 D2) since that setback at Fenerbahçe.

• José Mourinho's side got the better of Spanish opposition in last season's UEFA Europa League semi-finals, winning 1-0 at RC Celta de Vigo in the first leg thanks to a Marcus Rashford free-kick. They went through 2-1 on aggregate with a 1-1 home draw, Marouane Fellaini scoring for United.

• That UEFA Super Cup defeat by Madrid means United have now won two of their last 11 matches against Spanish clubs, with four draws and five defeats in that time. The Red Devils have also won five of their last 22 matches with Liga opposition (D9 L8).

• United have played 50 times against Liga clubs, with the record W13 D20 L17. Away their record is W3 D10 L10.

• United have contested three finals with Spanish sides – all against FC Barcelona. They were 2-1 winners in the 1990/91 European Cup Winners' Cup final in Rotterdam but lost 2-0 in 2008/09 in Rome and 3-1 in London in 2010/11, both in the UEFA Champions League.

• Mourinho's charges completed a clean sweep of European trophies for the club with victory in last season's UEFA Europa League. The win against AFC Ajax in Stockholm added to their European Cup triumphs in 1968, 1999 and 2008 and their 1991 European Cup Winners' Cup success.

Coach and player links
• Mourinho won seven of his eight fixtures against Sevilla while coach of Real Madrid between 2010 and 2013, losing the other. Madrid scored 23 goals in those eight fixtures, conceding six.

• Have played in Spain:
David de Gea (Club Atlético de Madrid 2008–11)
Eric Bailly (RCD Espanyol 2013–15, Villarreal CF 2015–16)
Ander Herrera (Real Zaragoza 2008–11, Athletic Club 2011–14)
Juan Mata (Real Madrid Castilla 2006/07, Valencia CF 2007–11)
Zlatan Ibrahimović (FC Barcelona 2009/10)
Alexis Sánchez (FC Barcelona 2011–14)

• Sánchez won all five games against Sevilla while at Barcelona, scoring home (3-2) and away (4-1) in the 2013/14 Liga.

• De Gea did not record a win in four fixtures against Sevilla while at Atlético (D1 L3).

• Bailly's record against Sevilla with Villarreal was W1 L4; he was sent off in Sevilla's 2-1 win in the 2014/15 UEFA Europa League round of 16 second leg (5-2 aggregate).

• Herrera faced Sevilla nine times with Zaragoza and Athletic Club (W5 D1 L3), scoring once.

• Mata scored three goals in nine matches against Sevilla while a Valencia player (W3 D1 L5).

• Ibrahimović got two goals in four games against Sevilla with Barcelona (W2 L2).

• Have played in England:
Steven N'Zonzi (Blackburn Rovers FC 2009–12, Stoke City FC 2012–15)
Jesús Navas (Manchester City FC 2013–17)
Nolito (Manchester City FC 2016/17)
Daniel Carriço (Reading FC 2013)
Sandro Ramírez (Everton FC, 2017/18)
Roque Mesa (Swansea City AFC, 2017/18)

• Both Roque Mesa and Sandro have suffered 4-0 defeats against United already this season. The former made his Swansea debut in a heavy home defeat against Mourinho's side on 19 August; Sandro was a second-half substitute as Everton went down by the same score at Old Trafford on 17 September.

• N'Zonzi beat United once in nine attempts with Blackburn and Stoke (D2 L6).

• Have played together:
Luis Muriel & Sergio Romero (UC Sampdoria 2015)

• International team-mates:
Nolito, Sergio Rico & Ander Herrera, David de Gea, Juan Mata (Spain)
Gabriel Mercado, Nico Pareja, Éver Banega, Joaquín Correa, Guido Pizarro & Sergio Romero, Marcos Rojo (Argentina)
Sébastien Corchia, Steven N'Zonzi & Paul Pogba (France)

Match facts

Sevilla
• UEFA Champions League squad changes 
In: Guilherme Arana, Roque Mesa, Sandro Ramírez
Out: Ganso, Michael Krohn-Dehli, Borja Lasso, Walter Montoya

• Sergio Escudero, Éver Banega and Gabriel Mercado are all a booking away from a ban.

• Sevilla parted company with coach Eduardo Berizzo on 22 December, appointing Vincenzo Montella as his replacement eight days later. The Italian signed an 18-month contract.

• Berizzo left after a four-game winless run in all competitions (D2 L2). Sevilla won only two of their first seven games after matchday six (D1 L4) but won the next three, only to embark on a three-match sequence without a victory (D2 L1) before winning the last three, most recently Saturday's 2-1 success at UD Las Palmas.

• Sevilla have, however, reached the Copa del Rey final. They will play Barcelona at the Estadio Metropolitano, home of Atlético Madrid, on 21 April after knocking out Cádiz CF (4-1 on aggregate), Atlético themselves (5-2) and CD Leganés (3-1).

• Pablo Sarabia has scored five goals in his last eight appearances in all competitions, including the winner at Las Palmas at the weekend.

• Up to and including matchday six, Wissam Ben Yedder had scored 13 goals in 18 appearances in all competitions this season; in the 12 games since he has managed only four, although he was on target at Las Palmas.

• Simon Kjær has been out since 14 January due to a back problem, but has returned to training.

Manchester United
• UEFA Champions League squad changes 
In: Alexis Sánchez
Out: Henrikh Mkhitaryan, James Wilson

• Jesse Lingard will incur a suspension with his next booking.

• United have lost their last two away Premier League games – 2-0 at Tottenham Hotspur FC on 31 January and 1-0 at Newcastle United FC on 11 February.

• The Tottenham defeat ended an eight-game unbeaten run in all competitions (W5 D3).

• José Mourinho signed a new contract, running until 2020, in January. Juan Mata's deal has been extended until summer 2019.

• January signing Alexis Sánchez scored his first United goal in the 2-0 home win against Huddersfield Town FC on 3 February.

• Romelu Lukaku scored seven goals in his first seven Premier League appearances this season, but has managed only four in the last 14. He did, however, score twice at Huddersfield on Saturday as United reached the FA Cup quarter-finals with a 2-0 win; the Belgian has scored in all three rounds of the cup so far, four goals in total.

• The Red Devils will be at home to Brighton & Hove Albion FC in the last eight, with the game to be played between 16 and 19 March.

• Eric Bailly had been out since 5 November due to an ankle injury but returned as a late substitute on Saturday.

• Zlatan Ibrahimović (out since 26 December, knee), Daley Blind (17 January, ankle), Ander Herrera (31 January, muscle), Marouane Fellaini (knee, 31 January) and Marcus Rashford (3 February, muscle) have also been sidelined.