Leipzig vs Man. United: UEFA Champions League background, form guide, previous meetings
Monday, December 7, 2020
Article summary
Three teams can still progress from Group H with two of them, Leipzig and Manchester United, meeting in Germany on Matchday 6.
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There is set to be a thrilling conclusion to Group H as two of the three teams still in contention for the section's two qualifying places, Leipzig and Manchester United, meet in Germany on Matchday 6.
• The pair are level on nine points with Paris Saint-Germain at the top of the section after three wins and two defeats apiece in their first five fixtures. While Leipzig and United do battle in Germany, Paris are at home to İstanbul Başakşehir, who will finish fourth regardless of the outcome of the final two games.
• To guarantee qualification Leipzig need to win, though a draw would also suffice if Paris lose. The German club will finish first if they win and their French rivals do not.
• United will qualify if they avoid defeat. They will top the group if they better Paris's result, or if both matches are drawn.
• United inflicted Leipzig's heaviest European loss at Old Trafford on Matchday 2, Marcus Rashford coming off the bench to score a hat-trick in the final 16 minutes in a 5-0 home victory.
Form guide
Leipzig
• Leipzig have won both home games in the 2020/21 UEFA Champions League, beating İstanbul Başakşehir (2-0) and Paris (2-1). They lost their first two away games, going down at United and Paris (0-1), before a crucial 4-3 victory at İstanbul Başakşehir on Matchday 5, substitute Alexander Sørloth scoring an added-time winner (90+2) with his first goal for the club.
• This is Leipzig's third UEFA Champions League group campaign, all in the last four seasons, and their fourth foray into European football overall.
• The 2019/20 campaign proved to be the most successful in Leipzig's brief European history, Julian Nagelsmann's side going all the way to the semi-finals. Leipzig picked up 11 points to finish first in their section – they had come third in their two previous group stage campaigns in UEFA competition – ahead of Lyon, Benfica and Zenit.
• Leipzig then beat 2018/19 runners-up Tottenham in their first UEFA Champions League knockout tie (1-0 a, 3-0 h) before a 2-1 defeat of Atlético de Madrid in their one-off quarter-final in Lisbon prior to a 3-0 semi-final defeat by Paris.
• Leipzig have now won 11 of their 21 UEFA Champions League fixtures (D3 L7).
• The German side have won their last three home European games and are unbeaten on their own ground since a 2-0 loss to Lyon on Matchday 2 last season; their home record since is W4 D1.
• Third in the Bundesliga for the second season in a row in 2019/20, this is Leipzig's fourth European campaign and only their 40th match. In 2017/18 they became the first team to make their European debut in the UEFA Champions League group stage.
• Leipzig's only previous fixtures against a Premier League club before 2020/21 came in last season's round of 16, Nagelsmann's side beating Tottenham 1-0 away and 3-0 at home in what was their first UEFA Champions League knockout tie.
Manchester United
• United won their first two Group H games, following up a 2-1 win at Paris with the home defeat of Leipzig, but then went down 2-1 at İstanbul Başakşehir, the debutants' first group win. They bounced back with a convincing 4-1 win against the Turkish champions at Old Trafford in their next fixture, but a 3-1 home defeat against Paris last time out set up this three-way finale.
• Marcus Rashford is the joint leading scorer in this season's UEFA Champions League with six goals, level with Álvaro Morata of Juventus and Borussia Dortmund's Erling Braut Haaland.
• This is United's 23rd UEFA Champions League group stage campaign, more than any other English side and fewer only than Barcelona and Real Madrid (both 25) and Porto and Bayern München (both 24) overall. They have qualified for the knockout phase on 18 occasions, also an English record.
• The three-time European champions' most recent appearance in the competition came in 2018/19, when they lost to Barcelona in the quarter-finals.
• Ole Gunnar Solskjær's side reached the UEFA Europa League semi-finals in 2019/20, losing to eventual champions Sevilla in the last four. They had finished first in their section on 13 points before comfortable aggregate wins against Club Brugge (6-1) and LASK (7-1) in the round of 32 and 16 respectively and a 1-0 extra-time defeat of Copenhagen in the one-off quarter-final. Sevilla proved too strong in the semis, however, United going down 2-1 in Cologne.
• United have won their UEFA Champions League section 15 times, although only once since 2013/14.
• The Matchday 3 defeat in Istanbul made it three losses in United's last nine European away games (W4 D2).
• The Manchester club finished third in the Premier League in 2019/20.
• European Cup winners in 1968, United lifted the UEFA Champions League trophy in 1999 and 2008, also reaching the final in 2009 and 2011 – the latter four all under Sir Alex Ferguson.
• The 1999 final was won against German opposition, United coming from behind to defeat Bayern München 2-1 in Barcelona thanks to Solskjær's dramatic added-time winner.
• This is the Red Devils' first trip to Germany since a 3-2 loss at Wolfsburg in the 2015/16 UEFA Champions League group stage, Anthony Martial scoring the visitors' first goal. That made it successive away defeats at Bundesliga clubs, after three wins in their previous four away games; overall United's record away to German clubs is W5 D4 L6.
Links and trivia
• Have played in England:
Angeliño (Manchester City 2013–)
Alexander Sørloth (Crystal Palace 2018/19)
Péter Gulácsi (Liverpool 2007–13, Hereford 2009 loan, Tranmere 2010 loan, Hull 2011/12 loan)
• Angeliño signed for Manchester City in July 2012, officially joining the club the following January; he has made only six Premier League appearances, all in the first half of 2019/20 before he joined Leipzig on loan. One of those six appearances was a 2-1 derby defeat against United on 7 December 2019, Rashford and Martial both scoring.
• Have played together:
Justin Kluivert & Donny van de Beek (Ajax 2016–18)
Christopher Nkunku & Edinson Cavani (Paris Saint-Germain 2015–19)
• International team-mates:
Dayot Upamecano & Anthony Martial, Paul Pogba (France)
Dani Olmo & David de Gea (Spain)
Justin Kluivert & Timothy Fosu-Mensah, Donny van de Beek (Netherlands)
Emil Forsberg & Victor Lindelöf (Sweden)
• Marcel Sabitzer and Cavani both scored as Sabitzer's Austria recorded a 2-1 friendly win against Cavani's Uruguay in November 2017.
• A Pogba goal helped France to a 2-1 home win against Sweden in 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifying in November 2016, Forsberg scoring for the visitors, whose side also included Lindelöf.
• Yussuf Poulsen scored his first international goal in Denmark's 2-0 win at home to Nemanja Matić's Serbia in UEFA EURO 2016 qualifying in June 2015.
• On 11 November Van de Beek scored the Netherlands' goal in 1-1 friendly draw against Dani Olmo's Spain.
Latest news
Leipzig
• Leipzig's record in this season's Bundesliga is W6 D3 L1. They drew 3-3 away at champions Bayern München on Saturday.
• Justin Kluivert scored his first Leipzig goal on Saturday, his ninth appearance for the club.
• Angeliño scored his fourth Bundesliga goal of the season in a 2-1 victory against Arminia Bielefeld on 28 November, making this his most prolific league campaign; he scored three times on loan at Dutch side NAC Breda in 2017/18. The Spaniard has six goals in all competitions in 2020/21.
• Hungary's Péter Gulácsi and Willi Orban qualified for UEFA EURO 2020 with a 2-1 win against Iceland in the play-off finals on 12 November.
• Yussuf Poulsen won his 50th cap for Denmark in their 4-2 defeat by Belgium in the UEFA Nations League on 18 November.
• Hee-Chan Hwang scored for South Korea in a 2-1 friendly win against Qatar on 17 November in Austria, although he has subsequently been sidelined due to illness.
• Christopher Nkunku missed Matchday 5 due to personal reasons but returned, and scored, at Bayern.
• Benjamin Henrichs, an unused substitute on Matchday 4, has a knee injury.
• Marcel Halstenberg returned against Arminia Bielefeld for his first appearance since Matchday 2 because of adductor problems, although he was withdrawn at half-time and has been an unused substitute in Leipzig's last two matches.
• Due to persistent knee problems Lukas Klostermann underwent surgery on 21 October.
• A knee injury has sidelined Konrad Laimer since 18 August; he underwent surgery in mid-September.
• Angeliño, Dayot Upamecano and Marcel Sabitzer are among the candidates for UEFA.com fans' Men's Team of the Year.
Manchester United
• Paul Pogba made his 50th appearance in the UEFA Champions League, group stage to final, on Matchday 5.
• Donny van de Beek played his 50th UEFA club competition game against Paris last time out.
• Edinson Cavani's next goal in UEFA club competition will be his 50th.
• United have won their last nine away league matches, a new club record.They were 3-1 winners at West Ham on Saturday, the seventh game during that run in which they have scored three or more goals.
• United have won all five Premier League away matches this season having gone behind in every one. They came from 2-0 down at half-time to win 3-2 at Southampton on 29 November, half-time substitute Cavani scoring twice including an added-time winner.
• United have won one of their five home Premier League matches in 2020/21 (D1 L3). They failed to win any of their first four home league matches for the first time since 1972/73, losing three.
• A 6-1 defeat by Spurs on 4 October was the third time United have conceded six goals in a Premier League match; they trailed 4-1 at half-time, the first time they had conceded four goals in the first half of a league match since November 1957.
• The win in Paris was United's tenth consecutive away victory in all competitions, a new club record. The 2-1 defeat at İstanbul Başakşehir on Matchday 3 is their only away away loss in their last 22 games (W18 D3), since a 2-0 reverse at Liverpool in the Premier League on 19 January.
• United conceded 11 goals in their first three league games, their worst total since 1930/31, when they conceded 13 in a season that ended in relegation.
• Ole Gunnar Solskjær's side were unbeaten in 14 Premier League matches (W9 D5) before losing to Palace in their opening game of the campaign.
• After 3-0 wins away to Luton and Brighton, United will travel to Everton again in the English League Cup quarter-finals on 23 December.
• Scott McTominay converted a penalty in the shoot-out as Scotland won 5-4 on spot kicks in Serbia on 12 November to book their place at UEFA EURO 2020; the game had finished 1-1 after 120 minutes.
• Van de Beek scored the Netherlands' goal in a 1-1 friendly draw against Spain on 11 November, his second in successive internationals.
• Daniel James scored one goal and set up another as Wales beat Finland 3-1 on 18 November to clinch promotion to League A of the UEFA Nations League.
• Dean Henderson made his international debut as a half-time substitute in England's 3-0 friendly victory against the Republic of Ireland on 12 November; Harry Maguire, who captained the side for the first time, scored England's opening goal.
• Cavani was sent off in Uruguay's 2-0 home defeat against Brazil in 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifying on 17 November. He had opened the scoring in the 3-0 win away to Colombia four days earlier.
• David de Gea, who was substituted at half-time at Southampton, returned on Matchday 5 but sat out Saturday's win at West Ham. Henderson, who had made his first Premier League appearance for United at Southampton, therefore made his first start on Saturday.
• Pogba suffered an ankle injury in France's 4-2 win against Sweden on 17 November, returning as a second-half substitute on Matchday 5.
• Luke Shaw picked up a hamstring injury in a 3-1 win at Everton on 7 November and has not played since.
• Eric Bailly was an unused substitute in a 4-1 win at Newcastle on 17 October but has not featured since due to a muscle injury.
• Marcus Rashford was made a Member of the British Empire (MBE) in the Queen's birthday honours list on 10 October.
• Bruno Fernandes is one of the nominees for UEFA.com fans' Men's Team of the Year.