Manchester United vs Roma Europa League preview: where to watch, team news, predictions

Manchester United face Roma in the UEFA Europa League semi-final first leg on 29 April at 21:00 CET.

Where to watch the game on TV

Fans can find their local UEFA Europa League broadcast partner(s) here.

Route to the semi-finals

Manchester United: The Red Devils have been imperious since transferring from the UEFA Champions League after the group stage, especially away from home (P3 W3 F7 A0). They summarily dispatched Spanish sides Real Sociedad and Granada, both 4-0 on aggregate, and though AC Milan put up more of a fight in between, United always had a measure of control. Bruno Fernandes loves this competition: he has 17 goals and 11 assists in 30 UEFA Europa League outings.

Roma: The Giallorossi are two games away from their first European final in 30 years and there is cause for optimism after an impressive campaign to date, spearheaded by seven-goal Borja Mayoral and 35-year-old Edin Džeko. Paulo Fonseca's solitary loss was a Matchday 6 dead rubber, and they have since dispatched Braga (5-1), 2019/20 semi-finalists Shakhtar (5-1) and Ajax (3-2).

Form guide

Manchester United
Form: DWWWWW
Latest: Leeds 0-0 Man. United, 25/04
Where they stand: 2nd in Premier League

Roma
Form: LDLDWW
Latest: Cagliari 3-2 Roma, 25/04
Where they stand: 7th in Serie A

Starting line-ups

Manchester United: De Gea; Wan-Bissaka, Lindelöf, Maguire, Shaw; McTominay, Fred; Rashford, Bruno Fernandes, Pogba; Cavani

Roma: Pau López; Smalling, Cristante, Ibañez; Karsdorp, Diawara, Veretout, Spinazzola; Pellegrini, Mkhitaryan; Džeko

Expert predictions

Matthew Howarth, United reporter: Ole Gunnar Solskjær made his final European appearance for United in their 7-1 defeat of Roma in the 2006/07 UEFA Champions League quarter-finals. While the teams' latest meeting is unlikely to be as one-sided, the Red Devils have their sights firmly set on ending their run of four consecutive semi-final defeats under the Norwegian.

Vieri Capretta, Roma reporter: Roma weren't pretty against Ajax, but they got the job done and showed they can be a match for anyone – Manchester United be warned. The Giallorossi will look to keep it tight in the middle and use pace on the break, hoping Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Edin Džeko can inspire a positive result away from home.

View from the camps

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, Manchester United manager: "We have analysed [Roma] down to the ground since we drew them. We are one step away from the final. It is about putting things right. We have arrived with an almost fully-fit squad. Anthony Martial is still injured. We are going to go all out now. It will be a dream come true the day I can lift a trophy for this club as a manager. That is what we're building for. It is ifs and buts, but our ambition is to finish this season with a trophy and to celebrate."

Paulo Fonseca, Roma coach: "It's a very important match. We don't always get to a semi-final, we understand the importance of the moment. This match is against a great team, perhaps the favourites to win the competition. We know it will be difficult, we respect Manchester United, but we are ambitious."

Edin Džeko, Roma forward: "We know their strength, and Manchester United are certainly favourites, but the very fact that we've got to the semi-finals gives us the right to believe. We know that we have quality, too, and first of all, as a team, we have to act as one. Then, anything is possible."

Lorenzo Pellegrini, Roma midfielder: "We're happy, but we’re only in the semi-finals and we still have to play three matches – we want to play three matches!"