Man Utd come from behind to dump Barca out of Europe on memorable Old Trafford night

Erik ten Hag saw his side fight back and march on in the Europa League.

Manchester United's Antony celebrates scoring their side's winner. Picture: Martin Rickett/PA Wire.

Erik ten Hag enjoyed a midweek meal with Sir Alex Ferguson and here was a tactical masterclass straight from the wily old Scot’s playbook as Manchester United won their Europa League knock-out round tie in thrilling fashion.

Trailing to a Robert Lewandowski first-half penalty, United looked lost - as did their cause - until ten Hag threw caution to the wind with second-half substitutions Fergie would have been proud of.

And, after Fred had equalised, a dramatic 76th minute winner by one of those replacements, Brazilian winger Antony, saw United through on a memorable European evening to add to the long list of them at this stadium.

The winner came after Luke Shaw showed great persistence in keeping a loose ball in play, his back heel being collected by Bruno Fernandes who found Alejandro Garnacho.

His shot was blocked, so was Fred’s from the ricochet, and there was Antony who took his time to compose himself and place a superb finish into the corner of the Barcelona goal.

It was a fixture that ten Hag had noted before the first leg last week would have graced not only the Champions League, but even a Champions League Final - as was the case on a couple of occasions earlier this century, of course.

Much has happened to Ferguson’s United and Pep Guardiola’s Barca in the intervening years - not all of it positive, by any means - but, as was the case in Spain seven days earlier, both these proud clubs set about proving ten Hag’s assertion.

There could have been goal after two minutes when Casemiro won a strong challenge to break up a Barca attack and sprung the counter.

He found Fernandes who was clean through on goal, but his imperfect strike was kept out by the outstretched leg of Marc-Andre ter Stegen and United, three days out from their EFL Cup Final date with Newcastle, looked like what they are - a team chasing their place back at the top of the game at home and in Europe.

But Barca have undergone a similar sort of transformation as United under their manager Xavi and the Catalans showed their quality and composure in weathering that strong opening and starting to prod and probe deep in the United final third. It was a tactic that paid spectacular dividends on 15 minutes.

There looked little threat posed by Alejandro Balde who appeared on his way out of the United area as Fernandes moved to challenge and became unnecessarily tangled with the full-back.

There was a clear shirt tug, albeit one which Balde made the most of, and the French referee pointed top the spot, an award confirmed by VAR and which presented Lewandowski the chance to hand Barca the lead.

After a lengthy delay, the Polish striker dragged out the agony even further, with his stuttering run-up, and his shot was almost saved, brilliantly, by David de Gea who got a hand to the ball but could only assist it into his goal.

Old Trafford was in uproar, and vented their fury in the direction of Monsieur Turpin although, in the official’s defence, Fernandes’s decision to grab an opponent’s arm in the area was as inexcusable as it was inexplicable.

It also left United with a major mountain to climb if they were to advance into the last 16.

Early signs were not promising, although Fernandes did well to connect with a difficult ball that was floated into the area but could not get the necessary power behind his shot.

A bizarre side-footed volley from Fred also briefly threatened the Barca goal, before landing harmlessly on the roof of the net, and United, so fluent and irrepressible so often in recent months, looked devoid of the necessary spark of creativity.

Disaster almost struck before the break for United, when de Gea’s poor clearance fell for Sergi Roberto, forcing Varane into a couple of important blocks.

It was a piece of defending that proved all the more important after ten Hag’s half-time alterations - the ineffective Wout Weghorst off and attacking players back in more accustomed positions; Rashford central and Jadon Sancho wide - led to a 47th minute equaliser.

Sancho won the ball on the left, found Fernandes and he picked out Fred, whose run had not been tracked by de Jong. The Brazilian took a controlling touch before scoring with an excellent finish.

Old Trafford erupted, United were energised and only a superbly-timed Andreas Christensen challenge stopped substitute Antony as he bore down on goal soon after.

It was the start of a half of high drama, not least with Antony’s winner, although, first, Barca might have taken the lead when de Gea leaped to keep out Jules Kounde’s header with a spectacular save.

There was also scuffle, that ended in bookings for Fernandes and Sergi Roberto, which simply summed up the high-stakes nature of an occasion that will live long in Old Trafford’s collective memory.

Manchester United (4-2-3-1): De Gea 6; Wan-Bissaka 6 (Dalot 66, 6), Varane 7, Martinez 7, Shaw 7; Casemiro 7, Fred 6; Fernandes 7, Sancho 7 (Garnacho 66, 6), Rashford 7 (McTominay 87); Weghorst 4 (Antony 45, 9). Substitutes (not used) Heaton, Lindelof, Maguire, Malacia, Sabitzer, Pellistri, Elanga, Mainoo.

Barcelona (4-3-3): Ter Stegen 6; Kounde 6, Araujo 5 (Alonso 81), Christensen 7, Bolde 6; de Jong 8, Busquets 6, Kessie 6; Raphinha 5 (Fati 75, 5), Lewandowski 7, Sergi Roberto 7 (Torres 70, 5). Substitutes (not used) Pena, Tenas, Alba, Garcia, Casado, Torre.

Referee: Clément Turpin (France) 5