Possible line-ups
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Man. United: De Gea; Young, Smalling, Lindelöf, Shaw; Matić, Herrera, Pogba; Lingard, Rashford, Martial
Out: Bailly (concussion), Darmian (unknown), Sánchez (knee), Valencia (fitness)
Doubtful: Herrera (unknown), Matić (unknown), Rashford (ankle)
Misses next match if booked: Herrera, Matić, Shaw, Valencia, Young
Barcelona: Ter Stegen; Semedo, Piqué, Lenglet, Alba; Vidal, Arthur, Busquets, Rakitić; Messi, Suárez
Out: Rafinha (knee)
Doubtful: Dembélé (hamstring)
Misses next game if booked: Semedo
Key battle
Chris Smalling v Lionel Messi: Messi has been in particularly scintillating form of late, and all eyes will be on him at Old Trafford as Barcelona seek an all-important away goal. Smalling, enjoying something of a renaissance this campaign, will face his toughest task; how effectively he subdues Messi is likely to have a large bearing on how this tie goes.
Man. United
Last game: Wolves 2-1 Man. United 2-1 (02/04)
Form: LWLLWWWDWL
United’s defeat in Wolverhampton was their first league loss after taking the lead since August 2015.
Barcelona
Last game: Barcelona 2-0 Atlético (06/04)
Form: WDWWWWWWWD
Messi has scored in eight straight Liga home matches for the first time since December 2016, after rounding off this victory against Atlético.
Every game is the biggest game. Of course when you get Barcelona, with the quality of their team, we know we need to step up our game.
We know we need to perform to our best levels, which we didn’t against PSG at home. The outcome of the second leg gave players and supporters belief. When we saw it was Barcelona in the draw we were smiling because it was another challenge and we will go head on.
Ernesto Valverde, Barcelona coach
United have a lot more in their locker than just set pieces. They are energised by what they did in the last round [against Paris] and in recent months. We want to get through and we’ll have to be wary not only of their set pieces, but their quality, their fans.
We want to score away from home and we’re going out to win the game. In these situations you can’t speculate. You can’t think exclusively about defending or attacking. You’ve got to combine both. We’re confident. We’ve responded well to difficult moments this season.
