Who can Man United draw in Europa League quarter finals 2023? Potential teams, Premier League opponents

Feargal Brennan

Who can Man United draw in Europa League quarter finals 2023? Potential teams, Premier League opponents image

Manchester United remain in the hunt for three major trophies this season as Erik ten Hag continues his impressive start to life at Old Trafford.

The Red Devils secured a first piece of silverware since 2017 as they beat Newcastle United in the Carabao Cup final in February, and they are still in the hunt for more domestic and European honours.

Despite finishing second in their Europa League group at the back end of 2022, United are among the favourites to reach the competition. They eliminated Barcelona in the playoff round and beat Real Betis 5-1 on aggregate in the Round of 16.

The Europa League will be key for United in the remainder of the campaign and they will be waiting nervously to find out who awaits in the last eight if they progress.

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Who can Man United draw in Europa League quarter finals?

United's chances of European success will rest heavily on who they meet in the rounds before the final.

Sevilla are the most successful team in Europa League/UEFA Cup history, and they have dumped United out of two European competitions since 2018, when the Red Devils were managed by Jose Mourinho and then Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

There is the prospect of a reunion with Mourinho in the next round, with Roma having knocked out Real Sociedad to reach the quarterfinals. Fellow Italian giants Juventus, inspired of late by former United midfielder Angel Di Maria, could also lie in wait.

Teams in Europa League quarter finals 2023

Europa League quarterfinal appearances and titles listed below are since 2009/10, when the competition was revamped and was rebranded from the UEFA Cup to the Europa League.

Country Club 2022/23 Europa League
record (goals for / against)
Europa League
QF apps. (last)
Europa League
titles (last)
England Man United 7-1-1 ( 19 / 7) 5 (2020) 1 (2017)
Spain Sevilla 2-1-0 ( 5 / 3) 7 (2020) 6 (2020)
Italy Roma 5-3-1 ( 15 / 8) 7 (2021) 0
Netherlands Feyenoord 2-2-3 ( 21 / 11) 3 (2002) 2 (2002)
Belgium Union SG 4-1-2 ( 17 / 10) 1 (2023) 0
Germany Leverkusen 2-1-0 ( 9 / 5) 5 (2020) 1 (1988)
Portugal Sporting CP 1-0-2 ( 8 / 4) 6 (2018) 0
Italy Juventus 2-0-1 ( 7 / 1) 10 (2014) 3 (1993)

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Can Man United draw English clubs in quarter finals?

Unlike the Round of 16 where teams from the same nation were kept apart, the quarterfinals are set via a completely open draw in which any club can face another

This means United could have faced Premier League rivals Arsenal in this round. However, the Gunners were eliminated by Sporting CP following a penalty shootout.

Had Arsenal progressed and been drawn with United, it would have been a first European meeting between the pair since the 2008/09 Champions League, where a Cristiano Ronaldo inspired the Red Devils through to the final.

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Man United in Europa League quarterfinals 

United have spent the majority of the Premier League era competing in the Champions League, with their first Europa League appearance coming in 2011/12, in Sir Alex Ferguson's penultimate campaign.

Since exiting the competition to Liverpool at the last-16 stage in 2016, the Red Devils have won all three of their Europa League quarterfinal ties.

Season Opponent Result on aggregate
2020/21 Granada Won 4-0
2019/20 FC Copenhagen Won 1-0 (single-leg tie)
2016/17 Anderlecht Won 3-2

Feargal Brennan

Feargal Brennan Photo

Feargal is a content producer for The Sporting News. He has been working with TSN since the start of 2022 after stints with Reach, Amazon UK and Squawka in a nomadic career in the football media pyramid. Always with a keen eye on Arteta's 'Reds' and Kenny's Ireland 'Greens' and a 100% five-a-side penalty record.