Marcus Rashford scored a second-half free-kick as Manchester United defeated Celta Vigo 1-0 at Balaidos to gain the upper hand in their Europa League semi-final tie.
It looked like Jose Mourinho’s men were going to be in for a frustrating night in Spain when they had the better of the first half but failed to take advantage of their goalscoring opportunities, a familiar theme from their Premier League campaign.
But in-form Rashford, who also scored a dramatic extra-time winner against Anderlecht in the quarter-finals, fooled Celta goalkeeper Sergio Alvarez with his set-piece to ensure United take an away goal and an aggregate lead back to Old Trafford for next Thursday’s second leg.
A place in the Stockholm final on May 24 against either Ajax or Lyon is at stake for the winners, the Dutch side looking the most likely opponents after winning the first leg of the other semi-final 4-1.
