Manchester United Must Avoid Complacency Against Rostov

It was the smallest away following for a European game since English clubs were readmitted into European competition in 1990 and visited a city with only two hotels that could be used by westerners; the players were in one, the fans another. The players got the short straw, finding beds so small that they were fit only for jockeys.

United managed a 0-0 draw in the first leg of the UEFA Cup tie and everyone was confident of victory in the return at Old Trafford, but it didn’t happen. Before an attendance of just 29,724, goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel scored, but the 2-2 result meant that Rotor Volgograd went through on away goals.

United went on to win the Premier League and FA Cup double that season and many more trophies followed under Sir Alex Ferguson. Rotor, by contrast, would slip and become an amateur side, but they are now in the third tier of the Russian professional league, playing at the same level as Torpedo Moscow, another side who knocked United out of the UEFA Cup in the 1990s.

238 fans were on hand to watch United draw 1-1 on Thursday, 90 of who travelled from the UK. Visas were difficult to obtain at short notice and, though the club has offered to cover those expenses, United did not organise travel for supporters as they had in 1995.

The contingent supporting Jose Mourinho’s side was bolstered by Reds from Russia and Belarus and those present were handed blankets by friendly hosts keen to make a good impression ahead of Russia hosting next year’s World Cup.

Mourinho would have taken a score draw before the game started, especially one in which none of his players picked up injuries. United’s research into the tie was extensive and there was respect for Rostov’s capabilities, if not the state of their pitch.

Perfect playing surfaces are taken for granted now although, until the early 1990s, Old Trafford looked similar to that of Rostov at this time of the year. The state of the pitch impacted upon United’s usual passing game — the 61 percent completion rate was down by 24 percent on the season average — as balls went astray in bobbly, blustery, cold conditions by the vast River Don.

Still, the draw felt slightly disappointing, given United took the lead and were seldom threatened by a side that, in December, had beaten Bayern Munich at home in the Champions League group stage. Alexsander Bukharov’s goal was the first United have allowed in the Europa League for 443 minutes and was a poor one to concede; Phil Jones, playing in an unconventional three-man defence, was stranded by a high ball.

Goalscorer Henrikh Mkhitaryan, as well as Marcos Rojo and Marouane Fellaini were United’s three best performers, an improbable statement at the start of the season when the first two struggled to get a game and Fellaini was bottom of the popularity chart among fans. It illustrates how quickly fortunes can change in football, something the United players were reminded of as they watched Barcelona’s 6-1 victory vs. Paris Saint-Germain in their team hotel on Wednesday night.

Fellaini is still to convince many and is aware that he’s associated with the failed David Moyes era, but he’s trusted by his current manager and the feeling is mutual. It was the midfielder who controlled a high ball on his chest and then found Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who set up Mkhitaryan’s goal.

The Armenian scored in a third successive European game and it’s a positive that he is back after a couple of weeks on the sidelines. Indeed, United don’t have any injuries to regular players, an achievement in itself given they have played 45 competitive games in seven months — they could play a maximum of 21 more — as well as the poor record of injuries under Louis van Gaal.

Given United have won all four of their Europa League home games this season, they will be strong favourites to go into next Friday’s quarterfinal draw. And that would be progress, given their round-of-16 eliminations in 2012 and again last year. Even in the competition’s previous guise as the UEFA Cup, United never went beyond the last eight in six attempts, with unglamorous sides such as Videoton and Widzew Lodz among those to have ousted them.

Lengthy trips to Ukraine, Russia and Turkey, plus other away matches in Holland and France, mean that United have put the miles in this season in the Europa League. The round-trip to Rostov alone was 3,750, more than the 2,690 they will travel for all 19 domestic away league games.

And there could be three further away trips, including the May 24 final in Sweden, but first United must avoid a repeat of that draw against Volgograd. Given they seem to be saving their home league draws for league matches, it looks unlikely.