Man United 4-1 Real Sociedad (5-2 agg.): Bruno Fernandes hits hat-trick as Red Devils reach Europa League last eight

Evening Standard

·13 marzo 2025

Man United 4-1 Real Sociedad (5-2 agg.): Bruno Fernandes hits hat-trick as Red Devils reach Europa League last eight

Red Devils played excellently and scored four times on the night to oust Sociedad

Manchester United produced arguably their best win yet under Ruben Amorim as they thrashed 10-man Real Sociedad 4-1 at Old Trafford in their second leg tie to secure passage to the Europa League quarter-finals.

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Captain Bruno Fernandes hit a hat-trick, including two penalties, to help United past Sociedad 5-2 on aggregate and to set up a last-eight meeting with French giants Lyon.

United headed into Thursday’s second leg level on aggregate after last week’s 1-1 draw in Spain and had to overcome an early scare when Mikel Oyarzabal netted a spot-kick of his own to open the scoring.

But United managed to turn the match and the tie on its head, helped by the red card shown to Sociedad substitute Jon Aramburu for a foul on Patrick Dorgu when he was adjudged to have been the last defender.

Amorim and United can now look forward to a quarter-final tie against Lyon, after an extremely encouraging performance which kept alive their hopes of winning silverware this season.

Sociedad, who had rested many players in their La Liga meeting with Sevilla at the weekend ahead of this game, opened the scoring through Oyarzabal’s confidently struck penalty on 10 minutes. It was awarded via the help of VAR after Matthijs de Ligt clipped the foot of the Sociedad skipper.

But United were only behind for six minutes, before Fernandes struck back from the spot once Rasmus Hojlund had been hauled down by Igor Zubeldia when through on goal.

The score was 1-1 at the break — 2-2 in the tie — but the Red Devils were soon ahead, Fernandes slotting his second and the game’s third penalty of the night away after Aritz Elustondo unfairly blocked off Patrick Dorgu’s run.

Fernandes slots home his second penalty on the way to a hat-trick

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Aramburu received a red card on 63 minutes — seven minutes after entering the fray — after he brought Dorgu down as the last line of defence when the Dane would have been through on goal if had not been fouled.

That dismissal knocked the stuffing and the potency out of Sociedad, who conceded two late goals.

Fernandes completed his second hat-trick in United colours when Alejandro Garnacho fed a through-ball into the path of the captain to slam home, with precision, into the corner.

Then, following a lovely piece of skill and assist by Hojlund — unlucky not to end his goal drought on the night — Diogo Dalot hammered into the roof of the net to add gloss to the scoreline for United in stoppage time and make absolutely sure of their place in the quarter-finals of a competition they are among the favourites to win.