Manchester United will travel to Turkey to face Jose Mourinho’s Fenerbahce among their eight games in the league phase of the new-look 36-team Europa League after the draw.
If you recall that Jose Mourinho, who steered Manchester United to a Europa League triumph in 2017 with victory over Ajax, is poised for a reunion with his former club, where he served as the manager from 2016 to 2018.
Manchester United will also notably play at home to 2022 Europa League runners-up Rangers and go to Portugal to play Porto, another of Mourinho’s old sides. The Red Devils' full schedule includes:
- Fenerbahce (away)
- Rangers (home)
- Porto (away)
- PAOK (home)
- Bodo/Glimt (home)
- Victoria Plzen (away)
- Twente (home)
- FCSB (away)
Tottenham, winners of the tournament’s inaugural edition in 1972, return to European competition following a year-long hiatus. They will also take on Rangers, in their case away from home.
In addition, Ange Postecoglou’s side will play at home to Serie A side AS Roma and go to Istanbul to face Turkish champions Galatasaray, among five other planned fixtures.
The format of the Europa League has changed for this season, along the same lines of the new-look Champions League. The league phase features 36 teams, with each team playing eight games - four at home and four away. The top eight teams will advance directly to the round of 16, while teams finishing between ninth and 24th place will enter a knockout playoff stage. The bottom 12 teams will be eliminated.
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