Manchester United are looking to repeat their performance last Tuesday against Club Brugge in the second leg of their playoff Wednesday to advance to the Champions League group stages.
In their first meeting, Brugge drew first blood as midfielder Michael Carrick scored an own goal to give Brugge a shock 1–0 lead just eight minutes into the game.
But United's summer signing from PSV Eindhoven forward Memphis Depay shined for his new club as he recorded a brace and capped off a splendid performance with an assist to midfielder Marouane Fellaini.
Fellaini's goal handed the Red Devils a 3–1 lead heading to their second match, which will be played at Jan Breydel Stadium in Belgium.
Because of the score in the first match, Club Brugge will need to win the second leg 2–0 to advance to the Champions League group stage. If United score a single away goal today then Brugge will need to score three to send the game into extra time. If United win by two goals or more in a higher scoring game than 3-1 then United will progress on away goals.
Manchester United have started the new Premier League season reasonably well, and in their first two games in the Premier League, they defeated Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa both 1–0.
In their third match against Newcastle United last Saturday things ended in a scoreless draw, but even that had a silver lining as it was their third consecutive clean sheet in the Premier League.
The Red Devils' defence will still be without goalkeeper David de Gea, who has not played in their past few matches and has been linked with a move to Real Madrid.
Despite getting a victory in the first leg against Club Brugge, United manager Louis van Gaal does not want to be overly-confident.
"It is a difficult ground, and it is not a simple opponent. I have read in the papers in England that it is simple and it is a walkover, but it isn't like that. Brugge against Panathinaikos, they won 3–0. It is still a game, but because of our third goal we now have more confidence," Van Gaal said, according to the club's website.
The match between Manchester United and Club Brugge will be played on Aug. 26 and coverage on FOX Sports 1 will begin at 2:00 p.m. EST (7:00 pm BST) and the kickoff will be at 2:45 p.m. EST (7:45 p.m. BST). The game can be watched online through Fox Sports live stream by clicking here.
