Barcelona handed major injury boost ahead of Man Utd clash as star player set for return

Barcelona have been handed a major injury boost ahead of their Europa League clash against Manchester United at Old Trafford on Thursday.

In the first leg, the Catalan giants came from behind to secure a 2-2 draw against a resilient United at Camp Nou and keep their hopes of progressing to the next stage alive.

United will be happy taking a draw back home, but will have to contend with a strengthened Barcelona side which is reportedly set to include veteran midfielder Sergio Busquets.

The 34-year-old was forced to miss the first leg due to an ankle sprain, but will feature on Thursday. That could be pivotal if Barcelona are to claim victory.

According to Spanish outlet Sport, Busquets will 'get minutes' in the game at Old Trafford after completing a full training session on Saturday.

He isn't expected to start in Barcelona's league game on Sunday, so could be fresh for the European clash.

Can United claim a big victory?

Knocking out an in-form Barcelona side who are top of La Liga was always going to be a tough ask for Erik ten Hag's side, but they held their own in the first leg.

They looked dangerous and a stellar performance from Marcus Rashford was almost enough for them to win it.

A match of this calibre is too good to be played out on the Europa League stage and it's unlikely that either side will be competing in this competition next season.

However, it still represents a chance to lift European silverware and the last trophy United won was this one back in 2017.

The Red Devils have appeared in the competition two times since then and have made it to a semi-final and a final.

A poor group stage performance this time around saw them draw Barcelona and whoever goes through will be one of the big favourites.