Manchester United take on Real Betis in the Europa League round of 16 stage - but they may be concerned by a remarkable stat involving opposition boss Manuel Pellegrini.
Pellegrini took Manchester City to their second Premier League title in 2014, and guided the side to a Champions League semi-final in the subsequent season.
In the campaign that they won the domestic title, City scored a club record 151 goals in all competitions. Sergio Aguero netted on 28 occasions in all competitions, with Yaya Toure scoring 20 goals in the league.
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They scored four goals or more in one game on an incredible 17 occasions, including a 7-0 thrashing of Norwich in the English top flight. City also beat United 4-0 and 3-1 in league action that season.
Therefore, Red Devils fans may expect that Pellegrini's Betis might score plenty of goals when the two sides face off next month. But the stats suggest something entirely different.
Unusual Pellegrini stat emerges ahead of Man Utd vs Betis
As posted by OptaJoe, Pellegrini has faced United on four occasions in European competition. Surprisingly, however, he is yet to concede a single goal in any of those four matches.
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The matches in question took place in two separate seasons. In 2005/06, Pellegrini's Villarreal faced Sir Alex Ferguson's United in the Champions League group stages, with both games ending 0-0.
The Spanish side went on to top the group, with United finishing bottom.
Then, in 2008/09, the two teams met again in Champions League group stage action, with the scoreline also ending as 0-0 in both clashes.
It is a statistic that Erik ten Hag's United will be desperate to change this time around against Betis, or face the prospect of a penalty shootout to reach the quarter-finals of the Europa League.
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Topics: Manchester United, Real Betis, Europa League, Erik Ten Hag
Ryan Smart