Saint-Etienne 0-1 Manchester United - Europa League last 32 as it happened

Full-time: Saint Etienne 0-1 Manchester United

A game bereft of quality but Manchester United got the job done and ease through to the last-16. Henrikh Mkhitaryan's goal early in the first half ended the tie as a contest, with Saint-Etienne failing to cause Sergio Romero any real trouble. Eric Bailly was sent off harshly in the second half but United were already home and dry.

United could have extended their advantage through Marcus Rashford and Ibrahimovic, but their main concern from the game was Mkhitaryan's injury. The Armenian hobbled off soon after scoring with a thigh injury and is now a doubt for his side's EFL Cup final against Southampton.

That's all she wrote for this blog, but do head over to our other one where we will be running the rule over tonight's Champions League action.

Have a very good evening.

We're into three minutes of stoppage time. The tempo has faded but the Saint-Etienne supporters are as vociferous as ever. Quite commendable really, given the dross they have had to endure.

Pogba sprays the ball wide to Young, who takes his time and delivers a teasing ball that finds Rashford. The young forward can't sort out his feet out in time and the ball trickles out for a goal kick.

Schweinsteiger tries his luck from the edge of the area after some spellbinding footwork from Pogba but he can't find the net. Just over five minutes left to play.

Fellaini gives away a cheap foul after clumsily taking out Pajot. Very uncharacteristic from the Belgian, who just isn't that sort of player.

Ibrahimovic bursts down the right channel and almost finds Pogba, but his cross is cut out just in time.

Pogba's delightfully scooped pass is met by Ibrahimovic, who drags his shot wide of the right post. Hamouma tries to respond for the French side but his effort sails high over the bar.

Rashford comes so close to making it two but is denied by the legs of Ruffier. He is tearing away from Malcuit with gay abandon, and Blind is always on the lookout for a lobbed pass. 0-1, 15 minutes to go.

Florentin Pogba smacks a shot in anger. Never troubling Romero. Etienne's Pogba then gives away a cheap corner that Manchester United's Pogba almost nods in, but his header glances wide via a deflection.

Third and final change for Saint-Etienne as Lemoine replaces Veretout. Just over 20 minutes left for United, who are unphased by Bailly's dismissal.

Blind almost finds Ibrahimovic unmarked in the box but Perrin manages to get an all important touch on the cross.

So soon after picking up his first yellow Bailly is shown his marching orders for a rather innocuous foul on Hamouma. Seemed harsh on the Ivorian, and the replays confirmed that.

Rojo immediately brought on for Mata, Mourinho acting fast.

RED CARD! Bailly sent off for Manchester United.

Second United change as Carrick is replaced by Schweinsteiger. The veteran is no doubt being saved for the EFL Cup final, with this tie already won.

Lille make another change as Nolan Roux replaces the incredibly anonymous Beric.

Pogba unleashes a fizzing shot that Ruffier has to gather. Anywhere to the keeper's side and that would've been 2-0. Bailly shown a yellow for an erratic tackle on Hamouma.

Shouts for a penalty waved away as Pogba is nudged by Malcuit. A tad silly from the defender, you've certainly seen them given.

United look for a second as Mata finds Fellaini in space but the Belgian can only find the side netting.

Hamouma stands over a free-kick in a dangerous position but slips as he is about to take it and watches the ball drift harmlessly wide. Sums up Saint-Etienne's evening.

First change from Galtier as Saivet is replaced by Jorge Intima. 10 minutes gone in the second half, plain sailing for Manchester United.

Rashford has the beating of Malcuit all day long. The young forward drives past the right-back again but just overruns the ball, giving Ruffier the opportunity to smother.

Rashford drives into the box but is just about stopped by Malcuit, who tackles for a corner. United work it short but Blind's cross comes to nothing.

Rashford almost latches onto a hopeful Young ball but Perrin just about snuffs out the danger. Blind is then frustrated after fouling Saivet but the resulting free-kick comes to nothing.

Second half underway. Will we see an improvement, or will Mourinho's men coast to the last 16?

Jubilation for United, but despair for Saint-Etienne.

A dreadful first half, in truth. United have been the better side but they have created little, while Saint-Etienne have not troubled Romero whatsoever.

Henrikh Mkhitaryan's goal is the difference between the two sides so far. The Armenian deftly poked in a brilliant Mata delivery but had to be withdrawn shortly after with what looked like a thigh problem.

Let's hope for a better second half, though the writing is on the wall for Saint-Etienne, who need to score five in order to go through.

Half-time: Saint-Etienne 0-1 Manchester United

Hamouma goes down pathetically after being shrugged off the ball by Ibrahimovic. Very irritating to see, and he's not the first Etienne player to try and con the referee this evening.

Almost an equaliser for Saint-Etienne as Romero fails to clear but Monnet-Paquet is shepherded away from goal by the very impressive Bailly.

Mkhitaryan looked understandably irritated as he went off. Will he be fit for Sunday?

Ibrahimovic blasts an effort over the bar after some good running by Rashford. The game is starting to open up now, with five minutes to go until half-time.

Ibrahimovic tries to supply Pogba but the Frenchman is offside. At the other end Saint-Etienne register their first shot on target as Perrin heads a teasing free-kick into Romero's gloves.

Romero, who looked shaky earlier on, has not had a save to make so far. United are packing the centre of the pitch extremely well and are affording the Ligue 1 outfit no space whatsoever. Veretout's effort is blocked by Bailly.

Apart from the goal this match has been tremendously poor. Etienne seem resigned to their fate while United are coasting ahead of Sunday's final against Southampton.

Having said that, Ibrahimovic finds Young bombing down the right channel but the full-back's cross evades Mata.

Early United change as Rashford replaces Mkhitaryan. The former Borussia Dortmund attacker walks straight down the tunnel and seemed to be having some trouble with his thigh.

Blow for the Red Devils ahead of the EFL Cup Final.

The moment Mkhitaryan gave United the lead.

Almost a second for United! Perrin heads Mata's delivery straight into his teammate Pajot. The ball bounces awkwardly off his ankles and forces a fine stop from Ruffier. Would've been an absolutely bizarre own goal had it gone in. 0-1.

Etienne have rallied since the goal but United have not been troubled as of yet. Malcuit tries to make something happen but ends up running the ball out of play under the watchful eye of Blind.

Not bad going from the Armenian.

The first real moment of quality from either team has brought the opening goal. Neat combination play from Blind and Mata ends up with the Spaniard delivering a dangerous low cross into the path of Mkhitaryan, who poked the ball intelligently past Ruffier.

Etienne now have to score five if they wish to progress. Tall order.

GOAL! Saint-Etienne 0-1 Manchester United (Mkhitaryan)

Completely devoid of quality so far. Both teams are seemingly only capable of hoofing the ball long at the moment.

Pogba's position has already been tweaked; he is now operating directly behind Ibrahimovic.

Romero's distribution has let him down on a couple of occasions already this evening. The ball is spending a lot of time in the air already, Carrick tries to get his foot on the ball but is caught late.

Neither team can keep the ball for a sustained period of time at the moment. Saint-Etienne seem to want to do everything at 100mph, while United are a tad sluggish but are beginning to settle.

A shaky start from United in possession. Romero gathers a low cross as Etienne look to draw first bloody supremely early.

The referee for this evening is Deniz Aytekin from Germany. United to get us underway.

Players currently shaking hands, fans currently waving flags. It's all going on at the Stade Geoffroy-Guichard.

The players are in the tunnel, ready to walk out into an incredible atmosphere created by the Etienne faithful. Kick-off moments away.

Pogba's looking focused. No emojis etc. today for the mercurial Frenchman.

Paul Scholes has given his thoughts over former teammates Wayne Rooney's Manchester United future.

"I don't know if he will go but I think he'll want to go. Wayne is a player who wants to play every week. I don't see him hanging about if he's not going to be playing in the big games."

I just don't see China as the right place for him, he's a family man, I don't see him going there. I think more likely might be America, the lifestyle might be a bit better there."

Despite his side's three-goal cushion, Mourinho is still wary of an upset.

"The second leg is yes or no, in or out. We have a lead but in football things can change."

Can Saint-Etienne pull of a major shock? Kick off in just over quarter of an hour.

Someone tell this lot that they're 3-0 down before the game's even kicked off.

TEAM NEWS RECAP

Manchester United: Romero, Young, Bailly, Smalling, Blind, Carrick, Pogba, Fellaini, Mata, Mkhitaryan, Ibrahimovic

Saint-Etienne: Ruffier, Malcuit, Theophile-Catherine, Perrin, Pogba, Veretout, Pajot, Hamouma, Saivet, Monnet-Paquet, Beric.

Mourinho takes in his surroundings, the stadium is starting to fill up. Kick-off half an hour away.

Manchester United's immediate focus is obviously on their match against Les Verts, but they might be interested to know that their FA Cup quarter-final against Chelsea will take place on Monday 12 March.

Mourinho will be hoping for a slightly different outcome compared to what happened in November...

Mourinho and Galtier exchange pleasantries before their sides lock horns.

SUBSTITUTES

Saint-Etienne: Moulin, Lemoine, Lacroix, Pierre-Gabriel, Jorginho, Selnaes, Roux.

Pogba brothers Paul and Florentin engage in conversation before the match. Brotherly love will turn into sibling rivalry in just under 45 minutes.

Some more shots of Etienne's impressive home.

The Stade Geoffroy-Guichard is looking marvellous this evening.

Some pre-match thoughts from both managers.

Jose Mourinho: "I have to play Saint-Etienne, I have to play the (League Cup) final, I have to play, hopefully, another game in the Europa League, I have to fight for a top-four position in the Premier League. So I have so many things to think about."

Christophe Galtier: "It's indeed an important game but not the most important one. Even if we played seriously all the Europa League games, our future is not at stake. But we will do everything we can to get a good result."

You may be wondering why the game is being played on Wednesday instead of tomorrow, when all the other Europa League matches take place.

The change in kick-off time was made due to concerns over fan safety, with Lyon hosting a Europa League clash on Thursday night.

A few familiar faces in Saint-Etienne's ranks. Kevin Theophile-Catherine had a brief spell in the Premier League with Cardiff City, while Jordan Veretout and Henri Saivet also plied their trade for Aston Villa and Newcastle United respectively.

All three were relegated from England's top-flight but they are now enjoying the lofty heights of fifth place in the Ligue 1 table.

TEAM NEWS

Saint-Etienne: Ruffier, Malcuit, Theophile-Catherine, Perrin, Pogba, Veretout, Pajot, Hamouma, Saivet, Monnet-Paquet, Beric.

Mourinho has made a number of changes to his side, but the indomitable Ibrahimovic remains the spearhead of the attack.

That's not good news for Saint-Etienne.

SUBSTITUTES

Manchester United: De Gea, Rojo, Martial, Lingard, Rashford, Valencia, Schweinsteiger.

TEAM NEWS

Manchester United: Romero, Young, Bailly, Smalling, Blind, Carrick, Pogba, Fellaini, Mata, Mkhitaryan, Ibrahimovic.

They may well be the marquee duo at Old Trafford, but Paul Pogba and Zlatan Ibrahimovic cannot count on former United defender Paul Parker to be their cheerleader.

The former right-back thinks Frenchman Pogba is disrespectful and has questioned the impact Ibrahimovic has made since moving to Manchester.

Agree? Baffled? Read more here.

Another Englishman absent from United's travelling party was left-back Luke Shaw, who has seemingly been frozen out of Old Trafford by Jose Mourinho. The Portuguese said yesterday that the former Southampton defender has to wait for an opportunity and is not going to let him waltz back into the reckoning 'for free'.

"Luke has to wait for his chance," said Mourinho. "He has to work better and better, knowing that I give nothing for free. When I give something for the players it is expensive for me, it is not cheap.

"They have to work really hard every day, they have to play well, so he has to wait and in this moment he is behind the others."

Here are some photos of United's travelling support ahead of kick-off.

Wayne Rooney will not be strutting his stuff at the Stade Geoffroy Guichard this afternoon, and questions are swirling around the Manchester United legend's future with talk of a move to China on the cards.

Jose Mourinho remained coy on the future of the England captain but was keen to stress that he was not 'forcing' him out of Old Trafford.

"You have to ask him. If Rooney one day wants to leave the club then it isn't because of me. I will never force a legend out. You have to ask him, this isn't a question for me." Mourinho said.

Rooney did not travel to France for the match against Saint-Etienne having only just returned to training earlier this morning after a minor injury. The club's record goal-scorer will be assessed this week before a decision is made on whether he will be ready for Sunday's EFL Cup final against Southampton.

Good afternoon and welcome to IB Times UK's live coverage of Saint-Etienne vs Manchester United.

Jose Mourinho's men are in a healthy position going into the second leg of their Europa League clash with Les Verts. Zlatan Ibrahimovic came back to haunt the Ligue 1 outfit with a hat-trick at Old Trafford as United emerged comfortable 3-0 victors last week.

Saint-Etienne have only been beaten once at home in the league this season and will undoubtedly throw everything at United at the Stade Geoffroy-Guichard this evening, but the Red Devils will presumably be able to ride the storm.

Stay right here for the latest updates and reaction. Team news is expected shortly.