Ste McGovern
Phil Neville gives his blunt assessment of Manchester United’s chances of turning around a two goal deficit against PSG in the second leg in Paris.
The Red Devils were downed by second-half goals from Pesnel Kimpembe and Kylian Mbappé, both of which were assisted by former United winger Angel Di Maria, for the club’s first loss under caretaker manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
Only one team has ever overcome a 2-0 first leg loss in the Champions League, when Real Madrid defeated Wolfsburg 3-0 in the last 16 second leg at the Stadio Santiago Bernabeu in 2016, before going on to win the Champions League.
Former Manchester United and Everton defender Neville believes PSG are too good for the Premier League club to overcome in the away leg.
“I don’t think Manchester United have any chance in Paris [in the return leg],” Neville told BBC Five Live.
“PSG have too much European nous, too much class.
“Even though we didn’t see Mbappe at his absolute best, he was still devastating.
No team has ever managed to progress following a 2-0 home defeat in the first leg in the CL knockout phase.'#MNUPSG #ChampionsLeague
— Gracenote Live (@GracenoteLive) February 12, 2019
“There shouldn’t be an over-reaction, there has to be some realism on where this group of players are at.
“We said before the game that this result wouldn’t define Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. These players are not at the level of the top European teams.
“How many players would get into this PSG team? Maybe two? Paul Pogba and David de Gea.”