Three Manchester United players were conspicuously missing as the Red Devils stepped up preparation for their Champions League meeting with Barcelona.
The trio of Ander Herrera, Nemanja Matic and Eric Bailly all sat out training on Tuesday morning ahead of the Red Devils’ first leg meeting with Barcelona at Old Trafford on Wednesday night.
Serbian international Matic and Spanish player Ander Herrera have been a regular fixture in the Manchester United midfield since Ole Gunnar Solskjaer became the Red Devils manager while Ivorian national team centre back Eric Bailly has been used sparingly by the former club striker and that’s mainly due to his injury problems.
Manchester United would be hoping to secure a good result in the first leg against Messi and his friends from Barcelona.
The Red Devils qualified for the last eight of the competition by beating French giants Paris Saint Germain (PSG) via the away goals rule in the last round.
Manchester United had lost 2-0 at home in the first leg before they managed a remarkable turnaround against the Parisians with a 3-1 victory away from home.
Barcelona had a relatively more straightforward qualification at the expense of another French team Lyon.
The Spanish champions thrashed Lyon 5-1 at home to secure a 5-1 aggregate win in their last 16 tie.
