Manchester United have been drawn against Tottenham Hotspur in the FA Cup semi final and a number of the fans are saying the same thing. Manchester United fans think the FA Cup semi-final should be played away from Wembley – as Tottenham will have a ‘home advantage.’ Mauricio Pochettino’s side are playing their home games at the national stadium while their new ground at White Hart Lane is under construction.
And Spurs defender Jan Vertonghen admits playing the semi against United there next month will give the London side a benefit. “I think [Spurs will have an added benefit] so because we are playing well there”, he said. “We have beaten some big teams there and had some very good games, apart from the start of the season which was a bit difficult for us we feel at home now. It is a little advantage that we are used to playing at Wembley now. “Wembley suits us.”
The new Wembley has hosted both semi-finals of the competition since 2008 as a neutral venue. While Spurs do have the advantage of having played more games there, the seating allocation will divided equally as is normal for an FA Cup semi final. Jose Mourinho’s side were also drawn out as the home side which means, technically, Spurs will have to use the away dressing room on the day. But despite those differences to when United lost to Spurs there earlier in the season, some fans believe the Londoners’ familiarity with the pitch and the stadium gives them an unfair edge and that the game should be played at a truly neutral venue.
Jose Mourino endured perhaps the most difficult night of his Manchester United tenure to date as Seville dumped his side out of the Champions League. United were expected to make short work of the Spanish outfit having escaped the first leg at the Sanchez Pijuan with a goalless draw a fortnight ago. Instead, Mourinho’s men produced a timid, inhibited performance which was widely condemned by their own fans and pundits, including the likes of Paul Scholes and Rio Ferdinand. A second half brace from Wissam Ben Yedder was enough for Sevilla, who lost against Leicester city at this stage of the competition last season, to progress 2-1 on aggregate. Afterwards Mourinho gave a prickly press conference during which he claimed losing in the Champions League was nothing new to Manchester United, given he oversaw their demise when he was in charge of Real Madrid and Porto.
