Man United Draws 1-1 at Real Sociedad in Europa League and Tottenham Loses to AZ Alkmaar

Soccer Football - Europa League - Round of 16 - First Leg - Real Sociedad v Manchester United - Reale Arena, San Sebastian, Spain - March 6, 2025 Manchester United's Joshua Zirkzee celebrates scoring their first goal REUTERS/Vincent West

Manchester United settled for a 1-1 draw with Real Sociedad in the first leg of the Europa League round of 16 on Thursday.
United led on Joshua Zirkzee's goal in the 58th minute but the hosts equalized 12 minutes later after Bruno Fernandes' hand ball. Mikel Oyarzabal sent Andre Onana the wrong way from the penalty spot.
The Europa League could be a way for United to finish the season with a trophy after crashing out of the FA Cup on Sunday.
A spot in the quarterfinals will be on the line at Old Trafford in the second leg next Thursday.
“Our decision-making in the final third was sometimes not the best, but we had good moments,” United manager Ruben Amorim said. "It’s going to be a different game at Old Trafford and the pressure is going to be on us. We have to be ready.”
Tottenham, also struggling in the Premier League, lost 1-0 at AZ Alkmaar, The Associated Press reported.
Lucas Bergvall netted an own goal following the first corner kick of the game after former Spurs striker Troy Parrott’s attempt across the goal.
“No fault for the goal, it happens,” Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou said. “It’s more about the collective tonight than the individuals. Collectively we were nowhere near the level we needed to be at and that’s the thing we need to address.”
Tottenham had beaten the Dutch team 1-0 in the league phase at home in October.
Rangers took a big step toward the quarterfinals by stunning José Mourinho’s Fenerbahce 3-1 in Istanbul.
Mourinho won the Europa League with Man United in 2017.
Czech forward Václav Černý scored twice and Cyriel Dessers had a goal and an assist for Rangers.
Dessers gave them a dream start putting them ahead six minutes into the game.
Substitute Alexander Djiku equalized in the 30th off a corner kick after half an hour. Djiku came on early to replace injured Çağlar Söyüncü in the 16th.
Černý restored a one-goal advantage for Rangers late in the first half from a tight angle on a counter with Dessers setting him up and added another one nine minutes from time.
It was the first game in Europe for Rangers interim coach Barry Ferguson.
A Rangers fan died in Istanbul ahead of the match in a road traffic accident overnight.
In Bucharest, substitute Malick Fofana scored two late goals to give Lyon a promising advantage after a 3-1 win over FCSB.
Lazio topped the league phase and showed its class in a 2-1 victory at Viktoria Plzen despite being reduced to nine men. Lazio midfielder Nicolo Rovella was sent off after his second yellow in the 77th when the score was 1-1 and was followed by Samuel Gigot in stoppage time but Gustav Isaksen still netted the late winner for the Italian favorite.
Eldor Shomurodov's stoppage-time winner gave Roma a 2-1 victory over Athletic Bilbao in Rome.
Brian Brobbey’s header put Ajax 1-0 up against Frankfurt in Amsterdam but the forward deflected Hugo Larsson’s shot into his own net and Ellyes Skhiri completed a 2-1 comeback for the 2022 Europa League champion.
Bodø/Glimt beat Conference League defending champion Olympiacos 3-0 in Norway. Olympiacos had conceded just three goals in the tournament coming into the game.
Chelsea wins in Conference League Chelsea kept a perfect record in the third-tier Conference League with a 2-1 victory at Copenhagen.
Reece James and Enzo Fernández gave the London club a 2-0 lead in the second half before Gabriel Pereira reduced the deficit to one.
Cole Palmer started for Chelsea, his first appearance in the competition this season.
Fiorentina, the runner-up in last two years in the competition, came from two goals down to level at 2-2 against Panathinaikos only 23 minutes into the game in Athens but forward Tetê scored in the 55th to give the hosts a 3-2 victory.
Real Betis and Vitória SC drew 2-2 while Molde defeated Legia Warsaw 3-2.
Jagiellonia dominated 10-man Cercle Brugge 3-0, Pafos beat Djurgården 1-0 and Celje defeated Lugano also 1-0. Borac and Rapid settled for a 1-1 draw.