Late chance for Jorginho! Saint Etienne push forward on one final attack before winning themselves a corner over on the left flank. It's fired into the box and is headed out to Jorginho, who then unleashes a rocket of a strike that Romero is just about able to palm away with a strong save.
90' +2
Lemoine darts down the right flank and does well to find a pocket of space near the byline. He then cuts inside slightly and fires a low cross into the heart of the United penalty area, but it fails to pick out a team-mate and is comfortably fired away from danger.
90'
The fourth official has indicated that there will be three minutes of added time.
89'
Saint Etienne pile plenty of bodies forward as they try to carve out a late chance on goal, but United have plenty of white shirts back and are easily able to bring an end to another attempted attacking move from the home side.
87'
Young gets himself in a pocket of space deep down the right flank before curling a bouncing cross into the heart of the penalty area. It finds Rashford in front of goal, but the young forward is unable to make decent contact with the ball and shins it wide of the near post.
85'
United win themselves a throw-in deep down the left flank, and it's quickly sent towards Schweinsteiger on the edge of the box. The German brings the ball down well before shooting, but his curling effort ends up flying a few yards wide of the far post.
84'
K. Malcuit gets yellow.
Malcuit becomes the latest player to receive a yellow card after kicking the ball away in frustration deep inside the Saint Etienne half of the pitch.
82'
The ball pinballs around the edge of the United penalty area before rolling out to an unmarked Pajot, but the midfielder's audacious attempt from 30 yards out fails to hit the target and instead sails well wide of the goal.
80'
Ibrahimovic, who looks absolutely desperate to score a goal of his own, breaks through the Saint Etienne defence and latches on to a clever pass forward, but he's unable to remain onside and the linesman's flag is quickly raised.
78'
Young cuts out a poor pass forward and quickly tees up Paul Pogba in the centre of the pitch. The midfielder takes a couple of touches before chipping a deft pass up to Ibrahimovic, but the striker is unable to guide the ball into the back of the net and instead scuffs his half-volley well wide of the far post.
Minute
Description
76'
Great opportunity for Rashford! A lofted pass forward from Blind flies over the Saint Etienne back line and into the path of Rashford, but the youngster's poked shot from close range is closed down by Ruffier and fails to find the back of the net after being blocked by the goalkeeper's outstretched limbs.
74'
United earn themselves a corner of their own, and it's whipped straight on to the head of Paul Pogba. The midfielder does well to get in front of his marker before reaching the ball, but his downward header is cleared at the far post, despite it looking as if it was flying a yard or so wide of the goal.
73'
Saint Etienne win themselves a corner over on the left flank after pushing forward on another attempted attacking move. The set-piece initially fails to find a green shirt before deflecting out to Florentin Pogba, who unleashes a rocket of a volley that flies several yards wide of the near post.
71'
Smalling accidentally handles a lofted pass forward and concedes another free-kick in a dangerous position. It fails to result in a chance on goal, however, as Hamouma blasts his thumping strike straight into the wall.
69'
Blind skips into the left-hand side of the Saint Etienne penalty area on a great run before trying to tee up Ibrahimovic with a low pass across the face of goal, but it fails to find the Swedish striker and is thumped away at the vital moment.
68'
F. Lemoine enters the game and replaces J. Veretout.
Saint Etienne have made a further change, with Veretout, who has been one of their better performers, making way for Fabien Lemoine.
67'
Paul Pogba twists and turns down the right flank before being hauled to the ground, resulting in a free-kick for United. It's taken quickly and sent short to Rashford, who is swiftly closed down and has to settle for a throw-in near to the corner flag.
65'
Saint Etienne quickly try to take advantage of their extra man as they attempt to carve out a chance on goal, but Hamouma, after doing well to cut inside from the right flank, can't find the back of the net and instead fires a low shot straight into the hands of Romero.
64'
M. Rojo enters the game and replaces Mata.
Mata is the player to be sacrificed for Marcos Rojo, who comes on to slot into the United back line.
63'
E. Bailly gets a second yellow card and is sent off.
RED CARD! Bailly charges into a tackle and is late with his attempted challenge, leaving the referee with no choice but to show him a second yellow card. Have Saint Etienne been presented with a way back into the tie?
62'
B. Schweinsteiger enters the game and replaces M. Carrick.
United have made their second alteration of the night, with Carrick making way for Bastian Schweinsteiger for the final half an hour.
61'
Veretout steps up and sends another good cross into the heart of the United penalty area and towards a clump of green shirts, but it's well defended by the visitors and fails to result in a chance on goal.
60'
E. Bailly gets yellow.
Roux makes an immediate impact as he flies down the left wing and latches on to a loose ball, but as soon as he does so he's clattered into by Bailly and wins a free-kick for his side in a promising position.
59'
N. Roux enters the game and replaces R. Berić.
Saint Etienne have made another attacking substitution, with Nolan Roux coming on to take the place of Beric.
58'
Chance for Fellaini! United come back once again before Blind pokes a deft pass into the penalty area and towards Fellaini, but the big Belgian is unable to side-foot a shot into the top left-hand corner of the net and instead sends it into the side-netting.
57'
Saint Etienne lose the ball in the middle of the pitch and allow United to counter quickly. Ibrahimovic bursts towards the box before spinning and trying to pick out Paul Pogba, but the midfielder loses his footing at the vital moment and is unable to reach the ball inside the penalty area.
56'
Hamouma twists and turns as he embarks on an excellent run towards the United penalty area, and he's eventually tripped over by a clumsy challenge from Eric Bailly. The forward steps up and fires a curling shot, but he slips at the last minute and sends his effort well wide of the goal.
54'
Jorginho enters the game and replaces H. Saivet.
Saint Etienne have made their first alteration of the game, with Saivet making way for Jorginho.
53'
Once again, Rashford is able to creep behind Malcuit as he sprints into the Saint Etienne box and towards the near post, but he lets the ball run away from his feet and eventually loses out to Ruffier before he can shoot.
51'
Great tackle by Malcuit! Rashford darts into the left-hand side of the penalty area on a great run before looking to shoot from close range, but Malcuit is there to dispossess the youngster and poke the ball out for a corner with a wonderful sliding interception.
50'
Hamouma takes on Rashford deep down the right flank and is able to win a corner for Saint Etienne. Once again it's fired into a dangerous position in front of goal, but this time it narrowly misses the head of two players before bouncing out to the opposite wing.
48'
Saivet is caught by a late sliding challenge from Blind and Saint Etienne are awarded a free-kick over on the right wing. It's swung into the penalty area and almost finds a green shirt, but Marouane Fellaini is there to clear the danger with a strong header.
46'
We're underway once again!
45' +1
Saint Etienne push forward on another impressive attacking move before winning themselves a corner off a beautiful Veretout cross. The set-piece is poorly struck, however, and is easily cleared by Young at the near post before the referee brings an end to the first half.
45'
The fourth official has indicated that there will be just one minute of added time.
44'
Mata shows good footwork just outside of the Saint Etienne penalty area as he tries to link up with Ibrahimovic. He initially does well to beat one defender before looking to tee up the striker, but he's quickly dispossessed before he's able to do so.
43'
Vital interception by Romero! Saint Etienne fly forward on a blisteringly quick counter-attack before Monnet-Paquet darts into the left-hand side of the United penalty area and towards a through-ball, but the Argentine goalkeeper is just about able to get a foot on the ball to poke it away from the forward just as he's about to round him and shoot.
41'
Thumping strike by Ibrahimovic! Rashford out-muscles Malcuit over on the left flank before bursting down the wing. He then cuts inside and picks out the Swedish striker in acres of space, and unleashes a rocket of a long-range shot that flies just a few yards over the top of the crossbar.
39'
Great chance for Perrin! Saint Etienne win themselves a free-kick over on the left wing, which Veretout curls into an excellent position inside the United penalty area. Perrin rises high and easily meets the ball completely unmarked, but he sends his headed effort straight into the hands of Romero.
38'
Ibrahimovic picks up a loose ball 25 yards away from the Saint Etienne goal and quickly chips a pass over the hosts' back line and towards Paul Pogba. The Frenchman is able to meet and control the ball inside the box, but his run forward was slightly mistimed and the linesman's flag is raised as a result.
36'
After regaining possession, Florentin Pogba flies down the left wing on a marauding run. He gets himself into a good position and then swings a dangerous cross towards Robert Beric, but the striker, who has seen little of the ball thus far, is unable to reach the ball and it flies a yard or so over his head.
35'
Another attempted Saint Etienne attack comes to an end and United are able to win back possession once again. They work the ball around patiently before Rashford is brought into the move, but his first touch is poor and he's unable to continue it over on the left flank.
33'
Saint Etienne enjoy a good spell of possession as they try to find a way back into the game. A low cross from the right wing finds Henri Saivet in the heart of the penalty area, but the forward's first touch is poor and the ball is deflected out to Veretout. The midfielder immediately unleashes a rocket of a shot from 25 yards out, but it deflects off a white shirt and bounces behind for a corner.
31'
United almost make it 2-0! Space opens up in the middle of the pitch, allowing the visitors to fly forward on another dangerous counter-attack. Ibrahimovic and Young link up well deep down the right flank before the latter fires a low cross over to the far post, but it misses both Rashford and Mata before rolling out for a goal-kick.
29'
Rashford holds up the ball deep down the left wing as he tries to find a way past Theophile-Catherine. He's unable to do so and decides instead to tee up Mata, but Malcuit is there to stop the pass from finding the Spaniard with a vital interception.
27'
Almost a costly mistake by Paul Pogba! The midfielder is caught in possession midway inside the United half of the pitch and clumsily has the ball stolen off him from under his nose. Saint Etienne then break forward swiftly through Romain Hamouma, but he's unable to do anything with the opportunity and chips a cross out of play.
26'
Mkhitaryan looks to have picked up a slight injury after stretching to put United in front, and he gingerly makes his way off the pitch to be replaced by Marcus Rashford.
25'
M. Rashford enters the game and replaces H. Mkhitaryan.
Once again, an attack-minded home side lose out on the halfway line and are caught on the break. This time it's Mkhitaryan who sprints towards the penalty area, but he's unable to deal with the pace of Malcuit and is beaten by the defender before fouling him from behind.
24'
Saint Etienne lose possession in the centre of the pitch and present United with a chance to counter swiftly, but Ibrahimovic's run through the hosts' disjointed back line is slightly mistimed and the linesman's flag is raised as soon as he meets Paul Pogba's through-ball.
23'
Fantastic save by Ruffier! Ibrahimovic charges through the middle of the pitch on a great run before teeing up Mata to his left. The Spaniard takes a quick touch and then fires a dangerous cross into the Saint Etienne penalty area, where it pinballs off both Perrin and Pajot before Ruffier scoops the ball away with a great diving stop at the near post.
22'
Malcuit twists and turns as he weaves his way down the right flank and towards the byline. Blind sticks to the full-back like glue as he tries to stop him from whipping a cross into the box, and he's able to do so before shepherding the ball out for a goal-kick.
20'
Another attempted Saint Etienne attack comes to an end and United take the opportunity to counter quickly. Carrick fires a great cross-field pass over to the left wing and picks out Blind perfectly, but the Dutchman is unable to control the ball with his head and ends up losing out.
18'
Saint Etienne immediately push forward from the restart and are almost able to carve out a chance on goal thanks to a dangerous cross from the right wing, but Young does well to rise high and meet the ball before Monnet-Paquet can.
16'
H. Mkhitaryan has scored a goal for Manchester United! Assist by Mata.
Mata's low cross into the box was a great one, but the hosts' defending left a lot to be desired. Nobody picked up Mkhitaryan's run and the two centre-backs were far too slow in trying to cut out the danger.
GOAL! United have taken the lead! Juan Mata cuts inside from the left flank and immediately fires a wonderful bouncing cross into the middle of the Saint Etienne box. Neither Kevin Theophile-Catherine nor Perrin are quick enough to deal with the danger, allowing Mkhitaryan to skip between the two of them before sending a deft flick past Ruffier.
15'
It's been a tough opening 15 minutes for Saint Etienne, who have seen little of the ball inside the United half of the pitch. The visitors are comfortably bossing possession, and whenever the hosts are able to pick up the ball they seem to be in a rush to launch it over the sea of white shirts camped in front of them.
13'
Ashley Young is closed down quickly by both Florentin Pogba and Kevin Monnet-Paquet, but he nonetheless does well to whip a cross into a dangerous position inside the box. It curls towards the far post and looks set to find Ibrahimovic, but the striker seems to duck out of the way of the ball instead of rising high to meet it.
12'
United keep dominating possession as they look to carve out their first chance on goal. They're unable to do so, however, as a poor pass from Chris Smalling flies over the top of the Saint Etienne defence before rolling harmlessly out of play for a goal-kick.
10'
Paul Pogba cuts inside from the left wing and easily skips past two defenders before chipping a deft cross into the middle of the Saint Etienne box. Mkhitaryan makes a good run towards goal as he tries to reach the pass, but he's unable to and Stephane Ruffier is comfortably able to cut out the danger as a result.
8'
Michael Carrick is caught by a late challenge from Vincent Pajot, resulting in a free-kick for United just inside the Saint Etienne half of the pitch. It's sent short and worked up to Mkhitaryan, but he's unable to beat Loic Perrin and is dispossessed by an outstretched foot from the centre-back.
6'
Ibrahimovic chases a loose ball down the right flank and does well to stop it from bouncing out of play. He then spins and launches a volleyed cross over to Paul Pogba, who quickly nods the ball down to Henrikh Mkhitaryan, but the Armenian is unable to bring it under his control and loses out to Veretout.
4'
Daley Blind sends a clever pass down the left wing and into the path of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who cuts inside quickly and then tees up Paul Pogba. The midfielder is in a good position just outside of the penalty area and looks set to shoot, but he's too slow in doing so and is eventually dispossessed by a great tackle from Jordan Veretout.
2'
Saint Etienne quickly pick up possession for the first time and plough forward. Kevin Malcuit does well to dart towards the right-hand side of the United penalty area before curling a low cross into the box, but it's sent too near to Sergio Romero and is easily collected by the goalkeeper.
1'
We're off! United get us underway, attacking from right to left.
Good afternoon and welcome to our live text commentary of today’s Europa League last-32 second leg game between Saint Etienne and Manchester United at the Stade Geoffroy-Guichard.
Thanks to a comfortable outing six days ago, United head to France with a place in the next round of the Europa League all but confirmed. Zlatan Ibrahimovic, often his side’s saviour, bagged himself the first hat-trick of his United career to hand Jose Mourinho’s men a well-deserved 3-0 lead on aggregate, and it’s one that is unlikely to be seriously challenged by a Saint Etienne side that looked off the pace at Old Trafford.
Nothing can be taken for granted, however, so United’s Portuguese boss has decided to field a similarly strong side to the one that featured in the first leg. A 2-1 win against Blackburn Rovers in the FA Cup on the weekend means that the Red Devils have lost just one of their previous 24 games, with none of their last 20 home clashes ending in defeat. As such, they head into tonight’s encounter as firm favourites to get the job done.
It’s been a difficult few weeks for Saint Etienne, who are once again chasing Europa League qualification in Ligue 1 but lost out to Montpellier in their last outing, leaving them four points away from a qualifying spot. The Greens have tasted victory in just one of their previous six games, whilst away from home they have failed to avoid defeat in any of their last four encounters.
Despite being three goals up and with the EFL Cup final taking place on Sunday, Jose Mourinho has decided against leaving some of United’s more important players at home. Instead, they will start the game with the likes of Ibrahimovic, Paul Pogba and Juan Mata on the pitch, clearly showing how seriously the Portuguese is taking each and every competition in which his team are still taking part.
Manchester United substitutes: De Gea, Valencia, Rojo, Schweinsteiger, Lingard, Martial, Rashford.
Manchester United XI (4-3-3): Romero; Young, Bailly, Smalling, Blind; Fellaini, Carrick, Paul Pogba; Mata, Ibrahimovic, Mkhitaryan.
Saint Etienne substitutes: Moulin, Pierre-Gabriel, Lacroix, Selnaes, Jorginho, Roux.
Saint Etienne XI (4-2-3-1): Ruffier; Malcuit, Theophile-Catherine, Perrin, Florentin Pogba; Veretout, Pajot; Hamouma, Saivet, Monnet-Paquet; Beric.
There’s just over 15 minutes left to go until kick-off, so let’s have a look at how the two teams will be lining up this afternoon…
Christophe Galtier has decided to make just one change to the Saint Etienne side that started last week’s first leg, with Robert Beric coming into the starting line-up to replace Jorginho, who drops to the substitutes’ bench.
Meanwhile, United boss Jose Mourinho has made three alterations to the team that featured six days ago, with Antonio Valencia, Anthony Martial and Ander Herrera - the latter of whom is suspended - making way for Ashley Young, Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Michael Carrick, respectively.
The two sides are making their way out onto the pitch, with just a few minutes to go until kick-off.
HALF-TIME: SAINT ETIENNE 0-1 MANCHESTER UNITED
Overall, it's been a relatively comfortable game for United so far, and they've been presented with few problems by a Saint Etienne side that have performed better than last week but have still struggled in front of goal. Understandably, the visitors haven't been in too much of a hurry to push forward and have largely concentrated on defending their lead, resulting in few clear-cut chances being enjoyed at either end of the pitch.
The two teams are making their way back out on to the pitch ahead of the start of the second half. Neither side have made any substitutions during the half-time break.
FULL-TIME: SAINT ETIENNE 0-1 MANCHESTER UNITED
The referee blows his whistle for the final time and sends United comfortably into the final-16 of the Europa League. Mkhitaryan's 16th-minute opener would prove to be the only goal of the game, but, in truth, the tie was as good as over after last week's comfortable victory at Old Trafford. Tonight's clash was all about defending for the Red Devils, and they did exactly that with aplomb, despite Bailly's red card midway through the second half.
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