Manchester United v Athletic Bilbao LIVE: Team news and line-ups ahead of Europa League semi-final second leg

Ruben Amorim is not taking progress to the Europa League final for granted as he admitted Manchester United have a tendency to “lose our mind a little bit” when the going gets tough.

The United boss believes his side need to score in Thursday’s semi-final second leg against Athletic Bilbao despite boasting an authoritative 3-0 lead.

The Red Devils enjoyed one of their greatest ever European away days last week as Casemiro’s header was complemented by a Bruno Fernandes brace after Dani Vivian’s red card at a stunned San Mames.

All 133 teams in the competition’s history to have scored three or more goals away from home in the first leg have progressed, with odds of 40-1 on absentee-hit Athletic reaching the final in their home city underlining the task at hand.

But there is little chance of Amorim’s men becoming complacent, especially given United are enduring their worst campaign of the Premier League era and escaped with a jaw-dropping comeback against Lyon in the previous round.

For Athletic, Dani Vivian is suspended while Nico and Inaki Williams are both injured, so Ernesto Valverde makes several changes to the side which were beaten in the first leg. Maroan Sannadi leads the line once again with Alex Berenguer in support.

Athletic XI: Agirrezabala, De Marcos, Yeray, Nunez, Berchiche, Galarreta, Jauregizar, Djalo, Unai Gomez, Berenguer, Sannadi.

Subs: Simon, Gorosabel, Paredes, Vesga, Guruzeta, Lekue, Prados, Canales, Adama, Olabarrieta, Rego, Varela.

So Ruben Amorim does indeed stick with the same team which started the first leg, perhaps not surprisingly given the result. These players are not just playing to win this semi-final but are also playing for their places in the final on 21 May, should they get there.

Man Utd XI: Onana, Mazraoui, Lindelof, Maguire, Yoro, Dorgu, Casemiro, Ugarte, Garnacho, Fernandes, Hojlund.

Subs: Bayindir, Heaton, Amass, Fredricson, Kamason, Shaw, Eriksen, Mainoo, Mount, Diallo, Mantato.

So, the teams are about to drop. Will Ruben Amorim make any changes to the team that won so handsomely in Bilbao?

The Europa League final in Bilbao will not be moved if Manchester United face Tottenham Hotspur on May 21.

Both teams are in a strong position to contend for the trophy after winning the first legs of their semi-finals, with United beating Athletic Bilbao 3-0 away from home and Tottenham earning a 3-1 advantage over Bodo/Glimt ahead of the return leg in Norway.

An all-English final would give two of the Premier League’s underperforming teams a chance to save their seasons and gain direct access to next year’s Champions League.

United are in 15th place in the Premier League and Tottenham, who have not won a trophy since 2008, are 16th.

Alejandro Garnacho has insisted he is happy at Manchester United while admitting he pays attention to rumours about his future.

Napoli made an offer for the Argentina winger in January, while he also attracted interest from Chelsea, and if United were to cash in on Garnacho, it would enable them to make a vast profit in their accounts, as he cost just £420,000.

But Garnacho claimed he is content at Old Trafford and said: “As a footballer, you are always going to listen and hear some rumours about the future. But I have a contract here until 2028 so I’m happy here.”

Athletic Bilbao have suffered a triple injury blow ahead of the second leg of their Europa League semi-final against Manchester United with Nico and Inaki Williams plus top scorer Oihan Sancet all ruled out.

The trio were missing from the 24-man travelling squad named by Ernesto Valverde on Wednesday morning, with Athletic announcing that Inaki Williams – who has 11 goals and nine assists this season – has suffered a hamstring injury.

His younger brother Nico, who also has netted 11 goals, has been dealing with a groin problem.

Sancet, who leads the charts with 17 goals, missed last week’s first leg with a hamstring problem and has been unable to recover in time for the reverse fixture.

Ruben Amorim has vowed that Bruno Fernandes will not leave Manchester United by saying he is desperate to keep one of the best players in the world.

Fernandes has scored 19 goals and got 18 assists this season and is the joint top scorer in the Europa League, prompting talk of a big-money move to the Saudi Pro League.

But Amorim is adamant his fellow Portuguese, who has two years left on his contract at Old Trafford, is crucial to United.