Porto vs Manchester United live updates: Europa League ...

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Every time you think Manchester United can sink no further, they find a way to surprise you.

In isolation, defeat against Tottenham is never ideal but it should never spell crisis. But when you consider how badly United were outplayed in that loss and add to another poor start to the season, crisis is spelled out in block capitals.

Andy Mitten wrote on why Sunday marked Ten Hag's lowest ebb under Ten Hag and how support for him continues to evaporate, as a result — make sure to give it a read ahead of this evening's kick-off (you can find it below).

GO FURTHER

Support for Erik ten Hag has evaporated after the lowest moment of his Man United tenure

Manchester United did not enjoy their first Europa League outing of the season, either.

They took the lead against FC Twente at Old Trafford thanks to a super finish from Christian Eriksen, but were pegged back in the second half by former Rangers striker Sam Lammers midway through the second half.

After the match, Erik ten Hag questioned the mentality of his players. And those same players succumbed to a similarly humbling result on Sunday as they were hammered at home by Tottenham.

A tough week to be a Manchester United fan...

Porto made a really disappointing start to their Europa League campaign seven days ago.

Having taken the lead away to Norwegian side Bodo/Glimt last week, they were 2-1 down at half-time. They were, however, given a significant boost six minutes into the second half when the home side were reduced to 10 men.

But that did not help the Portuguese side as they went 3-1 down 10 minutes later before halving the deficit with a late consolation.

Porto did not suffer the same fate when their opponents at the weekend saw a red card. Drawing 0-0 at half-time, they ran riot against 10-man Farense with four unanswered goals at the Estadio do Dragao.

There's a question mark in the podcast title, but there isn't much doubt in our camp. The first half against Spurs at Old Trafford on Sunday was the most disjointed, mistake-ridden performance we've seen since Erik Ten Hag became manager of Manchester United.

Bruno Fernandes red card was harsh, there's agreement there as well; but, by then, much of the damage had been done. For the second time in a week, an opposition defender carried the ball forty yards through the heart of midfield to set up a goal and the fragile atmosphere shattered.

So, once again, we're asking THAT question. The executive team, aiming to win the Premier League by 2028, chose to back the manager in the summer but can he provide enough of an upturn in the team's results (and performances) to stretch his tenure as far as 2025?

Listen here.

The England squad for next week's Nations League matches against Greece and Finland was announced earlier today.

Manchester United's Harry Maguire was not included in that squad by Lee Carsley, but his club team-mate Kobbie Mainoo was.

The other big news was the first call-up in seven years of Dominic Solanke while the likes of Morgan Rogers, James Maddison and Jarrod Bowen have missed out.

Read more on the squad announcement below

GO FURTHER

Dominic Solanke called up to England squad as Morgan Rogers, Harry Maguire left out

So keeping that team news in mind, here is the Manchester United squad that has travelled to Porto.

Goalkeepers: Andre Onana, Altay Bayindir, Tom Heaton.

Defenders: Diogo Dalot, Matthijs de Ligt, Jonny Evans, Victor Lindelof, Harry Maguire, Lisandro Martinez, Noussair Mazraoui.

Midfielders: Casemiro, Toby Collyer, Christian Eriksen, Bruno Fernandes, Dan Gore, Kobbie Mainoo, Manual Ugarte.

Forwards: Amad Diallo, Antony, Alejandro Garnacho, Rasmus Hojlund, Marcus Rashford, Joshua Zirkzee.

And this is what Erik ten Hag had to say of both Luke Shaw and Tyrell Malacia in his pre-match press conference.

“We hope that Luke Shaw can return after the international break quickly,” he said. “I don’t know if it’s the first game we’re hoping for so I can’t in this moment say this with 100 per cent security.

“From now on we have two and a half weeks to work to the point. But then Shaw definitely after he will be there.

“Tyrell Malacia makes very good progress on the pitch and he now has to make the step to full team training.”

Read more below

GO FURTHER

Erik ten Hag: ‘Improving’ Tyrell Malacia and Luke Shaw to not return until after October international break

A few injury problems to contend with for Manchester United.

Ten Hag confirmed in his pre-match press conference that left-backs Luke Shaw and Tyrell Malacia will not be back until after the upcoming international break while Mason Mount — who left the pitch on Sunday with his head bleeding — is also unavailable.

Leny Yoro is a long-term absentee after fracturing his foot in pre-season while Kobbie Mainoo and Harry Maguire are both doubts for today's game.

Porto fans will have been happy to see Arsenal loanee Fabio Vieira come back into the team at the weekend, albeit from the bench. They will hope to see him included in the starting XI today.

The need for his creativity is only exacerbated by the continued absence of Otavio who is a major doubt for this one.

There are two players who are definitely not available for Porto: Zaidu Sanusi and Ivan Marcano who are both recovering from anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries.

And these are the nine Europa League matches in the late kick-off slot:

8pm BST / 3pm EDT

Just the 18 Europa League matches on today's menu!

Here is the line-up of early matches:

5:45pm BST / 12:45pm EDT

Estadio do Dragao, Porto

One of my favourite European stadiums, this one.

It is a cauldron of hostility for a visiting team on a night like tonight with the 50,000 capacity feeling like plenty more.

Many a famous evening for Porto on this patch of turf — are they set for another one today?

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Here are the broadcasters of this evening's match depending on where you are in the world.

This one is being played in the Thursday night primetime slot.

That is 9pm local time (CET), 8pm in the UK (BST), 3pm on the east coast (EDT) and 12pm on the west coast (PDT).

Hello and welcome along to Europa League Thursday!

Another busy evening of European football is on the cards and our focus is on the match in Portugal between Manchester United and Porto.

The pressure cranked up another notch (or two) on Erik ten Hag with the heavy defeat to Tottenham on Sunday, so it will be very interesting to see how he and his players react today against another tough opponent.

There are still a few hours until kick-off so stick with us for all the build-up.