Everything Man Utd Fans Need to Know About RB Leipzig
Little more than a week on from another monumental performance and victory in Paris, Manchester United are back in action in the Champions League on Wednesday night.
German club RB Leipzig are the visitors at Old Trafford in what promises to be another tough but intriguing European test for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s United side.
Record in Europe
Leipzig are still relative newcomers to European competition, with 2020/21 only their fourth season playing at a continental level.
The 2017/18 season saw them enter the Champions League for the first time, finishing third in their group behind Besiktas and Porto. That was only good enough for passage into the Europa League, in which they beat Napoli and Zenit Saint-Petersburg over two legs, before succumbing to Marseille.
In 2018/19, Leipzig competed in the Europa League and failed to get beyond the group stage. Last season, however, was a breakthrough for them as they topped a Champions League group containing Lyon, Benfica and Zenit, eventually reaching the semi-finals.
Prior to the unique ‘finals’ mini-tournaments in Lisbon, Leipzig beat Tottenham home and away in the Last 16. That included a 1-0 win in north London thanks to a Timo Werner penalty, followed by a comprehensive 3-0 victory at home for a 4-0 aggregate win overall.
Those two games remain the only time they have faced English opposition in a competitive setting.
Leipzig went on to beat Atletico Madrid in a one-off quarter-final, before falling 3-0 to Paris Saint-Germain, who they will face again later in this group stage, in the semis.
Changes Since Last Season
The major difference for Leipzig this season is the loss of Timo Werner, who United faced when Chelsea visited Old Trafford on Saturday. Werner scored 34 goals in all competitions last season, but because he joined Chelsea in June he played no part in the latter stages of the Champions League.
Patrik Schick also left in summer after his loan from Roma expired, which meant 44 goals in total from last season that needed replacing. That prompted a €29m spend to bring in Alexander Sorloth and Hwang Hee-chan from Crystal Palace and Red Bull Salzburg respectively. Winger Justin Kluivert has also joined the club on loan from Roma.
Despite flopping at Palace, Sorloth kickstarted his career by scoring 33 goals during a loan at Turkish club Trabzonspor and is still only 24. Hwang, meanwhile, is also 24 and impressed for the Salzburg side that outscored most clubs in last season’s Champions League group stage.
Result on Matchday 1
Leipzig kicked off the 2020/21 group stage with a 2-0 win over first time qualifiers and Turkish champions Istanbul Basaksehir.
It was actually Manchester City left-back Angelino, on a second loan at Leipzig, who scored both of the goals that have put the Bundesliga top of the group.
Scouting Mission
As well as an important game in the context of progressing in the competition this season, United officials may also have a keen eye on one or two of the Leipzig players in terms of scouting.
The obvious name is Dayot Upamecano, who has already been heavily linked with a switch to Old Trafford. The 21-year-old Frenchman is one of Europe’s top-rated young central defenders and could be a perfect signing for United in more ways than one next summer.
Not only is Upamecano already starting games at the highest level, he has enormous long-term potential to improve and is available at a reasonable price. The new contract he signed with Leipzig in August has a release clause that becomes active in 2021 at a reported €42m.
Upamecano’s centre-back partner is 21-year-old Ibrahima Konate. Other Leipzig talents like Dani Olmo, Tyler Adams, Christopher Nkunku and Amadou Haidara are all also 22 or younger.
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