The Real Betis fans chanted “Sí se puede” – yes we can. No, they could not. Manchester United are not the latest team to clutch defeat from the jaws of victory in a European knockout.
Instead, United will approach Easter with the possibility of their museum requiring at least one more plinth at the end of the season. The Europa League is a competition United have no intention of participating in next term yet a second triumph would secure seeding in the Champions League group stage.
The travelling followers safely sang about Roy Keane, Jaap Stam and Andy Cole early in the second half, a sure sign they were certain the contest was over. Marcus Rashford soon made sure of that, banishing a sloppy 55 minutes with a splendid piledriver to break the deadlock.
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With nine fixtures on the calendar in April and a 4-1 aggregate advantage, this was a logical opportunity for Erik ten Hag to rotate the United side having largely eschewed rotation. Facundo Pellistri finally started.
The bigger match this week is Sunday's FA Cup quarter-final with Fulham and Raphael Varane and Luke Shaw at least earned a breather. Bruno Fernandes avoided suspension for the quarter-final first leg and so did Casemiro, who will not be on the pitch again until April 13.
It is a quirk of the draw that the play-off with Barcelona seems certain to be remembered as United's most uproarious night in Europe this term. Raphael Varane was never going to approach the few thousand supporters who stood in the third tier of the Estadio Benito Villamarin for a victory parade as he did at Old Trafford three weeks ago.
Having waited 827 days just to debut, Pellistri's first start came 892 days on from when United announced his signing. Almost two years to that October 2020 date, he lined up at Barrow for the Under-21s in the EFL Trophy.
Since excelling in a behind-closed-doors friendly against Everton at Carrington prior to the season's resumption in December, Pellistri has been gradually more involved and he made noteworthy contributions in his six cameos.
This was a worthwhile occasion to trial Pellistri as a starter at the ground where he made his maiden start for Alaves during his first loan stint in 2021. Like United's other mercurial wingers, two early dashes came to nought and the Uruguayan was ridiculously booked for a non-foul.
Pellistri started the second half brighter, eliciting applause from Diogo Dalot as he warmed up and the next time Pellistri gathered the ball he shifted it on for a one-on-one that Rashford wasted. Rashford then had an easier chance from 10 yards and the ball ended up nearer the Plaza de Espana. With the hardest 55 seconds later, he buried the ball in the bottom corner.
Rashford is now on 27 goals - one shy of Zlatan Ibrahimovic's tally in 2016-17 - and three off Robin van Persie's 30-goal haul 10 seasons ago. Only a cruel intervention would prevent Rashford from at least emulating Van Persie.
From the lofty vantage point of the press box, the United technical director Darren Fletcher, expressed the need for "deeper runs", possibly harking back to Pellistri's forages. That was a non-starter with Wout Weghorst.
Weghorst is occasionally useful in a withdrawn role, but United are better off when he is withdrawn from the team. This was Weghorst's 17th successive start in the absence of the brittle Anthony Martial and he fired blanks again.
Weghorst's first half ended with him prodding the ball against the post from three yards out. Both of his United goals have come on the rebound with the goalkeeper prone.
Although the Estadio Benito Villamarin was pockmarked by empty seats, the Betis supporters were raucous. Such was the assembly outside, entrances were blocked an hour-and-a-half prior to kick-off as the two team buses entered the premises.
Then the hardcore contingent of local matchgoers embarked on a choreographed march with the leader wielding a megaphone and an accomplice pounding a drum. A couple wished the United analysts good luck for the next round as they approached the gangway.
The Spain squad will be announced on Friday and the timing is as terrible for David de Gea as his kicking. Back in his homeland, he was jeered whenever he received the ball and the Spaniards witnessed the best and worst of the national team's former No.1. De Gea's save from Juanmi in the 32nd minute was a reminder of his shot-stopping prowess that few peers possess.
For a team with a 4-1 aggregate advantage, United initially assumed Betis's role of chasing the game. It immediately became stretched and Juanmi miscued a shot wide before Joaquin's deflected potshot shaved the post inside a frantic first 15 minutes.
Too many United players were swayed by the atmosphere and the contest became almost as tribal. Ten Hag summoned Fernandes and De Gea was irked by Malacia's rushed hack at the ball without an opponent nearby. The United manager himself was involved in an animated exchange with Malacia.
Lisandro Martinez and Weghorst also bickered. Martinez, a distributor from deep, is not aligned with Weghorst's style and that culture clash was inevitable. Martinez soon turned on Harry Maguire but the United defence's sheet was clean at the pause and that ended any remote chance of a shock.
Could Betis score? No, they could not.
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