Manchester United may have never played a competitive fixture against Real Betis in the 115 years since they were founded by a group of medical students preparing for a military career, but that does not mean they are going into battle blind before their Europa League round of 16 tie.
Far from it, in fact. United faced off against the side from Seville less than three months ago for a mid-season friendly.
That match was rather dwarfed by the day's earlier events when Morocco became the first African nation to reach the World Cup semi-finals after knocking Cristiano Ronaldo's Portugal out of the competition. But it now turns out the otherwise low-key affair being played just 80 miles from 'the stripe' that separates Spain from their Iberian neighbours has taken on an altogether different meaning.
