(Reuters) – Manchester United beat hosts Real Sociedad 1-0 on Thursday but the Spanish side finished top of Europa League Group E on goal difference and the English team will go into the knockout round playoffs.
Alejandro Garnacho scored his first goal for United after 17 minutes when Cristiano Ronaldo played him through on goal with a nice pass and the 18-year-old placed the ball into the corner of the net.
United needed one more goal to overtake Sociedad in the standings on goal difference but they struggled to create clearcut chances in the second half.
Sociedad topped the group on 15 points, the same as United. Moldova’s Sheriff Tiraspol will go into the Europa Conference League after finishing third following their 1-0 home win over Omonoia Nicosia.
(Reporting by Tommy Lund in Gdansk, editing by Ed Osmond)
