By Canadian Press on January 30, 2025.
Manchester United and Tottenham put their inconsistent domestic campaigns aside and advanced to Europa League round of 16 on Thursday.
Diogo Dalot tapped in a precise cross by Kobbie Mainoo on the hour mark and Mainoo netted eight minutes later for a 2-0 victory over Romanian champion FCSB in Bucharest.
Tottenham got goals from academy graduates to beat Swedish club Elfsborg 3-0 in London. Spurs waited until the 70th minute for substitute Dane Scarlett to break the deadlock before adding two more through substitute Damola Ajayi and 17-year-old Mikey Moore late and down Elfsborg 3-0 in London.
Of the 36 teams in the revamped competition, the top eight go directly to the round of 16 in March.
Teams ranked ninth to 24th go into the two-legged knockout playoffs on Feb. 13 and Feb. 20 with the winners making the last 16.
The draw is scheduled for Friday.
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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
Karel Janicek, The Associated Press