When Manchester United drew Sevilla in the Round of 16 of the Champions League last season, most expected them to progress. It was a fairly kind draw, avoiding the likes of Juventus, Bayern Munich and Real Madrid, and Jose Mourinho’s side were largely considered the better of the two.
But then the first leg came. Mourinho, in his usually miserly style, approached it with one goal in mind: a clean sheet. United were defensive, showed little attacking ambition, and played for nothing more than a 0-0 draw. They got precisely what they wanted.
But that was a miscalculation.