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As it happenedended

Europa League semi-final draw - as it happened: Manchester United face Celta Vigo, Lyon to take on Ajax

A recap of the Europa League semi-final draw from Nyon

Samuel Lovett
Thursday 20 April 2017 10:46 BST
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Manchester United will will discover on Friday who they will face in the Europa League semi-final draw.

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Jose Mourinho's side beat Anderlecht 2-1 in Thursday's second leg at Old Trafford, clinching a 3-2 aggregate victory and book their spot in the last four..

Lyon, Ajax and Celta Vigo join them in the semi-finals, having beated their respective opponents - Besiktas, Genk and Schalke 04 - retain hopes of reaching the final next month.

With a place in next season's Champions League the reward for winning the Europa League, United are determined to win Europe's second-tier competition given they are currently in a fight with Manchester City, Liverpool and Arsenal to finish in the top four.

Follow the draw live below:

Please allow a moment for the blog to load.

When is the draw?

The draw takes place in Nyon on Friday 21 April, following the completion of the quarter final ties on Thursday.

What time is the draw?

Proceedings will begin at 12.00pm BST, with the draw following shortly after.

Where can I watch it?

It will be shown live on BT Sport 2.

If, however, you cannot watch the draw, you can bookmark this article which will turn into The Independent’s live blog.

How does it work?

As per usual at this stage of the competition, the draw is unseeded and there will be no ‘country protection’, meaning teams from the same domestic league can be drawn against each other.

The team drawn first will play the first leg at home, with those drawn second away.

Mourinho's United will go into the semi-final draw as favourites
Mourinho's United will go into the semi-final draw as favourites (Getty)

Who's in the draw?

Manchester United, Lyon, Celta Vigo and Ajax go into the draw and can all face each other.

When will the Europa League semi-finals take place?

This year’s semi-final first legs will be played on 4 May, with the return legs played the following week on 11 May.

Roy Keane didn't hold back in his criticism of Manchester United last night after they squeezed past Anderlecht in extra-time.

Jose Mourinho’s men missed a number of chances to put the game to bed in normal time, but failed to take advantage of their visitors’ shortcomings - as had been the case in Brussels seven days’ previously.

And Keane, who led United to Champions League success in 1999, was cutting in his assessment of his former club.

Not impressed. 

“They were quick out of the blocks, as you would expected from United at home and they got their noses in front,” said Keane, speaking on ITV. “But my goodness, the finishing was so poor it was unbelievable.

“It summed up their season. You can see now why they are fifth in the league, why they are 15 points behind Chelsea…not good enough in terms of their finishing and being clinical.

“Ultimately, you get punished for that, but they are getting away with it because they are playing lesser opposition in the Europa League.”

Samuel Lovett21 April 2017 11:52

Not long to go now, stay tuned!

Samuel Lovett21 April 2017 11:57

Right, here we go. Cue overly dramatic music, unnecessarily long build-up and a quick anti-climax.

Who will United get? We'll find out shortly.

Samuel Lovett21 April 2017 12:01

On a quick side note, it looks like there could be some positive injury news for United fans. More below.

Samuel Lovett21 April 2017 12:03

For those of you who didn't know, this year's final will be played in Stockholm. An expensive away day by all accounts.

Samuel Lovett21 April 2017 12:04

Currently waiting for the officials to get round to the draw as a representative from Stockholm accepts the honour of hosting the final.

I did you warn you there'd be an unnecessarily long build-up...

Samuel Lovett21 April 2017 12:07

Time for the overly dramatic music and game replays I also mentioned...

Samuel Lovett21 April 2017 12:09

Okay, we're almost there. The balls are in the bowl. Crackin' stuff.

Samuel Lovett21 April 2017 12:10

The Champions League had Ian Rush for their draw. We've got Patrick Andersson, ex-Bayern Munich and Barcelona defender. Not too shabby.

Samuel Lovett21 April 2017 12:13

Right, at long last. Here we go!

Samuel Lovett21 April 2017 12:14

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