The worst team in the modern history of Manchester United they may well be, but of all the potentially disastrous outcomes to this season, Ruben Amorim’s players could yet grasp the best-case scenario.
This was the night that one of the Champions League winners in this United team, Mason Mount, finally scored his first Old Trafford goals in two injury-racked seasons. What that said about United was not exactly clear, because until the last 20 minutes they looked like they could quite easily blow this semi-final. But it at least reminded Old Trafford what successful nights can be like, and the alternative would have been crushing.