da bwin： Manchester United go into their Europa League tie against Feyenoord knowing a loss could well see them eliminated from the tournament.
da realsbet： The Red Devils are currently on six points in Group A, a point behind their Dutch opponents and Fenerbahce at the top.
Jose Mourinho’s side should be looking to win so they can improve their head-to-head record against Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s boys, who beat them 1-0 in their opening group game.
Luckily United have history on their side, as September’s loss was their first against the Eredivisie leaders in three games (as per 11v11.com).
While there isn’t too much playing history between the two sides, however, there are a number of links between both clubs.
One or two may be obvious to devoted United fans, but there are definitely a couple that would spring a surprise to even the most fervent of supporters.
Here are five curious connections between Feyenoord and Manchester United.
HENRIK LARSSON
Manchester United seem to like signing legendary Swedish strikers towards the end of their careers.
While Jose Mourinho signed Zlatan Ibrahimovic at 34, Sir Alex Ferguson brought in Celtic and Helsingborg favourite Henrik Larsson in January 2007 when he was 35.
Larsson, who also played for Barcelona, only scored three goals in 13 games for United but will still be remembered fondly for the touch of class he brought.
What many people don’t know is he also played for Feyenoord, scoring 42 goals in 149 games between 1993 and 1997.
ALBERT STUIVENBERG
Albert Stuivenberg (right) mot need be as famous on the first man on our list, but he spent a number of seasons at both clubs.
The 46-year-old was born in Rotterdam and played with Feyenoord at youth level, failing to break into the first team.
After being forced to retire through a cruciate ligament injury, Stuivenberg took up coaching Feyenoord and became their head coach in 2001, working with the likes of Robin van Persie.
At United he was one of Louis Van Gaal’s assistant coaches, but followed the Dutchman out of Old Trafford at the end of last season.
TAHITH CHONG
By far the youngest player on this list, Tahith Chong was poached from Feyenoord in July at the age of just 16.
The long-haired forward had been at Feyenoord since the age of 10 but joined the Red Devils after being labelled one of Holland’s hottest prospects.
Chong has been in decent form for the under-18s and looked incredibly sharp in a 2-1 win against Middlesbrough, where he assisted both goals.
He already has some individual honours under his belt for United, having won the best attacking player award at the prestigious Otten Cup.
MARCEL BOUT
Another member of van Gaal’s backroom staff, Marcel Bout worked with the Dutchman at both Bayern Munich and Manchester United.
At Old Trafford, he began as the assistant coach who specialised in scouting out United’s opponents.
Unlike Stuivenberg, Bout is still at the club and became their chief scout in October.
He also began his career as a coach at Feyenoord, where he was the head of training, youth coach and recovery trainer at various times.
ROBIN VAN PERSIE
Undoubtedly the most famous link on this list, Robin Van Persie will always have a place in United history after almost single-handedly winning them the title in 2013.
The Dutchman won the Golden Boot that year with 26 league goals, and managed a total of 58 goals in 105 appearances for the Red Devils.
Van Persie started his career as a winger at Feyenoord before being transformed by Arsene Wenger after the Frenchman signed him for Arsenal.
Coincidentally, RVP is currently playing for another side in United’s group, Fenerbahce. The Dutchman was given a standing ovation when he scored the only goal for the Turkish side in their 4-1 defeat earlier this year.