The match between Manchester United and Barcelona is the most interesting to look forward to, because both teams are regulars in the Champions League, but this season they have to go down in caste. Manchester United were unable to finish in the top 5 last season in the league so they were forced to play in the Europa League, while Barcelona surprisingly had to be eliminated because they lost on points to Bayern Munich and Inter Milan in the group stage.
Manchester United qualified for the knockout phase of the Europa League as runners-up, so at the time the draw was made Barcelona came out as their challenger. There are many predictions that people make that Barcelona's chances are bigger than Manchester United, but I have faith that Manchester United can overcome that at Old Trafford.
We can say, this match is a crucial match for The Red Devils. after all, both teams have a historical record of matches involving a battle of prestige. and now, these two teams will face off in the Europa League playoffs. what is certain, Ten Hag will not simply give up on Barcelona in the match later.
Manchester Untied's current problem is their front line, currently Ten Hag is trying to bring in several players in the upcoming January transfer window. in particular, looking for a pure striker. for the defense line, Manchester City already has it. however, in fact The Red Devils still need the services of an attacking midfielder. As for De Jong, I'm not sure if he's willing to join Man United in January.
On the Barcelona side, Barcelona is a better prepared team than Manchester United. considering that Lewandowski is a very sharp striker. however, Barcelona actually has a lot of weaknesses. besides, some of its important pillars have yet to recover from their injuries.
IMO, if Xavi doesn't learn from his mistakes after his failure in the Champions League. so don't blame the troops, if Barcelona is defeated by The Red Devils in the playoffs later.