VIGO, May 5: Marcus Rashford�s stunning free-kick 23 minutes from time put Manchester United on the brink of reaching the Europa League final with a hard-fought 1-0 win at Celta Vigo on Thursday.
The victory puts United on course for this month�s final with Ajax Amsterdam the most likely opponents after they beat visitors Olympique Lyonnais 4-1 in their first leg on Wednesday.
Celta goalkeeper Sergio Alvarez kept the Spaniards in the tie before half-time with a string of saves to deny Rashford, Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Jese Lingard.
Despite the victory, coach Jose Mourinho was frustrated with his side�s inability to take their chances and knows there is still a job to do in the return leg at Old Trafford next week.
�We played well enough to have the result closed but we have to go and play at Old Trafford.... We tried to win the match but we missed chances, but the team played well. They were compact against a side who are difficult to play against.�
Mourinho hailed his wonder kid who has stepped up in the absence of top scorer Zlatan Ibrahimovic due to cruciate ligament damage.
�He�s a 19-year-old kid in love with football,� said Mourinho. �He works, he�s mature and what matters is not his age but his quality.�
Rashford�s 11th goal of the season was just reward for United�s superiority as they close in on not just the prestige of winning the Europa League for the first time, but also the prize of guaranteed Champions League football next season it would bring.
�In the first-half Sergio had a couple of very important saves and the way we started the game and controlled the game in the first half I think we deserved a better result,� added Mourinho.
�But the opponent was difficult, the stadium was difficult, so I cannot be happier with the players and their work.�
Three-times European champions United had never reached the last four of the Europa League or its predecessor the UEFA Cup, while Celta were in their first major continental semifinal.
Injury-hit United had also only won twice in 22 visits to Spain and knew they were in for a tough battle in Galicia. � Agencies