Manchester United should fear no one in their quest to win four trophies, manager Erik Ten Hag said after beating Barcelona 2-1 on Thursday to progress to the last 16 of the Europa League 4-3 on aggregate.
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Robert Lewandowski’s early penalty had given Barca the perfect start at Old Trafford.
But the La Liga leaders were again undone on the European stage as Fred leveled early in the second period before Antony delivered his biggest moment since arriving in Manchester from Ajax.
“It was a great night,” said Ten Hag, who has turned United’s fortunes around in his first season.
“It’s another step because when you can beat Barcelona, legates that you can beat anyone.
The fact that two of the continent’s giants are battling it out on the stage of Europe’s second-tier competition is proof that both sides have fallen on hard times in recent years.
But United are riding the wave as they remain in the hunt for trophies in the front four.
The Red Devils can end their six-year wait for silverware when they face Newcastle in the League Cup final on Sunday.
But there is no reserve to secure Europe’s biggest scalp since ousting Paris Saint-Germain from the last 16 of the Champions League in dramatic fashion in 2019.
“I have some great personalities in this team,” added Ten Hag.
“Everyone has a strong belief in this team, you can see it. With the subs they bring energy and quality, they bring a different dynamic to the game.
United are now unbeaten at Old Trafford in 18 games since September but were forced to go behind on the back of the game twice.
– Barca failure ‘different’ –
Barcelona are unbeaten in all competitions since October, when they were knocked out of the Champions League group stage at the hands of Bayern Munich and Inter Milan.
Despite the domestic rise of Xavi Hernandez to overtake Real Madrid at the top of La Liga, the Catalans once again came unstuck in the big European test.
Barcelona also collapsed in the Champions League group stage last season before losing to Eintracht Frankfurt in the Europa League.
“My feelings are completely different from last season,” Xavi said. “This year we have competed in every game except Bayern at home.
“For small details, we haven’t won. We have to learn from our mistakes and improve.
The visitor even failed to take advantage of the gift with the opening goal.
Bruno Fernandes foolishly raised his arm to catch Alejandro Balde and French referee Clement Turpin angered Old Trafford by pointing to the spot.
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David De Gea won a Lewandowski penalty, but the ball rebounded in the 18th minute.
Ten Hag responded by replacing the ineffective Wout Weghorst with Antony at half-time and got the response they wanted within two minutes.
Fernandes, restored to his preferred central midfield role, opted for Fred, who shot less than Marc-Andre ter Stegen.
United still needed a big moment from De Gea to stop the momentum going back to the Catalan giants as he headed home Jules Kounde’s header from point-blank range.
Antony has enjoyed a lie since reuniting with Ten Hag following his £86 million ($104 million) move from Ajax.
However, the Brazilian delivered a quality match for his price for the winner 17 minutes from time.
After Alejandro Garnacho and Fred saw their efforts blocked, the ball was good for Antony to curl the ball beyond Ter Stegen’s arm.