Manchester United became one of four teams to advance to the semi-finals of this season's UEFA Europa League on Thursday, where they'll be joined by fellow quarter-final victorsAjax, Celta Vigo and Lyon.The Red Devils defeated Anderlecht2-1 in extra timeto advance with a 3-2aggregate win, while 10-manAjax scored late in extra timeto draw 3-3 against Schalke and advance on away goals despite losing 3-1 in Germany.Celta drew 1-1 in their trip to Genk and sealed a 4-3 aggregate win, meaning they've qualified for a European semi-final for the first time in their club's history, and Lyon beat Besiktas on penalties after losing 2-1 at Besiktas to draw 3-3 on aggregate.United manager Jose Mourinho will undoubtedly still consider his United outfit a favourite for this year's European crown, although the competition remaining has been reduced down to the Europa League's elite.Read on for a breakdown of Thursday's Europa League quarter-final second-leg results, complete with a preview of two teams you'll want to keep an eye on in the competition's next phase.Manchester UnitedIt was far from pretty, but United booked a berth in the Europa League semis on Thursday thanks largely to the perseverance of Rashford, who was a deserved match-winner for the Red Devils in extra time.BT Sport provided footage of the 107th-minute strike that sent manager Jose Mourinho's side into the last four of the tournament in his maiden season at Old Trafford, with the potential for more silverware this term:The goal was a timely one for Rashford, too, after he has struggled to find the same amount of playing time and add to his European goal tally this season, per Sky Sports Statto:In spite of the win, the Red Devils continue to show weakness when playing on home soil and a lack of killer touch, while a 90th-minute knee injury suffered by Zlatan Ibrahimovic won't help the team in that regard.Those travelling to Old Trafford in future will do so knowing they won't be the first to test the Premier League powerhouse in front of their own crowd, although Mourinho will undoubtedly revel in the fruit of Thursday's labours for now.Celta VigoA historic Europa League campaign for Celta Vigo ensured on Thursday after a 1-1draw at Genk was enough to put the finishing touches on their 4-3win over two legs.Having won their home leg 3-2 last Thursday, it suited the Spaniards to go in scoreless at the break, although they knew scoring an away goalas Genk had two to their namewould be critical to their chances of advancing.Pione Sisto was on hand to snatch just that for the guests after 63 minutes, and Chris Henson of Football Radar hailed the magnitude of his opener from just outside the Genk area:Leandro Trossard responded with a neat finish into the bottom corner to tie level on the night, but that strike was only enough to worsen the Belgian outfit's frustrations at missing out on a semi-final berth.Celta have progressed to a major European semi-final for the first time in their history and will hope to continue La Liga's reign of terror in the competition after Sevilla won the last three titles in succession.Read more World Football news on BleacherReport.com
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