Europa League: That was naive, says Jose Mourinho

The closing stages of United's semi-final second leg against Celta Vigo, a 1-1 draw that sent the Red Devils through 2-1 on aggregate, saw both sides reduced to 10 men following a heated clash, with Bailly dismissed for raising his hand to John Guidetti and Facundo Roncaglia for retaliating.

Man United's Eric Bailly (second from left) is shown the red card during the Europa League semi-final 2nd leg vs Celta on Thursday. Pic/AFP

"I didn't see the incident, but he was phenomenal. The game was emotional until the end for everyone. Some kept control in better ways than others. I don't know but I think it was with Roncaglia, right? Roncaglia's not new in these kind of situations and probably Eric was a bit naive. We lose a very important player for the final and we don't have many."

United took the lead via Marouane Fellaini's 17th-minute header to make it 2-0 on aggregate.

But it was nervy for them thereafter, with Celta equalising through Roncaglia in the 85th minute — three minutes before he and Bailly were dismissed.

Mourinho a spot in a final and Jose he feels can be a "perfect" end to the season, with Champions League football on offer for the winner.

"In the end, when the game was difficult, when they were better than us and we were in trouble, it was that mentality, that desire, that togetherness that made the boys fight until the end," the Portuguese said.

"The final means an opportunity to win a trophy, to be back in the Champions League, and to end the season in the perfect way because it is the last match of the season," he added.

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No. of times Eric Bailly has been red-carded in the Europa League in 2016-17, more than any other player in the competition

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