Man United's Europa League preparations plunged into chaos just 24 hours before Porto clash

Manchester United's journey to Porto was significantly delayed due to adverse weather conditions, delaying the club ahead of their Europa League clash with Vitor Bruno's side.

Erik ten Hag's team arrived in Portugal three hours behind schedule on Wednesday evening, disrupting their preparations for Thursday's Europa League game. Following Sunday's crushing 3-0 loss to Tottenham, the Reds are keen to bounce back, with manager Ten Hag under increasing scrutiny.

A victory over Porto would mark their first in this season's Europa League, after a lacklustre 1-1 draw against Dutch team Twente last week. Departure for Portugal was scheduled for around 3pm, but Manchester's foggy and rainy conditions meant they didn't leave until 6:10pm, arriving at 8:30pm BST.

Ten Hag's pre-match press conference at Estadio de Dragao was originally slated for 7pm, but was subsequently postponed to 8:30pm BST. The Dutch coach is likely to face challenging questions, given United's four losses in nine games across all competitions this season and at the time of writing it is still yet to start.

Co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe and his INEOS associates will be observing closely as Ten Hag strives to reverse Old Trafford's fortunes following their disappointing start to the season. The encounter with Porto signifies the beginning of two difficult away matches for the Reds ahead of next week's international break, reports the Mirror.

United are gearing up for a crucial clash with Aston Villa on Sunday, which could prove pivotal for the ex-Ajax boss. Despite murmurs of uncertainty, United's front office has affirmed their support for Ten Hag, having contemplated his role during the offseason and even engaged in discussions with potential successors.

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Ten Hag reaffirmed his commitment to turning things around in a defiant interview with Sky Sports, stating: "We are going to make a success from the season. Nothing is easy, but this is nothing for me to panic about. We can sort [the problems] out, this team can sort this out."

When quizzed about whether the forthcoming fixtures would dictate his tenure's fate, Ten Hag said: "I'm not thinking about it, I'm not anxious. We created a togetherness in the summer with the ownership and the leadership. We made this agreement, and we were all behind it."

"We know the strategy [is to bring in] young players in a transition period. They also know in May in all my last six seasons there were always trophies and that is what we are aiming for."