Manchester United humbled in Europa League

The Europa League is not a competition Manchester United wants to be in, as coach Jose Mourinho freely admits, and the Premier League side might exit it sooner rather than later if it continues to perform as it did when losing 1-0 to Feyenoord.

United was playing in the group stage of European club football's second tier competition for the first time in its history, but it was an underwhelming start as the Dutch hosts won 1-0 thanks to Tony Vilhena's late goal.

Feyenoord coach Giovanni van Bronckhorst commended the spirit and determination shown by his team -- qualities Mourinho fears three-time European champions United will face in every game in Group A, where Turkish side Fenerbahce and Ukraine's Zorya Luhansk drew 1-1.

"We know that when Manchester United goes in the Europa League, we are the team that everyone wants to play against, that everybody wants to fight (against) until their limits, which they did," Mourinho told British television, "Feyenoord defended with everything -- a great crowd, a great spirit. Some of our players were playing their first minutes of the season. Obviously some played better than others but I cannot judge them just for a game."