Tottenham vs Manchester United: Who needs the trophy more? | OneFootball

Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United meet in the Europa League final this evening.

It’s a fascinating final between two teams who have struggled this season, their continental campaigns in contrast to Premier League misery.

For the winners, a trophy, Champions League football, and a silver lining in an otherwise unacceptable season. The losers, meanwhile, will consolidate their worst season of the Premier League era. It’s truly a winner-takes-all shootout.

But for who is it more important?

Manchester United’s case is a strong one. There’s an argument that this fixture is the club’s biggest in a decade. A sharp decline that began with Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement in 2013 has reached a new low ebb this season.

Prior to this season, United had never finished lower than eighth in the Premier League. The best-case scenario this season is 14th, with the likelihood lower than that. Not since being relegated in 1974 have United finished as low in the table.

Managers have come and gone. The Chosen One. The Special One. Champions League winners. Fan favourites. All have tried and failed to stop the rot. Ruben Amorim is the latest in a hot seat that has increasingly resembled a poisoned chalice.

A budding reputation in Portugal has not transferred instantly to English football, but United will hope it’s a case of taking a step backwards to go forward. This is a young coach with new ideas, an intricate system, and a squad that largely lacks the profile of players needed to fulfil his wishes. It makes victory tonight that much more important.

Next season will have six Premier League teams in the Champions League. With the competition expanded and more lucrative than ever before, can United afford to be the odd one out?

Both from a financial and an attraction aspect, a place in Europe’s elite is paramount. Question marks remain over Amorim, but he has inherited a squad unsuited to his tactical approach and deserves at least a summer to recruit. Without the Champions League, the Red Devils may be forced to shop in a different market than their rivals.

Tottenham face a similar conundrum, though Daniel Levy’s reluctance to meet the wages on offer at rival Premier League clubs means superstar signings are unlikely, regardless. Spurs have the seventh-largest wage bill in the division, Manchester United the third.

For Spurs, the desire for success tonight runs a little deeper. Ange Postecoglou’s persona has shifted from laid-back Aussie humour to increasingly – if understandably – prickly responses. The pressure is evident. Having boldly backed himself to win silverware in his second season, the 59-year-old has his chance.

Tottenham have traditionally struggled to shed the Spursy tag, a perceived tendency to have success in reach but throw it away. Since last winning a trophy in 2008, Spurs have played in four finals – losing them all and failing to score a single goal.

Success tonight might not be enough to preserve Postecoglou his job, but it would no doubt be a message to those who have questioned his credentials all season.

The sub-plots of this Europa League final make it the most intriguing in many a season. Rarely have the stakes or ramifications been higher.

Read – Five of the most memorable Europa League finals

See more – Every time English sides have met in a European final

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