Hopeless in the Premier League, unstoppable in the Europa League
Manchester United and Tottenham have endured a miserable domestic campaign, but both are on the verge of European glory
IT IS surely one of football’s greatest mysteries this season. How can two of English football’s most popular clubs be so abject in their domestic league and yet be able to play so wonderfully in European competition?
Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur sit in 14th and 16th position in the English Premier League (EPL) standings, just above the relegation zone. Both teams, however, are definitely safe from the drop, and that is about the only positive thing they can say about their league performances.
But it is in the Europa League – European football’s second-most prestigious competition after the Champions League – where the Red Devils and Spurs are somehow flourishing.
On Friday (May 2) morning, United went to the Basque country and outplayed Spanish side Athletic Bilbao 3-0 in the first leg of their semi-final. Meanwhile, Spurs played host to Norway’s Bodo/Glimt to North London and defeated them 3-1.
Barring a major collapse in the second leg in a week’s time, these two English teams will meet in the final at Bilbao’s San Mames stadium on May 22, with the winner gaining automatic entry into next season’s Champions League.
United remain the only undefeated team in European competition this season, a statistic that is all the more baffling considering they have lost 15 of their 34 EPL games so far. In fact, the Red Devils are on course for their worst-ever EPL points haul.
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As for Spurs, they have tasted defeat in a whopping 19 EPL matches already, but amazingly, their beleaguered manager Ange Postecoglou could yet deliver on his promise of winning a trophy in his second season in charge.
Difference in form puzzles Amorim
United manager Ruben Amorim took charge last November and brought along a glowing CV, having coached his native Sporting Lisbon to numerous trophies, but he quickly hit a roadblock once he arrived at Old Trafford.
His team have struggled under his charge, and they have failed to win any of their last five EPL matches.
But it is a completely different story in the Europa League. They have brushed aside Real Sociedad and Lyon in the knockout stages, and were expected to face a tough challenge in Athletic Bilbao in the final four.
They defied all expectation by winning 3-0 in a very hostile stadium, the goals coming in a 15-minute first-half spell from a Casemiro header and a double from captain Bruno Fernandes.
“It’s hard to explain,” Amorim said of his side’s Jekyll-and-Hyde-like performances. “We’ve improved in the last few games. I don’t just look at the results. We had some games that we won when we didn’t play well, and some games that we lost but we played well. Sometimes, you just need a little bit of luck.”
Still, history favours United reaching the showpiece final. A total of 133 teams have won the first leg of a Uefa Cup or Europa League knockout stage tie by at least three goals away from home, and all 133 of them have gone on to win the two-legged battle outright.
“There is no away-goals rule, so anything can change and that is my message to the players. We have to think now about Brentford (on Sunday) and then the second leg (against Bilbao),” added Amorim.
Fitness headaches for Postecoglou
Tottenham have one foot in the Europa League final but they endured some nervous moments towards the end of the first leg when Bodo/Glimt scored to reduce the deficit to a two-goal margin.
Before conceding, Spurs were cruising thanks to goals by Brennan Johnson, James Maddison and a Dominic Solanke penalty. The Norwegians gave themselves a lifeline with Ulrik Saltnes’ 83rd-minute goal.
Bodo/Glimt will be up for the second leg on their notoriously difficult artificial pitch, and Postecoglou will be worried about the fitness of both Solanke and Maddison after the pair limped off due to injury.
“We are in a good position. I thought the players were outstanding. They were everything they needed to be, really calm going forward and maintained the pressure,” noted Postecoglou. “We have to accept that, but if we repeat that performance next week, it will be enough for us to get through.”
Like United, Spurs fans have had little to cheer about in the EPL. They are fifth from bottom, and their 5-1 loss to Liverpool last weekend meant they have now lost 19 times in the league this season. It has been more than 20 years since Spurs have lost that many games in a single EPL campaign.
Spurs are desperate to end a 17-year trophy drought, and they should at least be able to reach their first European final since the 2019 Champions League. Their last trophy was the English League Cup in 2008, and they have not won a major European trophy since the Uefa Cup in 1984.
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