Roy Keane has given his verdict on who he believes will come out on top in the Europa League final between Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur.
In a little less than 72 hours, Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United will lock horns in the Europa League final at San Mames Stadium in Spain.
Tottenham will be desperate to get their hands on silverware and secure qualification for next season’s UEFA Champions League, having endured a miserable Premier League campaign that currently sees them languishing in 17th place.
Manchester United are not faring much better. They sit just one point and one place above Tottenham in the league standings, and they too are in need of a trophy to salvage what has been a turbulent season.
Roy Keane backs Manchester United over Tottenham in Europa League final
With the final set to take place on Wednesday, 21 May, former Manchester United midfielder Roy Keane has now given his prediction for the Europa League showdown.
Keane believes his old side will just about edge past Spurs, and he pointed to the club’s winning pedigree and the influence of Bruno Fernandes as key reasons why.
He told SkySports, as relayed by The Sun: “You still have to fancy United, someone like Bruno can produce, the history of Manchester United still carries a little bit of weight.
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“There’s not much between them [in the league] but come the crunch, come the final, United’s history in finals, them winning cups the last few years, you’d like to think they would have a bit more knowledge around the game than Spurs.
“That might edge it for them, and I think Bruno can produce that bit of magic.”
Spurs out to prove a point as final approaches
Tottenham have already beaten Manchester United three times this season, and they will need to do it a fourth time if they are to lift the Europa League trophy on Wednesday night.
Former Spurs manager Glenn Hoddle has warned that it is never easy to beat a Premier League opponent four times in a single season, but that is exactly the mountain Ange Postecoglou’s side will have to scale.
Preparation-wise, both clubs have had contrasting approaches. Despite both teams playing on Friday in the Premier League, Manchester United have opted for a two-day rest and a two-day train schedule ahead of the final.
Tottenham, on the other hand, trained on Sunday, will hold another session on Monday, and will train again in Spain before the final.
It will be fascinating to see who comes out on top in Bilbao, and Spurs fans will be hoping Keane’s prediction is nothing more than a familiar bit of pundit bias.