The Mirror

Manchester United take on Tottenham in the final of the Europa League next weekend, nearly a decade after snubbing the chance to sign a Spurs superstar for just £5million

Manchester United turned their noses up at a young James Maddison when offered the chance to sign him back in his Coventry days. The Tottenham superstar, 28, has been one of the Premier League's top creative midfielders for a while, after turning heads at Leicester before sealing a £40million move to Spurs in 2023.

But United could have snapped him for a fraction of that price back in 2016. At the time, Coventry were in the mire financially, and were thus forced to sell many of their best players, including 19-year-old prodigy Maddison.

In 2020, transfer expert Ian McGarry, who, at the time, was working as a football consultant for the Sky Blues, claimed he contacted United to see if they'd be interested in bringing Maddison to Manchester, but claimed they "didn't take any notice" of his recommendation.

"When Maddison was in the process of leaving Coventry City because the club's financial crisis meant they had to sell their best players and Maddison even then was considered one of the best players," McGarry explained on the Transfer Window podcast.

"I contacted someone I knew at Manchester United in their recruitment department and said look you’re going to get a bargain here, this guy's going to be a huge player in the future and he's available for around £5m and he's also a Manchester United fan.

"They didn't take any notice. Manchester United could have had Maddison four years ago. In saying that there's no guarantee he would have developed the way he did at Norwich and then Leicester."

Maddison would have almost certainly been lining up against the Red Devils in the Europa League final later this month, but will miss the clash due to injury. The England international was ruled out for the season after limping off in the first leg of Tottenham's semi-final against Bodo/Glimt, meaning he'll have to catch the action from the stands.

"Gutted. Just absolutely gutted," Maddison wrote on social media after learning he'd miss the showpiece. "We've had our sights on that European final in Bilbao from day one of this campaign. So to accept not being able to take part out on that pitch with the boys is really tough to take.

"Injuries are just part of this game that can be so cruel at times. But I truly believe that it can be a special night for my football club. Bring on the 21st. All together."

Maddison has notched 23 goal contributions in all competitions this season, including 12 goals - the second-best tally of his top-flight career. He's been a bright spark in an otherwise gloomy season for Spurs, who are on course for their worst-ever Premier League finish.

The same can be said of Ruben Amorim's United, who are a place and a point above Ange Postecoglou's men in 16th. For both clubs, the Europa League final represents a shot at redemption, but also an unlikely path to Champions League football next season.

For Maddison, watching from the sidelines will sting all the more knowing how different things could have been - not just in terms of his fitness, but in terms of an Old Trafford career that could have been but never was.

Had United paid attention to McGarry's recommendation all those years ago, the creative spark that's been so often missing in their midfield might have been theirs to harness.

Instead, Maddison stands as a living reminder of United's muddled recruitment strategy - an emblem of the talent they've let slip through their fingers during a decade of drift.

Tottenham Hotspur star Dejan Kulusevski will miss next Wednesday's Europa League final against Manchester United in Bilbao after the club confirmed he has undergone surgery on a knee injury.

The Swedish attacking midfielder was taken off in the 19th minute of the weekend defeat to Crystal Palace, and will now be forced out of the showdown with Ruben Amorim's Red Devils in Spain.

Spurs said in a statement: "We can confirm that Dejan Kulusevski suffered an injury to his right patella in our Premier League fixture against Crystal Palace last weekend.

"Following further specialist consultation, the midfielder has undergone surgery today and will commence his rehabilitation with our medical staff immediately. We're all with you, Deki."

The blow comes after Spurs had already lost fellow midfielders James Maddison and Lucas Bergvall to injury, with Ange Postecoglou seeking to win the club's first trophy since the 2008 League Cup.

Kulusevski's absence will be a major blow to Spurs, with the former Juventus attacker having scored 10 goals in all competitions this season, including strikes in the 3-0 Premier League win over United at Old Trafford in September and in the 4-3 League Cup success over them at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in January.

Postecoglou had initially suggested that Kulusevski would be fine for the final and dismissed the injury in the wake of the loss to Palace.

The Australian boss said: "He should be okay, just talking to him after. The medical team are not too concerned with him, more of a knock than anything else, so we're hoping he should be okay."

There was some good news for Spurs on the injury front from the Palace defeat, with skipper Son Heung-min emerging from the bench to play for the final 32 minutes.

Postecoglou said: "It was good to get him some match minutes and hopefully we can get him some more match minutes against Villa on Friday. It would be good to get him back, involved and available."

Manchester United are set to take on Tottenham in the Europa League final next month but former Red Devils star Gary Neville has a major concern ahead of the clash

Gary Neville has slammed Manchester United by claiming just ONE star gets in a combined XI with Tottenham. The two Premier League rivals go head-to-head in the Europa League final later this month.

Not only does it represent a golden chance for each side to secure silverware, it also gives the teams an opportunity to seal a Champions League place. That would be particularly important given the rotten seasons that both United and Spurs have been enduring.

United sit 16th with just ten wins and 39 points throughout the campaign, while the North London side are one point and a place lower after 20 league losses. Despite that, United icon Neville believes Spurs would dominate when it comes to selecting the best players in each side - only Portuguese playmaker Bruno Fernandes earning a spot for the Red Devils.

Speaking on The Overlap, he said: “I've genuinely got a sickly feeling about this game next Wednesday. The biggest reason is when I look at every single player in the Tottenham team, when you look at (Dejan) Kulusevski, Son (Heung-min), Brennan Johnson, (Dominic) Solanke, if (James) Maddison was there, (Yves) Bissouma and (Pape Matar) Sarr, (Cristian) Romero and (Micky) Van de Ven, (Pedro) Porro and (Destiny) Udogie, when you look at those players, like-for-like with United's, only Bruno (Fernandes) would get into the first 11 of Spurs.

“I would select every single Tottenham player. The goalkeeper is a 50-50 split because I don't like (Guglielmo) Vicario and I'm not a fan of (Andre) Onana.

“Honestly, Udogie, Porro, Van de Ven, Romero, Bissouma, Sarr, Johnson, Maddison, Solanke, Kulusevski, Son, I would choose every single player of Tottenham's over Manchester United's next Wednesday. That's my worry.

“The one thing that keeps me alive - the likes of a Casemiro, a Bruno, they've got something in them that will step up for a one-off game that means I think that we'll win. But if the players play as they should do, pound-for-pound, Tottenham should win that game.”

Both Spurs and Man United have a Premier League game to play out ahead of the Europa League final in Bilbao next week. United take on Chelsea on Friday evening, with Spurs in action on the same night against Aston Villa.

Who will win the Europa League final? Share your predictions in the comments below

The pair are also set to go in different directions when it comes to their potential celebrations. The North London side will host a parade should they claim their first trophy since 2008 but United will not follow suit, with a barbeque at Carrington provisionally planned for players, staff and families.

Manchester United staff are fearful of what measures the ownership may take if they lose the Europa League final and miss out on Champions League revenue given they've already culled hundreds of employees

Manchester United employees are fearful of more cuts should the club lose the Europa League final next week. Defeat to Tottenham in Bilbao would be another blow on the pitch, but also see the club miss out on £100million of Champions League revenue.

The club's hierarchy, led by Sir Jim Ratcliffe, have already proved how ruthless they're prepared to be in an effort to bring down costs. 250 jobs were made redundant last summer and a further 200 are facing the chop.

The dire situation on the pitch has seen United fall to 16th in the Premier League, but they can go someway to salvaging their season in a week when they face Tottenham, where silverware a huge financial rewards will be at stake.

But staff, having seen colleagues lost jobs as well as a number of their benefits taken away from them, are fearful that the INEOS bosses will want to find more ways to ease the financial burden should they lose the final.

A source told The Sun: “People say the environment is horrible to work in. Everyone is dispirited and looking over their shoulder. There’s no enthusiasm. I can’t imagine what it would be like if they don’t beat Spurs.”

Ahead of the Ratcliffe has again shown how tight he's prepared to be with the pennies - he has opted against handing free Europa League final tickets to staff members. Employees won't be rewarded with complimentary tickets - which is in stark contrast to the decisions taken by Tottenham.

The club are holding a ballot where a small number of tickets will be available for their staff. They have chosen to host a screening for the majority of staff closer to home with the invite open to plus-ones. Staff will be given two free drinks - but their guests will have to pay for theirs.

Ratcliffe has continued to defend the decisions he's taken, which include increasing ticket prices and ridding of concession fees. He said on The Overlap: "Change requires some unpopular decisions. I think I have to accept that I'm going to be unpopular. I don't know how long I'm going to be unpopular, maybe I'll be unpopular for a long period time.

"But I think it's worth being unpopular to fight our way through the changes that are necessary to get Manchester United back to where it should be and hopefully the attitude will change a bit if we come out the other side with a successful outcome."

Manchester United have the chance to secure silverware and a place back in the Champions League should they beat Spurs next week but won’t go over the top in their celebrations

Manchester United’s season hinges on their Europa League final showdown with Tottenham Hotspur. But the Red Devils will not go all out in their celebrations should they win the competition, having already binned the idea of a parade.

The Red Devils will take on their Premier League rivals in Bilbao on Wednesday, May 21. And despite a potential third trophy in as many seasons being on offer, the real prize for United is a golden ticket into the Champions League and the potential riches that come with it.

But even if United manage to see off Spurs and secure the Europa League title, it appears that their celebrations will be more of a lowkey affair. According to The Times, there will be no open-top bus parade through the streets of Manchester, with a barbecue instead planned at United’s Carrington training facility should they be victorious.

Plans for post-final celebrations have to be put in place by clubs in advance and United’s scheduling has proven difficult to organise a city-wide parade. United take on Aston Villa at Old Trafford in their final league game of the season just days after the final.

They will then jet off to Asia for a post-season tour with a game in Kuala Lumpur scheduled for May 28, before another clash two days later. Players are then expected to report for international duty straight away, meaning the chance of a parade is remote.

Instead, a lowkey affair will be held at Carrington for players, staff and families to celebrate. Spurs, however, are expected to hold a parade should they clinch the Europa League trophy.

United have not hosted a parade since 2013 and Sir Alex Ferguson’s last Premier League title success. Since then, they have won the Europa League, the League Cup and two FA Cups. And while victory in Bilbao would provide some welcome respite towards the end of a calamitous campaign, United boss Ruben Amorim insists a trophy will not salvage the season.

“Everybody knows it’s really important for our season [but] we know nothing is going to save our season,” he said. “This can be huge, winning a trophy, getting in the Champions League to play European [elite level] games next year: [it] could change a lot of things in our club in the summer. [But] it’s not the most important thing.

Who will win the Europa League? Share your predictions in the comments below

“Of course people are going to look in a different way for this season, especially at the coach. But it’s something more in the core of our club [that requires addressing].

“We need to change a lot of things and need to be consistent. Europa League will not change our problems – it’s going to give us Champions League next year, more money to spend, but the problems are still there.

“We have to change the minds of our fans with consistency, good decisions, good recruitment, good academy. This is what we need to change to take our club back to the top. This [winning the Europa League] is more of a shortcut to go to the European Cup games. Nothing more. The problems we need to solve in a different way with more time and we’re really clear on that.”

Ange Postecoglou will keep risks to a minimum in the next week as he leans into narrative around changing Tottenham's history before Europa League final against Manchester United

Ange Postecoglou does not plan to emulate Mauricio Pochettino by having his Tottenham stars walking over hot coals before next week’s Europa League final. But the Spurs head coach is urging his squad to embrace the opportunity to “break the cycle” and put an end to jibes about the club’s 17 years without a trophy.

When Spurs were gearing up for the Champions League final against Liverpool six years ago, then head coach Pochettino brought his squad on a team bonding session where they stepped barefoot on burning embers and put arrows to their throats.

But after a season where Postecoglou has faced an injury crisis he has described as unprecedented, all risks will be avoided before the showdown with Manchester United.

“We’ve got enough injuries,” Postecoglou said. “I’ll put them in cotton wool for the next ten days. “Seriously, with the way things have gone this year, any extra curricular activities are going to be at a minimum.”

On Sunday the sight of star midfielder Dejan Kulusevski hobbling off after a bang to the knee in defeat to Crystal Palace offered Postecoglou fresh cause to wince. “Sod’s law,” he said.

And with James Maddison and Lucas Bergvall already sidelined, Spurs are desperate for Kulusevski to be fighting fit by next Wednesday.

“We’ll see,” Postecoglou added. “It looks like a knock at this stage but we're going to let it settle for 24 hours then assess it. The initial thing was it's more of a knock than anything more significant.”

He did have more promising news regarding club captain Son Heung-min, though, after he came off the bench against Palace following a month out with a foot injury.

Son will feature again away to Aston Villa on Friday but Postecoglou insists he will not let his heart rule over his head when picking his starting XI against United.

"It comes down to getting him ready to play and then making a decision," he said. "It's nothing more than that.

"One thing I do know about finals is there are always moments and players who can change it. But it's going to take a collective effort, it's what we do as a team that will be much more important than individuals on the day.”

Postecoglou says that in conversations with his players over the next few days he will attempt to tap into "something greater" that "can be powerful on the day" than the mere physical prize on offer.

And that will most likely zone in on how they can be the men to change the narrative that has followed Tottenham around for the best part of two decades.

"When you look at the historical backdrop of this club and what it’s been through in the last 20-odd years, I feel like it could be a turning point in terms of the way the club is perceived but also more how it perceives itself which I think is the biggest thing," he added.

“I often say to the players that at the end of your careers, what you want to be able to do is go back to the clubs you served and know you’ve made an impact.

“The photos I see up on the walls at the stadium are all of Bill Nicholson, the 1984 (Uefa Cup) winning team. Fair to say a lot of them are in black and white. Can we get this group up on that wall?”

Manchester United and Tottenham will do battle in Bilbao next Wednesday and UEFA have confirmed that German referee Felix Zwayer will take charge of the fixture

UEFA have confirmed that Felix Zwayer will referee the Europa League final between Tottenham and Manchester United. The two English clubs will clash at the San Memes in Bilbao on Wednesday, May 21, and the German has been selected to be the man in the middle.

Zwayer, 43, recently took charge of Arsenal's Champions League semi-final second leg away to Paris Saint-Germain. Fans may also remember him from refereeing the Euro 2024 semi-final between England and the Netherlands last July.

Despite his vast experience and pedigree, the Bundesliga official is renowned for being involved in a match-fixing scandal. In 2005, he accepted a £250 bribe from fellow referee Robert Hoyzer. Zwayer was slapped with a six-month ban while Hoyzer received a two-year five-month prison sentence and was given a lifetime ban from any role in football.

The Berlin-born ref's chequered past hasn't stopped him from becoming one of the most highly regarded officials in European football, though. Zwayer has taken charge of over 685 top-level matches, one of those being a controversial Bundesliga clash between Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund in 2021.

After Zwayer awarded a penalty to Bayern following a handball by Mats Hummels, then-Dortmund star Jude Bellingham brought up Zwayer's past. "You give a referee, that has match fixed before, the biggest game in Germany. What do you expect?" Bellingham said to Viaplay in an explosive post-match interview.

"You can look at a lot of the decisions in the game. For me, it wasn't [a penalty]. He (Hummels) is not even looking at the ball and he's fighting to get it and it hits him."

Bellingham was fined £34,000 for his comments by the German FA and Zwayer demanded a personal apology. "I would prefer to clarify this in a personal conversation with Jude Bellingham and have offered such a personal conversation to Borussia Dortmund," he told Bild.

Who'll win the Europa League final - Tottenham or Man Utd? Give us your score predictions in the comments section.

"For me, it's not about punishment, but about the realisation that he went too far. I would accept a sincere apology. The statement deliberately creates the false impression that I did not referee the match to the best of my ability.

"It is personal, disparaging and disrespectful. Even if you put yourself in the subjective perspective, which is marked by emotion, his statement is far from professional or factual."

Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur will face off in the final of the Europa League on May 21, with the winning team qualifying for next season's Champions League

Ahead of the Europa League final on May 21, the men in charge of Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United have taken different approaches. Spurs plan to give out around 700 free tickets to the final in Bilbao - one for each of the club's full-time employees - in contrast to their opponents at San Mames.

The two struggling Premier League teams have a chance to salvage something from their season in the Basque Country. United and Spurs sit 16th and 17th respectively in the table, but progressed to the Europa League final after decisive semi-final wins against Athletic Club and Bodo/Glimt respectively.

Both teams will have an allocation of 15,000 tickets for the final, with the winners earning a spot in next season's Champions League. According to The Mail, Spurs have offered a free ticket to each staff member, though the offer is not understood to include travel or accommodation.

United, in contrast, won't be doling out free tickets to staff. The news comes against a backdrop of significant cost-cutting under billionaire part-owner Ratcliffe, with the workforce trimmed substantially since his arrival partway through the 2023-24 season.

A small number of United's staff members will have the chance to win tickets via a ballot, while those unable to attend will be able to watch a screening of the game. They will reportedly be given two free drinks at the screening, while any plus-one they bring will have to pay for their own refreshments.

Spurs will be playing in just their second European final of the 21st century and their second against English opposition. The first came in 2019, when they were beaten 2-0 by Liverpool in the 2019 Champions League final.

For United, it's a sixth European final since the turn of the century and a chance for a third win. They beat Chelsea in the 2008 Champions League final and overcame Ajax to win the Europa League in 2017, while they also suffered final losses against Barcelona (twice) and Villarreal.

United and Spurs both suffered 2-0 home defeats in the league at the weekend after ringing the changes ahead of the European final. Ruben Amorim's team were beaten by West Ham, while Ange Postecoglou's side fell to FA Cup finalists Crystal Palace.

"Everybody is focused on the final. The final is not the biggest thing in our football club. We need to change a lot of things," United boss Amorim told Match of the Day after the latest defeat.

"If we don't change the way we play and perform and feel this urgency of winning every game, we should not play in the Champions League. We should just stay in the Premier League and learn how to be competitive one week at a time.

"The biggest focus on our football club is to change a lot of things. It's not just the final."

Tottenham will face Manchester United in the Europa League final in a fortnight, with Ange Postecoglou being handed some welcome injury news in the build-up to that game

Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou has been handed a much-needed injury boost heading into the Europa League final. Spurs smashed Bodo/Glimt in the semi-finals to set up a date with Manchester United in Bilbao on 21 May.

The winner of the final will book an automatic spot in the Champions League next season. Meanwhile, the loser will be left looking at the ruins of a dreadful campaign, with both bosses under pressure.

United and Spurs have endured awful years, sitting 15th and 16th in the Premier League table respectively. Postecoglou has seen his standing at the club plummet over the course of the season.

While he had looked secure in his position this time last year, the Australian now appears on the brink of departing. He does have the chance of winning silverware, with Spurs' last trophy coming way back in 2008.

A major reason for Tottenham's struggles this term have been their injury issues. Postecoglou has been forced to deal with a number of crises, including at goalkeeper, in defence, midfield and attack.

The latest star to be ruled out is James Maddison, with the playmaker confirmed as missing the rest of the campaign. Captain Son Heung-min has also missed the last seven games with a foot issue.

But with the Europa League final fast approaching and a Premier League clash against Crystal Palace ahead on Sunday, Postecoglou has finally been handed some positive news, with Son edging towards a return.

"Everyone got through OK the other night," Postecoglou said on Friday. "Half-hopeful that we get Sonny some minutes tomorrow so he'll be the only one that sort of can come back in.

"I think what we do know about Thursday night, playing on an artificial pitch takes a lot out of the players - it's fair to say they were sore.I remember when we played Tamworth, we actually got a couple of injuries in the game straight after that, I think, because of the surface.

"We've got to be careful about Sunday's game, but next Friday it's a bit different. I think we've just got to make decisions we think [are right]. Ultimately we want to be in a great condition come the final, so we'll use that."

The final will mark Postecoglou's 100th game in charge of Spurs, with the Australian relishing the occasion. He added: "I think it is quite a significant achievement, you know, we've got ourselves to a European final.

"It hasn't been without its challenges for sure, it hasn't been a smooth run. It's well chronicled but irrespective of all that just to reach a final of a major tournament, it's hugely satisfying, but also really proud of the way this group has found a way.

"It'd be a nice little bow there for that 100 and it's been a really full 100. It's fair to say I've experienced just about every emotion in it and hopefully the one main emotion we're all after will be the joy at the end of it."

It's official - this is the worst Tottenham Hotspur team in Premier League history. After the cheerful distraction of reaching the Europa League final, normal service was resumed with a record 20th defeat in 36 games on the home front.

Does it matter if Spurs end 17 years without a trophy in Bilbao next week and win the golden ticket to the Champions League? Absolutely not - but if they finish the season empty-handed again, the inquest into Tottenham’s valiant contribution in the race to the bottom will be unforgiving.

Palace’s dress rehearsal for their FA Cup final with Manchester City on Saturday was pitch-perfect, and two-goal Eberechi Eze led the confiscation of sweets from kids in the playground with his latest swaggering, stylish masterclass.

But this was simply embarrassing from Spurs. They are lucky it wasn’t five or six.

If Ange Postecoglou thinks they can just turn on the taps against Manchester United in Basque country next week, he’d better hope the stopcock is in better working order than this shower. In his programme notes, Big Ange tuned into the air of renewed optimism in N17 and declared: “We know we’ve given you hope, something to dream about and we believe we can achieve something special this season.”

Where Palace counterpart Oliver Glasner went pretty much full-tilt, with nine of his semi-final starting XI on parade, Spurs boss Postecoglou plugged in his tumble-dryer and went for rotation.

Only captain-for-the-day Rodrigo Bentancur, Dejan Kulusejkvski and Pedro Porro of the names from the Aussie growler’s tombola here are likely to start in the Europa League final. It’s just who we are, mate.

In fairness, Tottenham only got home from their midweek excursion into the Arctic circle at 4.30am on Friday morning, but old habits die hard at the Lane and they were booed off anyway.

Within two minutes, that well-known Chas and Dave cup final anthem, Spurs Are On Their Way To Bilbao, was raining down from the giant south stand, but it was Palace who called the tune. Ismaila Sarr was only denied an early breakthrough by VAR detection of Jean-Philippe Mateta’s shoulder being offside in the build-up when the rest of him was inside his own half. God bless technology.

With Djed Spence awarding himself the afternoon off, allowing Daniel Munoz free rein to run riot down Palace’s right flank, what followed was more one-way traffic than a supermarket checkout conveyor belt.

Antonin Kinsky fumbled Munoz’s volley like a bar of sap in the shower, blocked Mateta from close range, pushed Chris Richards’s header against the bar and foiled Mateta again with his trailing leg. Throw in Marc Guehi’s disallowed effort after another pesky VAR intervention and Eze’s 25-yard shot deflected inches wide, and Palace should have been out of sight by the interval.

As it was, they only had Eze’s tap-in, after Munoz escaped the AWOL Spence yet again, bang on 45 minutes to show for their vast superiority. Three minutes after the restart, at least there was a more realistic gulf between the sides as Eze started a rapid break with a sumptuous pass to Sarr, and when it came back to him 12 yards out there was nobody in the same postcode to prevent him making it 2-0.

Kevin Danso was spared the ignominy of an own goal by Kinsky’s reflexes, substitute Eddie Nketiah squandered a late one-on-one… and, frankly, nobody cared.

It’s all about Wembley for Palace and all roads lead to Bilbao for Spurs. But as preparations go, this was ideal for Glasner and lousy for Postecoglou.