Manchester Evening News

Man United head coach Amorim has been speaking about the Europa League final vs Tottenham.

Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim has offered a hint as to where he believes his side can make Tottenham Hotspur 'suffer' in the Europa League final on Wednesday.

United travel to Bilbao looking for the win that will see them lift another European trophy and the first of the Amorim era.

Despite their league woes this season, their form in Europe has been outstanding and a win in Bilbao on Wednesday will see them qualify for next season's Champions League.

United head to Spain 16th in the Premier League, while Spurs are 17th after having an equally dire season domestically but similar success in Europe.

Ange Postecoglou has developed an attacking philosophy in north London that has seen Spurs score plenty of goals but also ship far too many at the other end.

In the league this season Spurs have scored 63 goals which has only been bettered by Liverpool, Arsenal, Newcastle and Manchester City. But they have conceded 61, with Wolves the only team outside of the bottom three with a worse defensive return.

And speaking ahead of the final on Wednesday, Amorim believes United can exploit their defensive frailties.

"I think they are a team who have a lot of intensity," Amorim told MUTV.

"They have a really strong identity, they play in the same way and you can see it. They score a lot of goals but they also suffer because they want to score every time.

"We know Spurs, they know our team and we also have a strong identity so it is going to be a good game."

Amorim has repeatedly said that winning the Europa League would not represent a successful season for United and he reiterated that belief again as he praised United's travelling support that are heading to northern Spain.

"It's not enough, winning the Europa League. It's not enough for all the support they [the fans] gave us this season.

"With our fans, it's not a surprise for me - they will go swimming if needed to, even without a ticket! I already know.

"A big thank you for everything they did during the season. We will do our best to give something to them."

Kulusevski, Sarr, Maddison - Tottenham injury latest ahead of Man United Europa League final

Manchester United are preparing to face Tottenham Hotspur in the Europa League final and here's the latest Spurs injury news.

Manchester United have a number of injury concerns heading into the Europa League final this week and their opponents Tottenham are no different.

Spurs are set to be without some of their key players as they aim to rescue something from what has been a sorry season. While United escaped their Friday night clash with Chelsea unscathed on the injury front, Ange Postecoglou was handed another injury worry as Pape Sarr picked up a knock. Youngster Mikey Moore also had to be replaced in the defeat to Aston Villa.

Ahead of their clash with United, here is all the very latest on the Spurs injury front:

Dejan Kulusevski

Injury: knee

Kulusevski was forced off just 19 minutes into the defeat to Palace after going down with a knee problem. Speaking to the media at Spurs' pre-final media day on Monday, boss Postecoglou described the Swede's issue as a "knock".

"[He's a] bit sore with his knee," he said. "Looks like a knock at this stage. We're going to let it settle for 24 hours but the positive thing is it looks like a knock."

However, Spurs have since released a statement confirming Kulusevski has undergone surgery and is out of the final.

Possible return date: pre-season.

James Maddison

Injury: knee

Maddison has been ruled out for the rest of the season because of a knee injury.

The former Leicester City man was forced off in the first leg of Spurs' Europa League semi-final triumph against Bodo/Glimt and it has been confirmed he will not play again this season.

"Madders tweaked his knee in the first leg," Postecoglou said. "He's out, he'll miss the rest of the season.

Possible return date: pre-season.

Pape Sarr

Injury: back.

Sarr was forced off against Villa in the Premier League on Friday night due to a back injury.

Speaking after the game, Postecoglou said: "Pape felt something in his back so we took him off as a bit of a precaution. I don’t think it’s anything too significant, speaking to him afterwards, but he just felt something in his back

Possible return date: May 21 (Manchester United, N)

Mikey Moore

Injury: fatigue.

Moore is another who had to be replaced against Villa, but Postecoglou didn't appear concerned by the situation.

"I think Mikey (Moore) was okay. It was fatigue as much as anything else. He hasn’t played that sort of amount of minutes before."

Possible return date: May 21 (Manchester United, N)

Lucas Bergvall

Injury: ankle

Bergvall will miss the clash with United after being ruled out for the rest of the season with an ankle injury. He damaged ligaments in training ahead of the semi-final first leg win against Bodo/Glimt.

Bergvall, 19, has been a key player for Spurs this season, racking up 45 appearances. He had featured in all of their Europa League outings prior to the semi-finals.

Possible return date: pre-season.

Radu Dragusin

Injury: anterior cruciate ligament (ACL)

Dragusin is a long-term absentee after rupturing his ACL in Tottenham's 3-0 win over Elfsborg in the Europa League at the end of January. He underwent surgery and has been working on his recovery since.

ACL injuries usually take around six months to recover from, meaning he could be back in time for the start of pre-season in July. He did share an encouraging update on his social media on Tuesday night, posting a picture of a bag of footballs and commenting: "Off the radar, on a mission."

Yoro, Martinez, Zirkzee - Man United injury news and return dates before Europa League final

Manchester United will face Tottenham in Bilbao with European silverware and a spot in next season's Champions League up for grabs.

Manchester United are preparing for their biggest game in years as they face Tottenham in the Europa League final on Wednesday.

European silverware is enough of an incentive for both clubs but, perhaps more importantly, the winner will also secure a spot in next season's Champions League. Both sides have been awful this season but a win on Wednesday would at least offer hope heading into next season.

The two teams have injury issues to contend with ahead of the final, and so with just a few days to go until the huge clash, here's the latest on the United injury front:

Diogo Dalot

Injury: calf

Dalot suffered a muscle injury in the 1-0 defeat to Wolves at Old Trafford on Easter Sunday.

United head coach Ruben Amorim confirmed his fellow countryman would miss the next block of games, but he refused to rule him out for the remainder of the season.

On Wednesday, Dalot was spotted doing an individual training session at Carrington before the main group session took place.

Amorim said: "Dalot is trying really bad. I don't want to risk Dalot, when you start getting one injury, a second injury is a big thing. We cannot have these kind of problems in our squad. He's working really hard to get in the final."

Possible return date: May 21 (Tottenham Hotspur, N).

Matthijs de Ligt

Injury: knee

Making his first start since recovering from a previous injury, De Ligt was forced off 35 minutes into United's 4-3 defeat to Brentford with a knee issue.

Absent from training again on Wednesday morning, Amorim has confirmed De Ligt is in a race against time to be fit for the clash with Spurs.

"I don't know if they're going to be available, we'll try to push, it's a final, all the players want to play really bad," said the United boss.

Possible return date: May 21 (Tottenham Hotspur, N).

Leny Yoro

Injury: foot

Yoro was forced off in the second half of the defeat to West Ham United last weekend with a foot problem. He went down clutching his left foot and was substituted.

He was later spotted limping out of Old Trafford. He was not involved in Wednesday morning's open training session, instead doing fitness work in the gym.

Possible return date: May 21 (Tottenham Hotspur, N).

Jonny Evans

Injury: unknown

Evans trained on Wednesday morning but he was not part of the squad that travelled for the clash with Chelsea on Friday night.

The experienced centre-back last played for United when he came off the bench to score in their 4-3 defeat to Spurs in December.

Possible return date: unknown.

Lisandro Martinez

Injury: anterior cruciate ligament (ACL)

Martinez is a long-term absentee after rupturing his ACL in United's 2-0 defeat to Crystal Palace at Old Trafford at the start of February. He soon underwent successful surgery and is well underway with his recovery.

United have not put a specific timeframe on how long he will be out for, but he will not feature again this season. ACL injuries usually take around six months to fully recover from.

Possible return date: August.

Joshua Zirkzee

Injury: hamstring.

Zirkzee was forced off with a hamstring injury in United's 4-1 defeat to Newcastle United last month.

"Joshua is out for the season, so he's not going to play any more this season," Amorim said. "Let's prepare him for the next one."

However, he has since said he is pushing to return in time for the final. It remains to be seen whether he will make the flight to Spain.

Man United will face Tottenham in Bilbao on Wednesday as they aim to win the Europa League and secure a place in next season's Champions League.

Manchester United have confirmed they will wear their home shirt with black shorts in Wednesday's Europa League final against Tottenham Hotspur.

United usually wear white shorts and black socks with their traditional red home shirt, but the club have confirmed they will tweak their home kit and wear black shorts in the final.

The last time United wore black shorts with their home shirt was away at Real Sociedad in the Europa League round of 16, where Joshua Zirkzee's second half effort was ruled out by a Mikel Oyarzabal penalty. United won the second leg 4-1 at Old Trafford to set up what turned out to be a thrilling quarter-final against Lyon.

Ruben Amorim's side will be looking to add this season's Europa League trophy to their collection in what has been a bitterly disappointing campaign.

United are 16th in the Premier League and have a -12 goal difference, but victory in Bilbao will see them clinch a place in next season's Champions League.

Wednesday's opponents Spurs have also endured a torrid season, sitting one place and one point below United in the Premier League table.

The two sides have already met three times this season, with Spurs claiming the win on all three occasions. Their most recent meeting was decided by James Maddison's first-half strike.

You have to go all the way back to October 2022 for the last United win over Spurs, with the north London side winning four and drawing two of the sides' last six meetings.

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Man United will lock horns with Tottenham Hotspur in the Europa League final on Wednesday.

Manchester United will face Tottenham Hotspur in Wednesday night's Europa League final in Bilbao on Wednesday night - and it will no doubt be of interest to Jose Mourinho.

The 62-year-old's managerial career has seen him sit in the home dugout at both Old Trafford and the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

He won the Europa League with United back in 2017, leading them to a 2-0 win over Ajax, and he went into this season's edition of the competition with the ambition of winning it with Fenerbahce.

United faced the Turkish club in just the third game of their league phase schedule, being held to a 1-1 draw in Istanbul after Christian Eriksen's early goal was wiped out by a Youssef En-Nesyri header just after half-time.

That result meant United had just three points to their name after their first three games, following draws in their opening two outings against FC Twente (1-1) and FC Porto (3-3).

Ahead of the game, Mourinho had dubbed United and Spurs the two "biggest candidates" to win the Europa League, describing their quality as being on a "different level".

Although both clubs have experienced shocking domestic campaigns, they still have a shot at redemption in Bilbao.

"They didn't win and didn't lose," Mourinho said, reviewing United's opening two Europa League matches. "In this format, where everybody tries to figure out what we need and nobody knows, every point you get is a difficult point.

"To play in Porto is not easy. To get a point in Porto is not easy for anybody.

"We also played against Twente, of course the world expects Man United to beat Twente, especially at Old Trafford. One thing is the results Manchester United is having and another thing is the potential of the team.

"The potential of the team is high and I think two draws in the Europa League don't favour us but also doesn't make a huge difference. At the end of the day, this new format will allow the top teams to qualify. No problem for a top team to lose three or four matches out of eight, because then they will win three or four, make 12 points easily and they will qualify.

"I think they are in a stable situation. If I have to say now which are the two biggest candidates to win the Europa League, it's easy: Man United and Tottenham.

"Premier League is a different level of quality, it's a different level of intensity, it's a different level of pace, it's a different level of tactical culture, it's a different level of everything."

Having dubbed United and Spurs as favourites to win the competition, the fact they will meet in the final will come as no great surprise to Mourinho.

The new format has weakened the quality of the Europa League, of that there is no doubt, but both United and Spurs have had to overcome tricky opponents to put themselves on the cusp of European glory.

The days are counting down to Man United's season-defining game against Tottenham Hotspur in Bilbao

Returning Manchester United star Ayden Heaven has sent supporters a message ahead of the Europa League final against Tottenham Hotspur next week.

The English defender made a surprising appearance off the bench in the 1-0 defeat away to Chelsea in the Premier League on Friday.

It marked the first time fans had seen the 18-year-old in two months after he was stretchered off in the 3-0 victory over Leicester before the March international break.

Heaven has made a total of five competitive appearances since the move from Arsenal at the turn of the year, impressing fans with his tenacity, pace and ability to read the game.

It was a shock to see him at Stamford Bridge as the centre-half did not train with the squad midweek, yet was a part of Ruben Amorim's first-team plans just days later.

The chances of Heaven starting for United's season-defining Europa League final against Spurs on Wednesday remains incredibly unlikely, but he will hope to make the trip to Bilbao and be named on the bench.

Celebrating his return and looking ahead to the big game, Heaven posted on his official Instagram account: "Felt so good to be back, onto the final in Bilbao" followed by a love heart, accompanied by an image of the player during the Chelsea game.

Heavens return is a huge boost for United as it comes at a time when Amorim faces something of a small injury crisis with doubt cast over both Matthijs de Ligt and Leny Yoro ahead of Wednesday's clash with Spurs.

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The latest Manchester United news as we take a look at the latest team news from Wednesday night's Europa League final opponents.

Tottenham Hotspur boss Ange Postecoglou has given the latest update on two injury worries ahead of the Europa League final against Manchester United.

The two teams meet in Bilbao, Spain, on Wednesday night. The prize for the winners will be European silverware as well as a place in next season’s Champions League, despite a poor domestic season for both sides.

Both United and Spurs were in action in the Premier League on Friday night. While United fell to a 1-0 away loss against Chelsea, Spurs were beaten 2-0 by Aston Villa at Villa Park.

That game also saw Tottenham handed two potential injury worries ahead of the final against United. Midfielder Pape Matar Sarr was taken off in the second half, the midfielder was replaced by Yves Bissouma and went straight down the tunnel with a member of the Spurs medical team.

Youngster Mikey Moore was also replaced in the closing minutes of the game, after going down and appearing to be in pain. Following the match, Postecoglou gave the latest on both players.

“Pape felt something in his back so we took him off as a bit of a precaution,” the Spurs boss said in his post-match press conference, via football.london.

“I don’t think it’s anything too significant speaking to him afterwards but he just felt something in his back and I think Mikey (Moore) was okay. It was fatigue as much as anything else. He hasn’t played that sort of amount of minutes before.”

If Sarr is unavailable then he will join Radu Dragusin, Dejan Kulusevski, Dane Scarlett, James Maddison, Timo Werner and Lucas Bergvall on the sidelines for the final.

Moore has played 19 times in all competitions for Spurs so far this season, but has mainly been used as a second half substitute. Sarr has however been a more regular fixture in the Spurs team, having made 53 appearances in all competitions so far this season.

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Yoro, Dalot, Zirkzee - Manchester United injury news and return dates before Europa League final

Man United were beaten 1-0 by Chelsea on Friday night and their next game is the Europa League final against Tottenham in Bilbao.

Manchester United were beaten 1-0 by Chelsea in the Premier League at Stamford Bridge on Friday night and now their attention turns to the Europa League final.

United will face Tottenham in Bilbao with European silverware and a spot in next season's Champions League up for grabs. Both sides have been shocking this season but a win on Wednesday would rescue their campaign.

The two teams have injury issues to contend with ahead of the final, with Matthijs de Ligt and Leny Yoro picking up injuries in recent weeks and Spurs confirming earlier this week that they would be without Dejan Kulusevski after he picked up a knock in the defeat to Crystal Palace.

Ahead of the Europa League final, here's the latest on the United injury front:

Diogo Dalot

Injury: calf

Dalot suffered a muscle injury in the 1-0 defeat to Wolves at Old Trafford on Easter Sunday.

United head coach Ruben Amorim confirmed his fellow countryman would miss the next block of games, but he refused to rule him out for the remainder of the season.

On Wednesday, Dalot was spotted doing an individual training session at Carrington before the main group session took place.

Amorim said: "Dalot is trying really bad. I don't want to risk Dalot, when you start getting one injury, a second injury is a big thing. We cannot have these kind of problems in our squad. He's working really hard to get in the final."

Possible return date: May 21 (Tottenham Hotspur, N).

Matthijs de Ligt

Injury: knee

Making his first start since recovering from a previous injury, De Ligt was forced off 35 minutes into United's 4-3 defeat to Brentford with a knee issue.

Absent from training again on Wednesday morning, Amorim has confirmed De Ligt is in a race against time to be fit for the clash with Spurs.

"I don't know if they're going to be available, we'll try to push, it's a final, all the players want to play really bad," said the United boss.

Possible return date: May 21 (Tottenham Hotspur, N).

Leny Yoro

Injury: foot

Yoro was forced off in the second half of the defeat to West Ham United last weekend with a foot problem. He went down clutching his left foot and was substituted.

He was later spotted limping out of Old Trafford. He was not involved in Wednesday morning's open training session, instead doing fitness work in the gym.

Possible return date: May 21 (Tottenham Hotspur, N).

Jonny Evans

Injury: unknown

Evans trained on Wednesday morning but he was not part of the squad that travelled to the capital.

The experienced centre-back last played for United when he came off the bench to score in their 4-3 defeat to Spurs in December.

Possible return date: unknown.

Lisandro Martinez

Injury: anterior cruciate ligament (ACL)

Martinez is a long-term absentee after rupturing his ACL in United's 2-0 defeat to Crystal Palace at Old Trafford at the start of February. He soon underwent successful surgery and is well underway with his recovery.

United have not put a specific timeframe on how long he will be out for, but he will not feature again this season. ACL injuries usually take around six months to fully recover from.

Possible return date: August.

Joshua Zirkzee

Injury: hamstring.

Zirkzee was forced off with a hamstring injury in United's 4-1 defeat to Newcastle United last month.

"Joshua is out for the season, so he's not going to play any more this season," Amorim said. "Let's prepare him for the next one."

However, he has since said he is pushing to return in time for the final. It remains to be seen whether he will make the flight to Spain.

The latest Manchester United news as Tottenham were in Premier League action ahead of the Europa League final on Wednesday.

Manchester United have been given the latest update on the Tottenham Hotspur squad ahead of next week's crucial Europa League final between the two teams.

Just five days before the final, both teams are in Premier League action on Friday night. While United are taking on Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, Spurs also had an away game against a Champions League chasing club in Aston Villa.

It could be forgiven if both sides had an eye on the final in Bilbao. Especially given that it’s a chance of qualifying for the Champions League themselves next season.

Eyes of both teams will also be on any potential injury blows in the build-up to the match. For Tottenham, there was an update even before kick-off with the news that forward Son Heung-min was starting.

He made his comeback from a foot injury in last weekend's 2-0 loss against Crystal Palace as a second half substitute. In a bid to build up game time ahead of the final, the Spurs captain was named in the starting XI against Villa.

Explaining the decision before the game to Sky Sports, Ange Postecoglou said: "I though it was better to start him off. Coming to Villa, it's a difficult place, with his experience, the line up is fairly inexperienced so it will help us."

Tottenham were handed a potential injury worry during the game with midfielder Pape Matar Sarr being replaced by Yves Bissouma in the 52nd minute. After being replaced Sarr was spotted heading straight down the tunnel with a member of the Spurs medical staff.

Youngster Mikey Moore also went down before being replaced in the 87th minute. He was, however, able to walk off the pitch unaided when being substituted.

Both Sergio Reguilon and Son were replaced just after Villa's second goal, in the 2-0 defeat, but it didn't appear to be sue to any injury concerns and was tactical. The same goes for Wilson Odobert who was replaced later in the game.

It was confirmed in the week that Spurs will be without Dejan Kulusevski, who has suffered a knee injury. He joins Radu Dragusin, Dane Scarlett, James Maddison, Timo Werner and Lucas Bergvall on the sidelines.

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All the latest Manchester United news as Ruben Amorim's side prepare to return to Bilbao for the Europa League final against Ange Postecoglou's Tottenham Hotspur

Tottenham Hotspur have been dealt an injury scare ahead of the UEFA Europa League final. Manchester United will lock horns with the Lilywhites at the San Mamés Stadium in Bilbao on Wednesday night, with a piece of silverware up for grabs.

Pape Matar Sarr was prematurely substituted during Spurs' clash against Aston Villa on Friday night, sparking concern that he's picked up a knock. Rather than seating himself on the bench, the 22-year-old midfielder was ushered down the tunnel by a member of the Tottenham medical staff.

Yves Bissouma replaced Sarr shortly after the break and, just moments later, Ezri Konsa fired Aston Villa into the lead. The 27-year-old defender latched onto a loose ball in the six-yard box following a deep corner, hooking it past Antonín Kinský.

Rooted to the spot, Bissouma was nutmegged by the strike. Sarr could join a long list of injured players at Tottenham ahead of the Europa League final; Dejan Kulusevski recently suffered a knee injury, which required surgery.

Speaking to reporters ahead of the trip to Villa Park, Ange Postecoglou announced the setback. The Tottenham boss said: "Disappointing news. Initially, we thought it wasn’t too serious.

"The medical team were worried structurally about how the knee was, but it blew up the day after, and we knew there was an issue there. He has had surgery, and it will put him out for at least a few months."

On whether he'll be fit for the start of next season, Postecoglou added: "We will see. To be honest, I have only got basic information at the moment in terms of recovery but it will certainly put him out for a while."

Meanwhile, Lucas Bergvall is nursing an ankle injury. On whether the 19-year-old midfielder has made a 'miraculous recovery', Postecoglou said: "No, it is still the same sort of timeframe.

"He was never a long-term one, but he has literally just got out of the boot and taken his first tentative steps on the grass, but he won’t be available [for the Villa clash on Friday]."

On whether the flurry of injuries has affected morale ahead of the United clash next week, Postecoglou said: "Look, I guess because it’s been a constant with us during the year, we’ve kind of become almost accustomed to it.

"It would probably be a bigger issue if we had a smooth run all year and got hit with injuries now and deal with missing key players, but we’ve pretty much been without key players all season.

"There hasn’t been a time where we had a three or four week spell with our strongest line-up, so the boys are getting on with it. They’re disappointed for the people involved and Deki being the latest one because he had a fantastic first part of the year for us and was just working his way back into it.

"At the same time as I keep saying to the group all along, you can’t pick and choose when these opportunities come along. There could be other years where we don’t have these disruptions and injuries, but we don’t get to a final.

"The reality of it is now the opportunity is there and whatever happens between now and then, we’ve got to make sure we’re ready for it..."

Another injury to a Tottenham player could throw a spanner in the United works ahead of the Europa League final. Ruben Amorim may find it difficult predict Spurs' lineup, thus complicating his own preparation.