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Manchester United defender Noussair Mazraoui has insisted that the club can still hold their heads high this season if they clinch Europa League glory - and says he's a big fan of Ruben Amorim. United have decided that they will not sack the Portuguese head coach regardless of what happens against Tottenham in Bilbao despite a dismal run in the Premier League.

The Red Devils have endured their worst ever Premier League campaign, languishing in 16th place under Ruben Amorim after suffering 18 losses. But United's boardroom do not blame Amorim and all is not lost as United could yet salvage some pride by defeating Spurs in the upcoming Europa League final. The victors will not only lift the trophy but also secure a spot in next season's Champions League, potentially raking in up to £100 million in revenue.

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Despite their woeful domestic performance, Mazraoui believes that a win against Spurs would overshadow their Premier League shortcomings. "Winning a trophy is never easy," the defender stated. "I think in any case you don't downgrade that, because you have to fight hard to get into the position to win a trophy.

"You have to beat opponents who are strong and who are also really hungry to be in that final. When you look back at your career, you will look back at this season and you're going to be proud of winning the Europa League, if we win on Wednesday, more than you're going to look at the failure in the Premier League. You can be sure, for sure, you can be proud."

Mazraoui was brought to Old Trafford by former United manager Erik ten Hag, but has welcomed the direct approach of current boss Amorim. "I like him a lot in that respect," Mazraoui said. "He's really honest, really straightforward, he's not hiding from anything."

"That's how I am as well. I'm not hiding behind anything and that's the manager as well. He takes responsibility, he knows he's the head of the club eventually, because he's the manager. That's something I like a lot about him."

In stark contrast to their Premier League form, United remain unbeaten in the Europa League, a fact that defender Mazraoui is keen to highlight. The Moroccan international said: "That's something really tough to say, because we always manage in the Europa League to eventually win.

"I think the biggest example was Lyon, where we were almost dead in the last 10 minutes of the game. Extra-time, everybody's tired and everything, and you still manage to win. We maybe have that kind of fighting spirit in the Europa League that we maybe lack in the Premier League."

Despite Tottenham having bested United in all three of their encounters this season, Mazraoui dismissed the idea that this would influence Wednesday's crucial showdown. "I don't think so, because this is a whole different competition," he explained.

"It's the Europa League, it's a final, so the context around it is so different that you can't really compare any previous games with this final."

It’s the game that neither side can afford to lose. For Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United, the season hinges on next Wednesday night’s Europa League final in Bilbao, which for one club will help salvage an otherwise torrid season.

It remains to be seen whether a European trophy and Champions League qualification will be enough to save the positions of Ange Postecoglou or Ruben Amorim. However, either manager must improve on domestic form. They also have a host of injury worries to deal with just three days out from the final.

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Spurs are currently sweating over the fitness of Lucas Bergvall, who faces a race against time to be fit following an ankle injury. United, meanwhile, will give Diogo Dalot, Matthijs de Ligt, Leny Yoro, and Ayden Heaven as long as they need to prove their fitness

Regardless, neither Premier League side will be at full strength, and some pivotal figures have already been ruled out. Express Sport brings you the lowdown on who will be missing from Bilbao…

Tottenham: James Maddison

The influential midfielder limped off during the semi-final first leg of his side’s 3-1 win over Bodo/Glimt. Postecoglou initially played down fears over the extent of the knock to the 28-year-old, only to later reveal he will miss the remainder of the season with a knee injury. He’ll be in the stands in Spain.

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Tottenham: Dejan Kulusevski

If Maddison’s omission is a hammer blow to Postecoglou, then Dejan Kulusevski’s absence could be a seismic one. The Swedish forward has arguably been his side’s most creative attacking force this season, and yet was risked in the league game with Crystal Palace on Sunday.

The 25-year-old duly hobbled off after only 19 minutes. Again, Postecoglou initially played down injury fears, but now it’s emerged the star has undergone knee surgery and will be sitting next to Maddison in Bilbao.

Tottenham: Radu Dragusin

The Romanian centre-back has long been ruled out until the summer, after undergoing surgery for an ACL injury in February. His Australian boss has long admitted that the start of pre-season in July is his most realistic target date to return.

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Man Utd: Lisandro Martinez

Ever since the Argentine centre-back was stretchered off in tears against Crystal Palace in February, it looked as if his season was over. That duly proved the case when scans revealed an ACL injury, and like his opposite number, Draguisin, the focus has long been on being fit for next season.

Man Utd: Joshua Zirkzee

The Dutchman was showing signs of improvement under Amorim when his season took a cruel twist, quite literally. He was moving sharply on the ball against Newcastle last month before pulling up as he turned with the ball, and the Dutch forward’s worst fears were realised days later when he was ruled out for the remainder of the campaign with a thigh problem.

Despite a disappointing Premier League campaign, Manchester United bosses have no plans to sack manager Ruben Amorim, even if they lose the upcoming Europa League final. But the boardroom are concerned that the Portuguese head coach could make the decision himself to walk away.

The club's hierarchy believe it would be ludicrous to hold Amorim accountable for a disastrous season that has seen the Red Devils finish in their lowest Premier League position in half a century. They are prepared to give the 40-year-old another season to implement his tactics, although there is some discontent within the Old Trafford boardroom regarding Amorim's candid admission that the job may be too big for him.

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This comes at a time when United have an opportunity to salvage their season by defeating Tottenham in Bilbao on Wednesday night to secure a spot in the Champions League next season.

The club's recruitment team has prepared two lists of potential transfer targets - one to be pursued if Amorim's team secure Champions League football and a £100million windfall by beating a Spurs side that has performed even worse than they have this season.

The other list will be less ambitious if there is no European football next season. Both lists aim to shape a squad capable of executing the tactical plan that has resulted in 13 losses in 26 Premier League games since Amorim took over from Erik ten Hag in November.

However, Amorim's harsh self-critique, suggesting he might be the worst manager in the club's history, has raised concerns that he may resign at the end of the season.

He has since backtracked on the notion that he might pay the price for failing to secure results with a squad that isn't up to scratch.

United are set to seek assurances that the ex-Sporting coach isn't considering an exit before they make any summer transfer market moves.

The club's outspoken owner, Sir Jim Ratcliffe, is reportedly impressed with his manager's honesty.

Ratcliffe has been extremely critical of the infrastructure he found when he invested £1.27billion for a stake in the club 14 months ago, much to the chagrin of the Glazer family who remain as co-owners.

Andre Onana has revealed that Manchester United's dressing room is in a 'bad moment' just days before facing Tottenham in the Europa League final. Both clubs have endured painful seasons but will have the opportunity to win a trophy in Bilbao on Wednesday night. A win for United would at least give them something to celebrate after months of disappointment in the Premier League.

The Red Devils had the chance to gain some winning momentum on Friday night against Chelsea, but they came up short once again. Marc Cucurella scored the only goal of the game in the second half as the Blues took all three points. It saw United miss a golden opportunity to give themselves a much-needed boost ahead of next week's Europa League final.

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Speaking after the final whistle, Onana hinted that United's dressing room was not particularly confident in a worrying post-match assessment.

He said: "We're in a bad moment, we're not playing our best football, we're not winning games. We move on. If we continue working and we are working every day, we'll turn this situation. If it's not tomorrow, it's after tomorrow.

"It's most important to give the fans that cup and trophy. It's very important for the club and the players. So far the fans have been the best.

"It's not the season we all want, we are used to playing better than what we're showing. We know the importance of this game. We will give everything."

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United boss Ruben Amorim offered a more positive outlook, pointing to his side's improved form in Europe when compared to the Premier League. He also claimed the defeat to Chelsea had given him some food for thought in terms of the starting line-up.

"The good news is in the Europa League, we are scoring many goals," said the Portuguese head coach. "We have to deal with a lot of things in the summer, but today it was a really good game to prepare for the final.

"If we put some players out in the feeling of the last game, almost 10 days without playing, it would be a mistake. It was a good thing for them to play, that they feel they can do it, that we can have possession, can push the opponent.

"In this club, you need to win and we are not winning games. It helped me a lot to choose the starting XI for the final, so we'll see."

Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou has revealed Pape Sarr came off with a back problem against Aston Villa tonight. With the score still 0-0 early in the second half, the Senegalese midfielder headed straight down the tunnel with a member of the medical staff.

Postecoglou is already without key players Dejan Kulusevski and James Maddison for the Europa League final with Manchester United in Bilbao next Wednesday. However, the Australian manager still opted to start players like Sarr, Son Heung-min, and Mathys Tel at Villa Park. The hosts eventually ran out 2-0 winners, but it was the condition of Sarr, not the result, that could prove pivotal to Tottenham's hopes in Spain.

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"Pape felt something in his back," he admitted afterwards. "We don't think it's anything significant, having spoken to him, but we'll see."

Teenager Mikey Moore also appeared in discomfort as he was replaced before the final by Brennan Johnson, although his manager downplayed any injury fears, saying: "I think Mikey was okay. It was fatigue as much as anything else. He hasn’t played that sort of amount of minutes before."

Despite fielding a much changed line-up, Spurs frustrated Villa for almost an hour before John McGinn's corner was headed down by Ollie Watkins into the path of Ezri Konsa, who slotted in. Boubacar Kamara made sure of the points with a drilled shot past Antonin Kinsky, condemning the visitors to a 21st league defeat of the season.

It followed the tame 2-0 defeat to Crystal Palace on Sunday, but Postecoglou still praised his side for being resolute, adding: "I thought up until they scored the boys had worked hard, they were really disciplined and organised.

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"We had our moments as well, going the other way, but once they scored we lost a little bit of belief. We got a little bit fatigued. A lot of those guys haven't played a lot and we looked like we were fatiguing and then the game just got away from us."

Both sides made a raft of changes before the final whistle as the contest petered out. Tottenham's season and Postecoglou's future now seemingly hinge on Wednesday's final, which could bring Champions League qualification despite the club's worst-ever Premier League campaign.

Chido Obi has become a full-time member of Ruben Amorim's Manchester United senior squad in the second half of the season, but he may not be in action again until next term. The 17-year-old is popular among fans after he snubbed a new contract at Arsenal to join United's academy last summer, having smashed records in youth football.

Obi became the Red Devils' youngest ever Premier League starter in the 4-3 defeat at Brentford on May 4, aged 17 years and 156 days. The teenage striker has shown promising glimpses without scoring in his first seven first-team appearances as he adapts to the step up. However, he looks likely to continue his development next season as Amorim switches his focus towards the Europa League final.

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Obi wasn't among the 21 United players who travelled down to Chelsea on Thursday.

Amorim's side visit Stamford Bridge on Friday night, in what is essentially a warm-up fixture ahead of next Wednesday's Europa League final against Tottenham Hotspur.

Rasmus Hojlund, Alejandro Garnacho and Amad were the only forwards spotted among the squad, indicating that Obi won't be involved.

That is likely because the Danish starlet isn't eligible for the Europa League final after United didn't register him in their A list, and he didn't fit the criteria for the B list.

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Obi's absence in the Europa League has left Hojlund as Amorim's only natural striker throughout an unbeaten campaign in Europe.

And the Portuguese head coach will want to ensure those in line to start the mammoth clash against Spurs enter in optimum sharpness and fitness.

Other likely starters in Bilbao, including Harry Maguire, Casemiro and Bruno Fernandes, should join Hojlund in starting at Chelsea.

Obi could feature in United's final game of the season, when Aston Villa visit Old Trafford to wrap up a dreadful Premier League campaign.

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But that will be viewed as a glorified friendly, regardless of whether the hosts are on a high from Europa League success or still recovering from heartbreak.

Obi's transition into senior football has come sooner than expected, while partly supported by United's continued injury issues this season.

Amorim is expected to sign a new striker in the summer transfer window, but Hojlund's future is far from certain. Obi will play a role again next term.

However, the pressure is on Hojlund to deliver against Chelsea and Spurs as United look to salvage another tumultuous campaign.

It’s not just this season that Manchester United could save by winning their Europa League final with Tottenham on Wednesday. Victory for Ruben Amorim’s side will go a long way to appeasing fans after a wretched Premier League campaign, and secure a first European trophy since Jose Mourinho prevailed in the same competition eight years ago.

Furthermore, Europa League glory would also mean qualification for next season’s Champions League. That would provide the club with a much-needed financial windfall and inevitably alter Amorim’s summer transfer plans. It would also enable the Portuguese boss to follow through on the club’s interest in a leading Serie A star.

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United have been linked with another move for Atalanta midfielder Ederson, after failing to land the Brazilian last year. The 25-year-old has excelled in Italy this season, pivotal in helping the club already guarantee third place with just two league games remaining.

That position signifies their best Serie A campaign in the past four years. It also means Gian Piero Gasperini’s side will dine at Europe’s top table in 2025/26, meaning United almost certainly have to match that feat if they are to hold out any hope of snaring Ederson.

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The 25-year-old still has two years left on his current deal and is likely to command a fee of around £50million. United’s failed pursuit last summer was followed by the signing of Manuel Ugarte from PSG, but the Uruguayan international has struggled to settle in England.

Revitalising their interest in Ederson appears to be a sign that the club is already prepared to cut their losses on the 25-year-old. If the ex-Salernitana star can be persuaded to head to Manchester, Ugarte is unlikely to be the only midfield casualty either.

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Christian Eriksen’s contract expires this summer, and he is widely expected to leave Old Trafford. The arrival of Ederson is also likely to accelerate Casemiro’s exit, as the Real Madrid icon has struggled badly with consistent form and fitness these past two seasons.

Amorim’s insistence upon his favoured 3-4-3 formation means he only tends to deploy two central midfielders. Signing Ederson would still mean a healthy depth in that position, even if the trio were released, with skipper Bruno Fernandes, Kobbie Mainoo, and Mason Mount already in his squad.

Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou has rejected claims that his team selection could undermine the Premier League's competitive balance ahead of their clash with Aston Villa - and says he will not be risking any more injuries at Villa Park. Spurs' own bid for European glory hangs in the balance and he will field a weakened side in their next top-flight match.

They travel to Bilbao next Wednesday for the Europa League final against Manchester United. But injury woes have intensified for Spurs with Dejan Kulusevski now sidelined for "months" after featuring in last Sunday's tussle with Crystal Palace. Postecoglou starkly pointed out that victory in the final would bring an end to their 17-year trophy drought and secure a coveted spot in Europe's elite club competition.

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That underscores the importance of the final for the north Londonders. With Aston Villa ambitiously eyeing Champions League qualification alongside Chelsea, Manchester City and Newcastle, the outcome of Tottenham's fixture will be scrutinised if Spurs are understrength as expected.

Unwavering, Postecoglou said: "Villa are obviously going for Champions League football and you see how important it is to them and we're doing the same. Look, in a normal world you'd be using this to sharpen up but we're not living in a normal world.

"That's the reality of our existence at the moment where we can't lose another player to an injury. It's just too finely balanced for us considering what's at stake.

"That seems to be our lot at the moment and even with the best planning, we're still getting hit with these setbacks and from my perspective I've got to take that into account when considering the game tomorrow night."

Postecoglou has hit back at critics questioning the "integrity" of his team's performances, particularly in light of last season's clash with Manchester City where some fans hoped for a loss to thwart Arsenal's title chances.

The Aussie hit back: "I'm not sure what people are talking about when they talk about the integrity of the game - I don't know what that means.

"We have certainly put out teams this year that because of our injury situation were not the strongest we needed to put out there but we still needed to play those games and it's the same with other clubs.

"I don't even know why that question is being asked if I'm honest because if anyone thinks we are going to go out there and not do our absolute best to win - that's the only time when integrity is questioned.

"When we played Man City last year and apparently I was in the wrong for trying to win a game of football that's where integrity comes into it, that's why I was so strong on it."

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"When you put a line-up out there you are trying to win a game of football but at the same time every club has got its own interests and you have to prioritise what's important for your club.

"Champions League is very important for all those clubs fighting for it at the moment, I can see how important it is and every game and every decision is crucial but we are in exactly the same boat. We have got Champions League qualification plus a trophy to win.

"It would be negligent of me if I wasn't doing the best thing for our football club to make sure we achieve that."

Ange Postecoglou has expressed his devastation that Tottenham midfielder Dejan Kulusevski will be absent for next week's Europa League final and even cast doubts on his availability for the start of next season. Spurs' build-up to their Wednesday clash with Manchester United in Bilbao suffered a setback when Kulusevski required surgery on his right knee earlier this week.

The Swedish midfielder was forced to leave the pitch following a seemingly harmless encounter with Crystal Palace captain Marc Guehi last Sunday, and scans later confirmed the severity of the injury, indicating a lengthy recovery period.

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"Yeah, gutted for Deki," admitted Postecoglou as he prepared for Friday's match against Aston Villa.

"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. I have only got basic information at the moment in terms of recovery, but it will certainly put him out for a while."

The news improves Man United's chances of glory as both clubs eye not just silverware but a place in next season's Champions League which would be highly lucrative to both.

Victory parades date back to ancient Rome, when Roman triumphs heralded a leader victorious in battle. It's a celebratory tradition that has long been popular in the game of football and sport in general.

When a team achieves something to be proud of, something that enters the history books, its followers naturally want to be a part of it. But should Manchester United be victorious in battle against Tottenham Hotspur in next week's Europa League final, there will be no parade. The Red Devils will instead grill up a low-key barbecue for players, staff and their families at their Carrington training ground.

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Good.

Spurs do have plans to parade the Europa League trophy around the joyous streets of London, should they beat Ruben Amorim's side for a fourth time this season.

Rightly so. This supposed 'Big Six' club hasn't felt the sweet touch of silverware since 2008, when they beat Chelsea to clinch the League Cup.

Chido Obi, who made his first United start this month, and his seventh senior appearance, was born three months earlier.

In March, Newcastle United gave supporters memories of a lifetime by ousting Liverpool to lift a League Cup of their own - and their first major trophy since 1955.

There were an estimated 300,000 Magpies in attendance for the party that followed in the city centre and Town Moor - and, once more, rightly so.

But, respectfully, Manchester United aren't Spurs, and they certainly aren't Newcastle.

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In the torrid 12 years of this grand football club's steep decline after Sir Alex Ferguson left the building, they have added five major honours to Old Trafford's trophy cabinet.

An FA Cup under Louis van Gaal, a Europa League and League Cup under Jose Mourinho, and an FA Cup and League Cup under Erik ten Hag.

Yet, there have been no trophy parades since May 13, 2013. That day, over 100,000 supporters accustomed to glory commemorated what know one expected would be their latest league triumph more than a decade on.

If you counted Spurs' last five major trophies, you'd find yourself in 1982. For Newcastle, it's 1932.

Some of the significant events that unfolded in that particular year include the rise of the Nazi Party in Germany and the Great Depression. It was a generation ago.

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The point is, trophy parades should feel special. They mark a moment in history that will be remembered for decades.

This is no season to remember - on and off the pitch. Yet, there is a chance for salvation.

A Europa League victory would be important, given the financial boost of Champions League qualification and the belief that an early trophy under Ruben Amorim would spark.

But those who have been quick to criticise the club's decision to opt for burgers and buns rather than an open-top bus because of 'tradition' don't understand United's.

There were no parades for the previous five major trophies. Only Premier League titles and Champions League crowns are worthy of the highest form of celebration on the red side of Manchester.

And that's the way it should be until this club restores its former glories to meet that criteria again, however long it may take.