Tottenham beat Manchester United to land Europa League glory in Bilbao
AFNEWS reporter
May 22, 2025
Tottenham beat Manchester United to land Europa League glory in Bilbao
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Tottenham ended their 17-year trophy drought and sent misfiring Manchester United into a tailspin as under-fire Ange Postecoglou oversaw a 1-0 victory in Wednesday's all-or-nothing Europa League final.
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It has long been a case of Bilbao or bust for these teams considering their wretched Premier League campaigns, with the San Mames showpiece offering the winner silverware and much-needed Champions League qualification.
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Spurs edged this tense all-English final, with Brennan Johnson's goal, thanks in no small part to a touch from Luke Shaw, Micky van de Ven goal-line clearance and Guglielmo Vicario's stoppage-time save seeing them win a first trophy since the Carling Cup in 2008.
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Beaming boss Postecoglou silenced the critics - temporarily at least - as he stuck to his word by winning a trophy in his second season, while United will now spend a first campaign without European football since 2014-15.
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Ruben Amorim's already tough rebuild becomes that much harder without Champions League qualification after the Red Devils lost a first Europa League match of the campaign at the worst possible time.
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It compounds their worst top-flight season since suffering relegation 51 years ago, but this is Tottenham's night as Postecoglou's men joined the UEFA Cup winners of 1972 and 1984 in immortality.
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The first period flew by in a blur with few clear-cut chances, with Spurs having some early attempts.
Andre Onana was relieved that Noussair Mazraoui stopped a threatening early Pedro Porro cross reaching Richarlison, having been drawn off his line.
United's goalkeeper stopped a Johnson cross-shot and Pape Sarr's follow-up was blocked, as was a Richarlison attempt as Spurs pushed against a side for whom Amad Diallo looked the liveliest player.
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The forward was close to opening the scoring in the 16th minute, showing intelligence before flashing a shot across the face of goal - and just beyond Rasmus Hojlund - from a corner Vicario flapped at.
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The end-to-end encounter swung Spurs' way in the 42nd minute.
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Sarr, who had looked a doubt for the game, sent over a right-footed cross from the left that ricocheted off Shaw and seemingly took the slightest touch off Johnson. The ball squirmed past Onana, sparking pandemonium in the Spurs end.
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Bruno Fernandes saw an effort blocked before the break and after the interval Vicario just about dealt with a dangerous Fernandes free-kick that returning Leny Yoro got a toe on.
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Diallo was denied in the box and Harry Maguire saw off the threat of Dominic Solanke after meeting a pass with a heavy touch on the break that followed.
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The game was on a knife-edge and Van de Ven saved Spurs - and Vicario's blushes - in the 68th minute. Tottenham's goalkeeper flapped at a simple-looking free-kick and Rasmus Hojlund's header was looping in until the Dutchman's acrobatic goal-line clearance, with Yoro's follow-up blocked.
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Amorim turned to his bench in a bid to change the dynamics and substitute Alejandro Garnacho brought a save out of Vicario shortly after Fernandes headed wide.
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Spurs went to three at the back in a bid to batten down the hatches but tempers frayed and Shaw's header in added-time - brilliantly saved - and a Casemiro overhead kick into the side-netting were the closest United came to a leveller.
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— AFNEWS reporter