
Tottenham vs Manchester United - Europa League final Q&A: All your questions answered ahead of the English showdown in Bilbao
By NATHAN SALT - FOOTBALL REPORTER and MATT BARLOW, FOOTBALL WRITER and KIM MORRISSEY, SPORTS AUDIENCE EDITOR
Updated:
Re-live Mail Sport's live blog as our experts answered all of your burning questions ahead of the 2025 Europa League final between Tottenham and Manchester United.
Roll on tomorrow!
By Kim Morrissey
Thank you for tuning into Mail Sport's Europa League final Q&A live blog.
We hope we answered all your questions regarding Wednesday's crunch European clash between the two English sides.
Make sure to come back tomorrow as we will be providing the latest score, team news and updates from the San Mames stadium in Bilbao for the thrilling final.
But before that happens, why not take a look at who the Supercomputer has predicted to take home the trophy tomorrow...
Europa League final prediction
I am not expecting a thriller but I do just believe that finals often fall on the shoulders of the best players and United will have the two best on the pitch in Bruno Fernandes and Amad Diallo.
I’m also not going to downplay the amount of final experience in United’s ranks to drag them over the line.
Casemiro has played in 19 career senior finals and won them all. That counts for something in games between sides as poor as these two are.
Verdict: Narrow United win for me.
Europa League final prediction
I’m backing Spurs with not a lot of confidence, on the basis of the three wins against Manchester United this season and the vital Romero and Van de Ven axis in central defence.
Those two have started together in the last five Europa League ties and Postecoglou’s team have won four and drawn one.
Tottenham are a different proposition when they both play, and they have barely been together in the Premier League for weeks.
Although still not perfect, of course.
And they lack midfield creativity without Maddison, Bergvall or Kulusevski so I don’t expect full throttle Ange Ball.
Maybe something of a hybrid tactical model with less risk in midfield and quick counterattacking… Spurs 3 Man United 1
Verdict: Tottenham win
Any chances Man Utd play Mainoo/Mount at false 9?
@Pisazburg asks - Any chances Man Utd play Mainoo/Mount at false 9?
There’s always a chance he could mix things up but I just don’t see it.
He said after the loss at Chelsea that he knows his team and I actually have a feeling Mason Mount may well have played his way out of the starting XI in favour of Alejandro Garnacho after a really quiet night at Stamford Bridge.
For as bad as Rasmus Hojlund has been I would be surprised if he was dropped for the final.
What approach do you think is better?
What approach do you think is better? United playing players, or Spurs resting players?
I think there is a real danger by resting players that they are ice cold when it comes to the final and that’s the gamble Tottenham have taken.
Amorim took the alternative approach and bar a couple of injury scares I do think that will pay off for him in a final between two very poor teams.
Every small margin will count.
Tottenham's predicted starting XI?
433: Vicario; Porro, Romero, Van de Ven, Udogie; Bentancur, Bissouma, Sarr; Johnson, Solanke, Richarlison
Whether he will start with Son is interesting call, especially with the echoes of Kane in 2019.
Son has more football inside him than Kane did then… but my feeling is that they will look to use him from the bench
Man United's predicted starting XI?
Onana; Mazraoui, Maguire, Shaw; Dalot, Casemiro, Fernandes, Dorgu; Amad, Garnacho; HojlundI
I don’t think Amorim will take a risk on the likes of Yoro and Zirkzee given their sooner-than-expected returns to fitness.
But I can see him rolling the dice on one of his trusted lieutenants in Diogo Dalot.
There’s the temptation to think he could go rogue in attack but Hojlund is second-highest scorer in this competition and even amid his dreadful form I’d be shocked.
How does Ange solve his midfield conundrum?
How does Ange solve his midfield conundrum? Played Odobert as a 10 on the weekend but is more likely to go for Bissouma/Sarr/Bentancur tomorrow
The safe option is to start with Bissouma, Sarr, Bentancur and leave a little space for flexibility.
I know Postecoglou’s style is all about risk but in recent Europa League ties he has been solid at the back and sought to break quickly.
There hasn’t been a lot of risk involved, and it has been successful so I don’t see a reason to change.
Lost creativity is a concern for Spurs and will leave a burden on Porro to get forward as he likes to do and deliver from the right.
The Odobert experiment was probably more to do with giving a rest to the players he did not want to play at Villa Park or a glimpse at the options if Spurs need to make changes from the bench in search of goals in Bilbao.
The further complication is Sarr’s fitness.
He came off at Villa complaining of discomfort in his back and his form is certainly not as strong as it was at the start of the season.
Hopefully, he’s ready to go and able to get through his usual workload.
Why are they setting for Delap when clearly Gyokeres knows Amorims' system inside and out?
@PMettrick asks - Why are they settilng for Delap when clearly Gyokeres knows Amorim's system inside and out?
Should United go ahead and win the Europa League, this might not be the either-or it has seemed for months now.
Delap is United’s priority No 9 target due to his age profile, being homegrown, many figures such as Jason Wilcox knowing his character, and an overriding belief that at £30m his value will exponentially increase as he heads towards his prime in the coming years.
Delap has so many attributes that Amorim loves and I genuinely think he’s under extra scrutiny because of how it’s panned out for Rasmus Højlund. He needs to be judged on his own merits.
As for Gyokores, Arsenal looked the far and away frontrunners on that one but there is a difference opinion behind the scenes there with Mikel Arteta preferring Benjamin Sesko.
Amorim loves Gyokores and a win in the Europa League may help him grease the wheels to convince his bosses to sanction it.
What approach do you think is better?
United playing players, or Spurs resting players?
Who knows, to be honest. We’ll find out.
I think Spurs resting players was the best approach for Spurs.
I know there’s a lot been made of the injuries and who is to blame but it is impossible to ignore the impact they have had.
They are a completely different team with the first choice defensive unit in place and to have lost one of them, in particular Van de Ven, would have been a devastating blow to their chances and their confidence.
In the Europa League with Van de Ven and Romero in tandem at the back they are unbeaten in five, winning four so I can see why they have opted to rest first-team regulars in the Premier League where they were safe from relegation despite the embarrassment of being 17th…
The concern will be that they lack a little match sharpness, that they are short of zip but they will be well rested.
Is this a must-win for Amorim? Or could he expect to be binned if he fails?
@Paskins_tache asks - Is this a must-win for Amorim? Or could he expect to be binned if he fails?
Unlike Ange Postecoglou, I don’t believe Amorim’s job rests on Wednesday night.
He’s been at United for six months and they wrestled him out of a job mid-season at Sporting, who have just gone ahead and won the Portuguese league with the team he built.
What is abundantly clear is that if United are to get the results Sporting did they simply have to back him in the transfer market this summer.
That becomes infinitely easier should they win in Bilbao given the millions and millions you get for Champions League entry.
Is there any chance a win keeps Ange in the job?
Is there any chance a win keeps Ange in the job?
Personally, I think the chances are slim.
And I think the main issue there is the disconnection with the fans which has occurred in the second half of this season as much as the dreadful Premier League campaign.
I think a win enables Ange to go with his head high, the first Spurs boss to win in Europe for 41 years and his proud record of winning a trophy in his second season still intact.
That will give him some sense of status at the club.
But I think the only way he stays is if victory is accompanied by an outpouring of love and devotion from the Spurs fans who used to sing his name but haven’t for a long time…
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