Europa League final: Spurs 1 Man Utd 0 - Tottenham’s 17-year wait for a trophy ends in Bilbao

Tottenham Hotspur won the 2025 Europa League final in Bilbao on Wednesday night, defeating Manchester United 1-0. It’s a result that not only rescues Spurs’ season but also grants them entry into next season’s Champions League.

Tottenham and United are 17th and 16th respectively in the Premier League, and for most of the first half they played like it, both sides displaying a painful lack of quality. Even the first goal, when it came, was befitting of a scrappy game — Brennan Johnson was credited with it, even though it span into the net via Luke Shaw’s arm.

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There was not a significant increase in quality after the break, although United ratcheted up the intensity as they chased the game. But Spurs, helped by an incredible goal-line clearance from Micky van de Ven and a late, late save from Guglielmo Vicario, held firm to end their 17-year wait for a major honour.

Mark Critchley, Jay Harris, Mark Carey, Carl Anka and Chris Weatherspoon analyse the game.

What does this result mean for Spurs and Postecoglou?

Tottenham’s trophy drought is finally over.

Go ahead and mock them for their form in the league this season or the lack of quality in the final, but none of the supporters will care. Ange Postecoglou, in what is probably his penultimate game in charge, has held true to his promise that he “always” wins a trophy in his second season. On his 100th game as head coach, he secured his place in their history books. If he does depart in the coming weeks, the Australian will take comfort from the fact he will always hold a place in the hearts of the fanbase.

This squad will go down as legends. They have accomplished what Gareth Bale, Harry Kane and Luka Modric could not. Son Heung-min, who has spent a decade with the club, might now eclipse Kane as the best player in Spurs’ modern history. Kane left to win a trophy, Son stayed to prove the doubters wrong. Van de Ven, who was a fan favourite from the first moment he joined Spurs from Wolfsburg in July 2023, can look forward to having a statue outside the stadium one day. It will be a challenge for the sculptor to capture the glory of his ridiculous goal-line clearance but nothing else will do.

(Carl Recine/Getty Images)

Spurs will play in the Champions League next season, even though they are 17th in the top flight with one game remaining. This young group, which has already endured so many challenges, will tell themselves that this is only the beginning. Archie Gray and Lucas Bergvall, the future of their midfield, are both 19 while academy graduate Mikey Moore is two years younger.

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This could be a transformative moment for the club and this squad. No longer burdened by their lack of success. This is their first trophy in 17 years and their first European title since 1984. The trophy parade on Friday will be wild. It has been an emotional season.

Yes, there have been some awful moments in 2024-25, but Tottenham achieved something special right at the end.

Jay Harris

What does this result mean for United and Amorim?

Everyone knew the stakes. To the victor, the spoils. To the loser, the most desperate, dismal season in their modern history.

And so what now for United, after what has to go down as their worst campaign in more than a century, since relegation from the old First Division in 1974?

Ruben Amorim did not want to take this job midway through the season and almost every other game under his charge has shown he has good instincts. This squad is plainly not suited to his system. But equally, his system is yet to demonstrate it can get results.

Amorim has not had to shoulder the majority of the blame for United’s performances, understandably so. There are still enough caveats in his favour, still a sense that he cannot be fairly judged in this job until he has his players, until he’s working on his terms. United insisted before this final that Amorim would stay as their head coach whatever the result.

(Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)

But the silver lining of more time on the training ground to teach his philosophy is scant silver lining compared to a first season in more than a decade without European football.

And even Amorim himself has admitted of late that defeat in this final would mean United “have to be perfect” next season, starting from the very first kick. From now on, there is no more room for error.

Mark Critchley

A scrappy but priceless goal

The first half was very low on quality so nobody was surprised when Spurs took the lead in the 42nd minute with one of the scrappiest goals you will ever witness in a major final.

Richarlison was on the left wing and he played a clever reverse pass into space for Rodrigo Bentancur who then found Pape Matar Sarr. The Senegal international bent a cross into the box which Brennan Johnson attacked. The ball bounced off Shaw, Johnson took a wild swipe at it in mid-air and somehow it snuck in between Andre Onana’s right arm and the post and then over the line.

It's scrappy, scruffy — but for Tottenham, it's perfect. Ange Postecoglou's side take the lead just before half-time through what looks like a Luke Shaw own goal. Brennan Johnson will claim it, as well he might…#UELfinal 🎥 @footballontnt pic.twitter.com/I4axBfxkDR — The Athletic | Football (@TheAthleticFC) May 21, 2025

Whether Johnson actually scored or not is irrelevant. He is exceptional at attacking the six-yard box and his trademark finish is sweeping the ball into the net with a first-time finish from around 10 yards. He had already been a menace to Shaw on a couple of occasions in the first half, closing him down to win the ball high up the pitch, and he was too quick for him again.

Johnson slid on his knees and then fell over right in front of the Spurs supporters before he was mobbed by his team-mates. It was a fantastic moment for the Wales international, who temporarily deactivated his social media accounts in September after receiving abuse.

(Michael Steele/Getty Images)

Johnson, who turns 24 on Friday, scored a couple of days later in a cup tie against Coventry City and barely celebrated, so it was beautiful to see him enjoy his impact and for the fans and his team-mates to shower him with love.

Jay Harris

Did Amorim get his team selection wrong?

The 71st minute saw Amorim roll his dice. Joshua Zirkzee and Alejandro Garnacho replacing Rasmus Hojlund and Mason Mount. The changes added zip to a stop-start attack. A minute after the swap, Zirkzee dropped deep to play provider, rolling a ball to Noussair Mazraoui, who provided a cross that Bruno Fernandes would steer wide.

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Two minutes after that, Garnacho eked out some space in his favoured area on the left before burning past Pedro Porro. He went for his favoured attacking effort, cutting inside and shooting low toward the far post. Vicario got a hand to the shot and palmed it wide.

This was United going for it. Garnacho running at Spurs at full pelt, hoping to push them back. Zirkzee was to serve as an attacking hook for team-mates to hang off.

(Chris Brunskill/Fantasista/Getty Images)

This team huffed, and puffed, but could not blow Spurs’ house down. Postecoglou made second-half changes of his own, replacing Richarlison with Son, and Johnson for Kevin Danso. It bolstered his team in both penalty boxes. A change to a 5-4-1 made the brick wall more impenetrable than ever.

Another swap from Amorim, bringing on Diogo Dalot for Mazraoui, failed to change the game’s complexion. Harry Maguire was deployed as an emergency striker one more time, and Kobbie Mainoo was introduced for Patrick Dorgu.

The head coach — dressed in a suit jacket rather than his usual touchline attire — could be seen beckoning his players forwards in the final five minutes. His players were willing, but not quite able. His substitutions could not solve the underlying problem: a United squad that will go down as one of the worst in the club’s modern history.

Carl Anka

A trophy-winning clearance?

Cup finals are rarely filled with a glut of action.

Given the high stakes of a trophy on the line, you will often see a cagey affair with both sides in must-not-lose mode as their default setting. The crucial moments in both boxes is invariably what swings things, and Wednesday’s balmy evening at San Mames was no different.

A teasing first-half cross from Sarr was one of the few attacking moments of quality from Tottenham, with Johnson and Shaw’s tangle ending with the ball trickling into the net for a scrappy goal that was reflective of the standard of the game.

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At the other end of the pitch, a second-half mistake from Vicario saw the Italian goalkeeper fumble the ball towards the head of Hojlund, who looped a headed shot towards goal, only for his effort to be swatted away by Van de Ven, who made an incredible, acrobatic goal-line clearance with his right foot with the ball at chest height.

(Carl Recine/Getty Images)

In a game of low quality, such isolated moments are crucial, and it was a defensive action that proved to be pivotal. In truth, Spurs were well organised and disciplined defensively — and while their attack was still rather blunt at one end, they won the battle in both boxes to come out victorious.

Mark Carey

A final to forget for Fernandes

First, there was a searching ball over the top for Amad that was nodded away by Van de Ven, then a poorly judged square pass to Casemiro that was easily intercepted by Sarr.

There was still plenty of time for United to organise themselves against Tottenham’s break for the decisive — Fernandes was far from solely at fault — but his part in it summed up a night when everything United’s captain tried failed to come off.

That’s the player Fernandes is. He will take risks, like that first attempted ball over the top to Amad. He will look to play the percentages for the benefit of his team-mates. It is, on the whole, hugely beneficial.

(Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)

But on a single, isolated occasion like a season-defining European final, those percentages can turn against you. Especially when the opposition shut him down as effectively as Sarr and Rodrigo Bentancur did in the middle of the park.

The Portuguese averages around 50 completed passes a game. He managed just 11 during the first half. Fernandes at least had more efforts than any other United player, but only his diving header midway through the second half particularly troubled Tottenham’s defence.

Fernandes has carried this United side throughout this Europa League campaign, throughout the season, but he could not even he could carry them over the finish line.

Mark Critchley

What was this worth to Spurs? And what have United missed out on?

By winning the Europa League final, Tottenham Hotspur have banked around £5million, on top of the £30m or so they’ve earned in the Europa League to date, as well as a little over £3m for qualifying to face the Champions League winners in August’s Super Cup.

The real financial prize will come next season though. As an example, United earned £53.8m via European matches during their last Champions League year, a season when they finished bottom of their group with one win in the six games — and one which came before UEFA introduced an even more lucrative new format.

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In terms of estimating next year’s earnings from a Champions League spot, The Athletic estimate Spurs’ minimum earnings to be £60m, even if they were to lose every game. United, on the other hand, have missed out on a minimum of £77m across UEFA prize money, takings from at least four extra home games and in addition now face a £10m haircut to their kit supplier deal with Adidas for failing to reach Europe’s elite competition.

Chris Weatherspoon

What did Ange Postecoglou say?

The Tottenham manager was understandably emotional after leading his side to Europa League glory.

Speaking to CBS, Postecoglou said “I can’t put it into words to be honest. I know what it means to the football club and what it means to the supporters.

“I’ve just had this thing inside me the back half of the year. One focus, one target, i just felt this was it. To achieve it today, I know what it means to the club. It’s had the tag of sort of a nearly team for a long time and the only way you break that is by winning things.”

“It’s been the toughest couple of years I’ve had in my career. I knew what I was going into. This club has had world class managers with a lot better credentials than I have and haven’t been able to get there. I’ve just had this laser focus. Once we got knocked out of the Carabao Cup it became all about Europe. It has cost us. It has cost us in the league and that’s down to me.

“I’m really hoping this changes the way the club sees itself more than anything. Externally you can’t really adjust whatever people think about you but how you feel about yourself is really important. Every time we got close to something there was always this ‘ what if it’s another year when we miss out.’ So that’s the monkey off the backs. Now the club can sort of stand tall … looks at itself a bit differently … there’s nothing stopping you from winning again.”

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UK broadcaster TNT asked Postecoglou about his claim — earlier this season — that he would win a trophy in his second season.

“It wasn’t me boasting, it was just me making a declaration. And i believed it when I said it. I know our league form hasn’t been anywhere near good enough, unacceptable, but us finishing third wasn’t going to change this football club. The only thing that was going to change this football club was us winning something. And when I said that, that was my intent. I’m not afraid to say it.

“If I fell short, I was ready to cop it. But I believed it inside me, that was my ambition, I wanted it stated. I couldn’t expect anyone from the club to say that but I could say that and be prepared to wear it if it didn’t happen. The beauty of it was that people kept reminding me of it but the reason they kept reminding me was because there was still a chance we could do it. So I was comfortable with it.”

What did Ruben Amorim say?

Speaking after the game, the Manchester United head coach insisted that his team were the better side in Wednesday’s final. “We were better than the opponent. I think I am always honest with you guys. I have said when days have been really poor. I think today was not the day.

“There were some times (when) we didn’t create situations, now is not that time. The (Tottenham) goalkeeper did a great job. I am confident in my players.

“I have nothing to show to the fans, so in this moment it is a little bit of faith. Let’s see. I am always open, if the board and fans feel I am not the right guy, I will go in the next day without any conversation about compensation, but I will not quit. I am really confident on my job. And as you see I will not change nothing in the way I do things.”

What next for Spurs?

Sunday, May 25: Brighton (H), Premier League, 4pm UK, 11am ET

What next for United?

Sunday, May 25: Aston Villa (H), Premier League, 4pm UK, 11am ET

(Header photo: Getty Images)

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