By Ian King
Solace found on the continent
In the Premier League, both teams are in abysmal form. Manchester United have taken two points from their last eight games while Spurs have taken four points from their last nine, with three of those coming against Southampton.
In Europe, it’s a different matter. Both sailed through their semi-finals and have shown their best sides in the Europa League. But in domestic competition, both clubs have had their worst seasons in decades.
First meeting in European competition
These two have never met each other in European competition, but they have each played in one all-English European final. In 2007, Manchester United beat Chelsea on penalties following a 1-1 draw in Moscow to win in the Champions League.
In 1972, Spurs played Wolves in a two-legged final of the UEFA Cup. Spurs won the first leg 2-1 at Molineux thanks to two goals from Martin Chivers. A 1-1 draw in the return match at White Hart Lane was enough for them to lift the trophy.
Key Players
If there’s one player more than any other who Manchester United could be dependent upon in this match, it’s goalkeeper André Onana. If the FA Cup final taught us anything, it was that goalkeepers can make or break a one-off match over 90 minutes, and United can’t afford anything like some of the antics he’s been guilty of this season. No pressure, there, André.
Spurs have been mis-firing of late, but it has been good to see Micky van de Ven back in the centre of the defence. A player who lends a little confidence that, “You know, maybe things aren’t going to turn out so bad after all”. Otherwise, Dominic Solanke scored in their last three European matches and has enjoyed this competition more than he’s enjoyed the Premier League, this season.
Team News
Both teams have been trying to protect their remaining players ahead of this match. Spurs, for example, played eleven dustbins with shirts pulled over them at Aston Villa on Friday night, though this doesn’t alter the fact that they’ve already lost Dejan Kulusevski, Lucas Bergvall and James Maddison for this one. United will be missing Lisandro Martínez while Matthijs de Ligt is doubtful. But Amorim has stated that Diogo Dalot, Joshua Zirkzee, and Leny Yoro are all fit to play.
Prediction
*Throws hands to the sky in absolute exasperation*
Where on earth does this end up, then? These are the clown princes of English football at the moment. Both have been decent in Europe and desperate in the Premier League season, yet one of them is going to be dancing around a half-empty stadium celebrating a trophy and a place in next year’s Champions League.
It’ll probably come down to who makes the most mistakes, and I think they can cancel each other out in this respect over 120 minutes, though both teams do still contain some extremely capable players. With that in mind, I’m going for a 2-2 draw and a penalty shootout to decide this most unfathomable final. Who wins that? They could still be going by Thursday morning…
(Cover image from IMAGO)
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