BILBAO: Brennan Johnson’s bundled first-half goal helped Tottenham Hotspur win a scrappy Europa League final 1-0 against Manchester United on Wednesday as they cast aside their domestic woes to end a painful 17-year trophy drought.
In a season where both clubs plummeted down the Premier League, Tottenham emerged from a dismal campaign with something to celebrate as well as a lucrative berth in next season’s Champions League.
It was Spurs’ first silverware since the 2008 League Cup and their first European trophy since their 1984 UEFA Cup success.
Johnson scored in the 42nd minute when United’s defence crumbled as Pape Sarr swung in a cross while goalkeeper Andre Onana remained rooted to his line. Johnson and United defender Luke Shaw rushed in and the ball appeared to glance off both of them and in, past Onana’s desperate swipe.
The goal was as scrappy as the game in a matchup of teams who have had wildly disappointing Premier League seasons, with United languishing in 16th and Spurs 17th.
United’s Rasmus Hojlund had a terrific chance to equalise with a header midway through the second half, but Spurs’ Micky van de Ven leapt for a stunning clearance off the line.
United almost equalised at the death but Shaw’s header was saved by a diving Guglielmo Vicario, who had earlier denied an Alejandro Garnacho bullet strike from the edge of the box with a great reflex save.
“Ever since I came here, it’s been ‘Tottenham are a good team but can never get it done’. We got it done,” goalscorer Johnson told TNT Sports.
“Honestly, this is what it means. It means so much. All the fans get battered, we get battered, for not winning a trophy, for not winning anything. But we had to get the first one in a while today. I’m so happy.”
Postecoglou vindication
Tottenham’s win also offered vindication to embattled manager Ange Postecoglou, who had said throughout the campaign that he always wins trophies in his second season at a club.
In a season defined by Premier League disappointment, their continental conquest represented a stunning reversal of fortunes.
The victory also rewards Tottenham with Champions League qualification for next season, a remarkable achievement for a side languishing just above the Premier League relegation zone after an alarming 21 defeats.
Their triumph may well serve as the crucial lifeline that their 59-year-old Greek-Australian manager Postecoglou needed to cement his future at the club.
“I’m still kind of taking it all in,” the manager said.
“I know what it means for this football club… I could sense some nervousness in everybody at the club, because they’ve been in the situation before. And until you take that monkey off your back, you never understand what it feels like.”
For Manchester United, the defeat compounds a season of deep frustration.
Mired near the bottom of the Premier League, the Red Devils now face the prospect of a campaign without European competition, leaving Ruben Amorim, United’s beleaguered coach, to rebuild at Old Trafford without the draw of European nights.
The final presented a fascinating spectacle: two Premier League underachievers transformed into European contenders and it was Tottenham who proved that European football can provide unexpected redemption.
Amorim’s side will be thoroughly sick of the sight of Spurs, who extended their unbeaten run against United to seven matches, completing an unprecedented seasonal sweep with four wins in four encounters, a first in their history against the Manchester club.
As jubilant Spurs captain Son Heung-min lifted his first trophy with the club and celebrated with his teammates beneath cascading confetti in the balmy evening air of Bilbao, Tottenham’s long-suffering faithful rejoiced.
After 41 years without European silverware and countless near-misses, they finally had a night to remember.
