Europa League Final recap as Spurs beat Man Utd to book Champions League spot

Thanks for staying with us for all your Europa League final needs.

That's all from us for now, but stick with Mirror Football for all the reaction, both tonight and tomorrow morning.

Goodnight!

He said he'd win a trophy in his second season, and so it proved.

Even Mohamed Salah has been impressed.

The contrast between winning and losing is always stark.

But on this occasion it felt particularly powerful.

Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou is absolutely lapping up the adulation.

He's delivered on his promise to win a trophy in his second season.

And to do it with Spurs means, whatever you think of the Australian, his name now goes down in the club's folklore.

Opposite number Ruben Amorim, meanwhile, looked utterly desolate at the opposite end of the pitch.

He sunk to his haunches, attempting to take in the magnitude of this crushing loss.

It will have enormous ramifications for Manchester United.

And maybe for him.

Co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe has proved already he doesn't suffer fools gladly. And no one on the planet should be surprised if he decides to sack Amorim in the coming weeks.

Ange Postecoglou isn't ready to ride off into the sunset right now.

"I don't feel like I've completed the job yet, we're still building," he tells TNT Sports.

Predictably, after losing and with their team putting in such an insipid display, United's dispirited travelling fans have begun their mass exodus from the San Mames Stadium.

The inquest for United will be a painful one, with no European football at Old Trafford next season, for only the second time in three decades.

Amorim will face legitimate questions over his team selection, chiefly starting the ineffective Mason Mount over Alejandro Garnacgo and continuing to start with Rasmus Hojlund leading United's attack, when he is patenty not up to the task.

With no European games, Amorim's squad will need to be trimmed, with many players now facing an uncertain summer in terms of their futures.

As the players gathered on the field, there was a clash between Harry Maguire and Cristiano Romero.

We don't yet know what was said between the pair, but it could have had something to do with a clash late in regular time which saw Maguire go into the book.

What a moment for this young side.

Spurs injured stars have walked up too, with Radu Dragusin and Lucas Bergvall among those unable to play a part in Bilbao.

Plenty of the players are draped in their national flags for the celebrations too - including Cristian Romero, who has won it all with Argentina and now added a major club trophy.

We've heard about Ange Postecoglou feeling the pressure, but what about Ruben Amorim.

Manchester United have endured similar struggles in the league, and now don't even have a trophy at the end of it all.

Mirror Football's Andy Dunn explains how Amorim may well have questions to answer.

Gareth Bale was impressed by Spurs' performance, not least because of how Ange Postecoglou was able to do things differently.

There have been times the Australian has adopted what some feel is too open an approach, allowing opponents to take advantage too easily.

However, as former Spurs star Bale pointed out, tonight showed he does have another way of approaching a big game - and it's one that worked perfectly.

Brennan Johnson is Spurs' match-winner, and said he's expecting a mic drop moment when Ange Postecoglou speaks to the media.

The boss said he wins in his second season and so it proved.

It's a win for Spurs, but will it be enough for their manager to stick around?

Speaking before the game, Jamie Carragher and Roy Keane suggested Ange Postecoglou would leave in the summer, win or lose.

There's one more league game to go, and after that we'll know what's next for the Australian.

"I don't think they've done enough to deserve it," Rio Ferdinand says of his former club Manchester United.

"Both teams were more scared to lose the game.

"The [Spurs] keeper I think made one save in the whole game and you can't expect to win a trophy like that"

"Incredible - I've got no nails left!" - that's the instant reaction from former Spurs player and manager Glenn Hoddle

"Fantastic for the club.

"It wasn't a classic but cup finals are about winning games."

It's all over!

Spurs have held on and are the Europa League champions.

They'll be playing Champions League football next season, while Manchester United won't have European football at all.

Leny Yoro's tried his luck from distance but he can't find the target.

A huge cheer for that from the Spurs end,

Still time for another chance, with Luke Shaw winning a header inside the box, but there's a big Vicario save - and a similar fan reaction.

This will go down as one of the worst European finals in history.

The standard of football is desperate.

Which feels fitting, considering what remains at stake for both clubs.

Both managers are becoming increasingly animated on the sidelines.

United remain on top, largely because Spurs have no outlet when they get the ball.

Ange Postecoglou had decided to bunker down and hope for the best, basically.

The board has gone up, and we'll have at least seven more minutes.

Still time for United to find a goal, but Spurs know how long they have left.

A huge few minutes for both teams.

Djed Spence and Archie Gray on for Spurs. Kobbie Mainoo for United.

Sarr and Udogie leave the field for Spurs, while it's Patrick Dorgu coming off for their opponents.

We've got less than a minute of the 90 left, but we can expect more time to be added.

Brennan Johnson's race is run.

The forward is making way, with defender Kevin Danso on in his place.

With 12 minutes to go, Spurs are switching to a back five and it could be a case of 'what we have, we hold'.

That didn't take long.

Alejandro Garnacho picks up the ball wide left and runs at Pedro Porro before firing in a low shot.

This time, though, Vicario gets a strong hand to it and the ball goes behind for a corner,

Ruben Amorim has turned to his bench with 20 minutes to go.

It's time for Alejandro Garnacho, as some predicted, with Joshua Zirkzee also coming on.

Rasmus Hojlund and Mason Mount are the players withdrawn.

So close to an equaliser!

Micky van de Ven has to be at his acrobatic best to clear Rasmus Hojlund's header off the line!

It's another let-off for Vicario, who came for a high ball in the box but couldn't clear the danger. Still 1-0.

United are pushing now, but they're leaving themselves open on the counter.

They were almost punished, too, and a better first touch from Dominic Solanke might have had Spurs doubling their lead.

It might be a cliche, but the next goal here will be huge.

Bruno Fernandes swings in a free-kick from the right, and Leny Yoro gets to it before Guglielmo Vicario.

The Spurs keeper was certainly second to the ball, but got his body in the way of Yoro's toed effort to keep the ball out.

That could have gone very differently.

Loud chants of 'Oh when the Spurs go marching in' can be heard in San Mames.

Still a long way to go, but United haven't looked massively close to pulling level since they fell behind.

The winner of tonight's final will earn just shy of £11m, with £5.9m in prize money going the way of the losers.

That's on top of the millions United and Spurs got for their group stage achievements.

And it's before we get on to the significant sums the winner will secure for next season due to Champions League qualification.

Both managers are waiting to make their first changes of the game.

We'll have to wait for Garnacho, Son and anyone else.

Back underway in Bilbao.

Some members of the Tottenham media and social media team are sat next to me in the Bilbao press seats.

They've just had a little pow wow at the start of half time.

A few fist bumps and all smiles.

Still a long way to go, of course, but safe to say spirits high in the Spurs camp following that first half.

Manchester United came desperately close to winning this competition back in 2021.

They overcame Real Sociedad along the way that time, just as they have in 2025, before overcoming AC Milan, Granada and Roma.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's side came up short in the final, though, with Villarreal claiming a dramatic penalty-shootout win as David de Gea failed from the spot.

Did you experience buffering on your stream of the match during the first half?

You weren't the only ones, with fans complaining on social media.