Thomas Hitzelsperger and Nicky Bandini praise the work-rate of Khvicha Kvaratskhelia who acts as the “first line of defence” for Paris Saint-Germain as the French champions beat Inter Milan 5-0 in the UEFA Champions League final at the Allianz Arena in Munich.
MATCH REPORT: UEFA Champions League Final – PSG 5-0 Inter Milan
Available to UK users only.
Billions of dollars have been spent. Some of the world’s greatest players have come and gone. Yet the Champions League trophy has remained agonisingly out of reach for Paris Saint-Germain.
That could be about to change.
The Qatari-owned team is one game away from European club football’s most prestigious prize, with Inter Milan standing in the way in Saturday’s final in Munich.
“The motivation for me is to win the Champions League title for the first time for PSG,” coach Luis Enrique said on Friday. “That is the gift I want to give the people, the club, the city.”
PSG is the favourite, with a thrilling young team that has produced stunning performances to get past Manchester City, Liverpool and Arsenal. It feels like its time has finally come.
But Inter is a wily opponent that is in its second final in three seasons and cut down a rampant Barcelona in an epic semifinal — winning 7-6 on aggregate.
“Our opponent, we hold the utmost respect for,” Inter captain Lautaro Martinez said. “But with the weapons we’ve got, we want to hit them where it hurts.”
The warning signs are there for PSG.
PSG’s run to the final has justified a shift in direction from the bling culture of superstar signings to focus more on young French talent.
Owned by Qatar Sports Investments since 2011, PSG signed some of the biggest names in football, including Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Kylian Mbappe, Neymar and Lionel Messi without ever getting its hands on the trophy it craves most of all.
Messi, Neymar and Mbappe have all gone, and without those iconic figures, PSG looks a more complete team.
“It’s about being a team, not a group of individuals,” PSG captain Marquinhos said. “I’m in love with this team. It’s a delight to be part of the squad.”
PSG’s transformation has still come at some cost.
Players like Ousmane Dembele, Desire Doue and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia were signed for an estimated $240m combined in a squad assembled at spectacular expense.
Meanwhile, Inter has been savvy in the market — signing older players and picking up free agents to put together a team that has reached two Champions League finals in three years — losing to Man City in 2023 — and won an Italian title in that time.
PSG’s only previous final was in 2020, a 1-0 loss to Bayern Munich.
It was a semifinalist in 2021 and 2024. Elimination in the round of 16 in 2022 and 2023 preceded the decision by President Nasser Al-Khelaifi to change his transfer strategy.
This year is only the second time since 2011 that three-time champion Inter has advanced beyond the round of 16.
Inter last won the Champions League in 2010 under Jose Mourinho.
Dembele has been one of the outstanding players in Europe this season with 30 goals in all competitions for PSG, including a run of 24 in 18 games from December to March.
Kvaratskhelia was signed from Napoli in January and sparked a turnaround in PSG’s fortunes in the Champions League when it looked in danger of being eliminated at the league stage.
The Georgian forward was long considered one of the brightest talents in Europe before making the move and has added another dimension to an already thrilling PSG attack.
Midfielders Vitinha and Joao Neves are the engine, hungrily hunting down the ball when out of possession and springing attacks with the speed of their passing.
World Cup winner Lautaro Martinez is Inter’s standout player and became the club’s all-time leading scorer in the Champions League this season.
“I’ve won big trophies, but I’m missing the Champions League. I’m happy to be in another final. We want to have the perfect game and bring the trophy back to Milan,” the Argentinian forward said.
Defender Denzel Dumfries played a huge role in beating Barcelona with two goals in the first leg at the Nou Camp and goalkeeper Yann Sommer pulled off a string of saves to keep Inter in the tie in the second leg.
A Champions League winner with Barcelona in 2015, Luis Enrique has won 12 major trophies in spells with the Catalan club and PSG.
If his club, the French champions, triumph on Saturday, he would become the seventh coach to win the Champions League or European Cup with two different teams. The list includes Carlo Ancelotti, Pep Guardiola and Mourinho.
Victory would come 10 years after his previous title.
“I have peace of mind. I’ve got 10 years more experience since the last time,” Luis Enrique said. “It’s a wonderful opportunity to play in a final and make history.”
Inter’s Simone Inzaghi is hoping to win his first Champions League title at the second time of asking after the defeat to City two years ago.
Then, as now, Inter was the underdog, and came close to upsetting Guardiola’s all-conquering City.
“Matches don’t come down to wage bills or turnover, it’s the players on the pitch,” Inzaghi said. “We were huge underdogs two years ago and went toe to toe.
“I dreamt of playing the Champions League final. I didn’t do it as a player, but thanks to this group of players, I’ve been in two finals as a head coach.”
Inzaghi cannot match Enrique’s trophy count but has impressed at Inter where he won Serie A last year, and alongside two Italian Cups, it was his third overall. Only a week ago, Inter surrendered the Serie A title by one point.
What: UEFA Champions League final
When: Saturday, May 31, 9pm (19:00 GMT)
Where: Allianz Arena, Munich, Germany
Who: Paris Saint-Germain (France) vs Inter Milan (Italy)
How to follow our coverage: We’ll have all the build-up from 5pm (15:00 GMT) on Al Jazeera Sport.
The 2024/25 UEFA Champions League season concludes at the dazzling Allianz Arena in Munich as Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) meet three-time champions Inter Milan in the final of Europe’s premier club competition.
PSG will be appearing in just their second Champions League final, having lost their first to German side Bayern Munich in 2020.
For PSG manager, Luis Enrique, it is just the latest chapter in his record of climbing to new highs – first from release by Real Madrid, as a youngster, and then by winning the 2015 title treble at Barcelona as a coach, the club where he also made his name as a player.
PSG, backed by owners Qatar Sports Investments, booked their place in the Champions League final earlier in May. The Paris-based side beat Arsenal 2-1 at the Parc des Princes, winning their semifinal tie with a 3-1 aggregate scoreline.
Inter Milan beat Barcelona 7-6 on aggregate, with the second leg in Italy going to extra time despite the Spanish club leading in injury time in normal time.
Inter Milan finished second in Serie A in a dramatic final round showdown with Napoli, who began the final day with a one point advantage.
Once Napoli won their final game against Cagliari to seal the league title, Inter’s title charge was over, despite a hard-fought 2-0 win against Como.
PSG were dominant in the 2024-25 Ligue 1 season, wrapping up the domestic title by an incredible 19 points – and that was despite slacking off towards the end of the season with three straight winless matches to end their campaign.
Their last outing, however, was the French Cup final, which resulted in a 3-0 win against Reims last Saturday.
PSG’s gifted French forward, Ousmane Dembele, overcame a slow start to the season to reel off one of the greatest offensive performances in Europe this season.
In 50 appearances this season, the 27-year-old Dembele scored 32 goals – and he was huge part of an incredible 30-match unbeaten league run by PSG.
Inter Milan’s French international Marcus Thuram has netted 18 goals in 52 appearances this season.
Son of Lilian Thuram, a legendary French World Cup winner, Marcus was born in Italy, where his father was representing Parma at the time.
The 27-year-old has scored twice for France in 29 appearances for his country, and has proved a fine foil for Inter’s top scorer this season, Lautaro Martinez.
The 2024/25 UEFA Champions League final will take place at the Munich Football Arena.
The 75,000 seat venue, better known as Allianz Arena, is the home of current German Bundesliga winners Bayern Munich.
It’s the first time a German venue has held the Champions League final since 2012.
This will be the first time that Inter and PSG meet in a competitive fixture.
The teams last played in a preseason friendly on August 1, 2023 at the Japan National Stadium in Tokyo. Inter won the contest 2-1 with Stefano Sensi scoring the game-winner in the 83rd minute.
Current PSG defender Achraf Hakimi last played for Inter Milan in the 2020-21 season.
The Spanish-born speedy right-back, widely regarded as one of the best full-backs in the world, was a casualty of Inter’s huge cost-cutting drive caused, in large part, by the financial debts attributed to the COVID-19 shutdown period.
Hakimi appeared in 37 matches for the Italian giants, scoring seven goals and racking up eight assists as Inter won their first domestic league title since 2010.
Out: None
Doubtful: None
Enrique has a fully fit squad to choose from, no doubt boosted by the fact that PSG wrapped up the French top flight with six games to spare – thereafter managing the players’ workloads in the run-up to the final.
Out: None
Doubtful: Bisseck (knee), Pavard (ankle), Zielinski (muscular)
Inter pushed champions Napoli to the wire in Serie A – which concluded last Friday – so will inevitably feel heavier in the legs.
Inter fullback Benjamin Pavard and striker Lautaro Martinez are both expected to be fully fit, with the latter having returned to the bench in recent matches.
“My wish is to have everyone available on Saturday evening,” Inzaghi said. “We’re going to approach the final in the best possible way.”
PSG: Donnarumma; Hakimi, Marquinhos, Pacho, Nuno Mendes; Joao Neves, Vitinha, Fabian Ruiz; Kvaratskhelia, Dembele, Barcola
Inter Milan: Sommer; Pavard, Acerbi, Bastoni; Dumfries, Barella, Calhanoglu, Mkhitaryan, Dimarco; Lautaro Martinez, Thuram
PSG (all competitions, most recent first):
W-W-W-W-L
Inter Milan (all competitions, most recent first):
W-D-W-W-W
Luis Enrique, PSG manager: “It’s Inter Milan’s second final in three years. They’re ready. They’ve not made too many changes to their side. It’s a team that dominates from set pieces. It’s up to us to go into the final in the right frame of mind.
“We’ve grown a lot this season and the players have progressed a lot. I think the strength of the team is the most important thing. You learn something every day after many years of experience as a coach, and I’m improving all the time with this group.”
Simone Inzaghi, Inter Milan manager: “The players did something extraordinary. We played four amazing games against two world-class teams like Bayern and Barcelona. It was great to celebrate this achievement [reaching the final] here with our fans.”
Rotating and resting players in secondary cups is not a new phenomenon – but Chelsea took it to a new level in the Conference League this season.
They averaged 8.5 changes per European game, based on their previous Premier League line-up.
In the league stage there was a recognised Premier League team and a Conference League XI – with very little overlap. They were much changed in the domestic cups too, although fell at the second hurdle in both.
England forward Palmer, their star player, was not even registered in Europe until the knockout games.
As the Blues started playing in knockout games they started using more first-team players, like Palmer, Caicedo and Marc Cucurella.
But even through that they never made fewer than five changes from their last league game, including the final.
As the season ends, well, until next month’s Fifa Club World Cup, 18 Chelsea players featured in more Conference League than Premier League games this season.
That includes five players who left the club in January.
Midfielder Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, who played all 15 European games, featured 13 times in the league.
Marc Guiu, whose six goals were two shy of the Conference League Golden Boot, has yet to start a league game.
However, the final saw a stronger XI, with only four outfield changes from the side that beat Nottingham Forest last Sunday to clinch a Champions League spot.
“Chelsea have got so much more money than anyone else competing in this competition,” said ex-Blues winger Pat Nevin on BBC Radio 5 Live.
“But they have respected the competition by saying, ‘we’re not going to put out the softest of teams but we’ll put out enough to make sure we’ll get through’.
“I have to say, looking back on it all now, Enzo Maresca has done a great job.”
When Luis Enrique leads his Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) team out to play Inter Milan in Saturday’s UEFA Champions League final, the coach will be seeking to win the European continent’s top prize for the first time for the French side and reverse years of fan frustration at the Parc des Princes.
This is the club which, until recently, boasted superstar players the caliber of Kylian Mbappe, Lionel Messi and Neymar Jr, but failed to win any European silverware since the third-tier UEFA Intertoto Cup way back in 2001.
Since his arrival in 2023, Enrique has changed PSG radically, overseeing the high-profile exits of Messi, Neymar and Mbappe, and transitioning from a team of ageing galacticos into one of the most exciting attacking sides in Europe.
Whether Enrique’s method is the best may ultimately be judged by what happens in the Champions League final in Munich.
Away from events on the pitch, who is the real Luis Enrique who has presided over this radical transformation at PSG?
The 55-year-old began his football career in 1988, playing in the midfield for his local side, Sporting Gijon, a team in the Spanish Segunda Division.
In 1991 he was signed by mega club Real Madrid where he helped Los Blancos win La Liga, the Copa del Rey and the Super Cup. On an individual level, Enrique did not perform up to expectations, which was mostly attributed to playing out of position on the wing and in more defensive roles.
Bitter rivals FC Barcelona snapped up an out-of-form Enrique in 1996, where he reverted to his favoured central midfield role. It paid dividends for the Catalan giants and Enrique went on to win La Liga, the Copa del Rey and Spanish Super Cup trophies with Barca.
After retiring as a player in 2004, he went into management, reportedly at the invitation of current Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola.
Enrique started his coaching career at FC Barcelona “B”, before moving to AS Roma in Italy’s Serie A for the 2011-2012 season. The Spaniard was sacked at the end of the season, with a year still remaining on his contract, after Roma finished a disappointing seventh in the premier domestic competition.
His next move was to Spanish La Liga side Celta Vigo – but he also departed from that club after just one year. It was then that Enrique received his career-altering managerial opportunity, returning to Barcelona as manager of the first team.
His four-year reign at the Nou Camp was crowned by Barca’s victory in the Champions League final in 2015 against Juventus, with the “Big-3” of Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar leading the attacking line, completing a rare treble for the club: Spanish League (La Liga), Spanish Cup (Copa del Rey) and European (Champions League) titles.
If PSG win the Champions League final on Saturday, Enrique will make history be becoming the only man to ever achieve a treble on two occasions.
When Enrique was named team coach of Spain in 2018, he entered a new world of international football.
Before the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, Spain was fancied as possible winners. However, after a crushing round of 16 loss to underdogs Morocco, Enrique announced his resignation from the national side.
Incessant media speculation linked Enrique’s next managerial job with a move to England’s Premier League.
He was interviewed by Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea – but it was PSG, to the surprise of many, who secured his signature.
Perhaps it was the unique challenge of winning the Champions League with one of only two European super clubs never to have achieved the milestone – Arsenal being the other – which made him head to Paris.
Or perhaps it was a desire to show off his vision of attacking football by rebuilding a club his way.
A recent three-part documentary, produced by Zoom Sport Films, provided an intimate portrait of the coach who allowed the cameras into his private life for the first time, despite Enrique’s well-known animosity towards the media.
No Teneis Ni P*** Idea (You Don’t Have Any F****** Idea) reveals a driven man who is as passionate about football as his family – and keeping fit.
Viewers see Enrique arriving at PSG speaking only a few words of French. Nevertheless, he imposes his character on the club from the start.
Known by his nickname, Lucho, Enrique brings a Spanish-speaking coaching staff with him and addresses the players in his own language, with the aid of a French translator.
As relations with his biggest star – Mbappe – appear to worsen, viewers are treated to Enrique giving the star player what former Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson used to call the “hairdryer treatment”, or a huge telling off.
But, as this is France, Enrique calls it “C’est Catastrophique (It’s catastrophic)” on a big presentation screen to the striker. The Spaniard is referring to Mbappe’s apparent refusal to defend at all after PSG were beaten 2-3 at home by Barcelona in the quarterfinal of the Champions League in April last year.
Despite the manager-star player bust-up, PSG would move on to the semifinals, where they were ultimately beaten by Borussia Dortmund. A year on, Enrique’s post-match comments may turn out to be prophetic:
“Now it’s a sad moment but you have to accept sometimes sport is that way. We have to try to create something special next year and win it.”
Curiously for a football manager, he spends much of his day studying his team on a series of computer screens. This is interspersed with workouts. “You must move every half an hour,” he says. In the documentary, Enrique is seen, in his plush Parisian house, regularly doing various strenuous exercises or cycling.
At the PSG training camp, he mixes team talks with plunges into his ice pool. It pays off, as the manager is fit. But when he walks around the pitch, it is always barefoot as he believes in “grounding” or getting back in touch with nature.
The documentary mixes moments from Enrique’s illustrious career, from the Real Madrid and Barca days, as well as the Spain role – the good and the bad. Not surprisingly, the lowest point is when Morocco upsets Spain and knocks the bookmaker’s favourite out of the World Cup.
Away from football, we also see a tender side to Lucho when the documentary touches on his close relationship with his youngest daughter, Xana, who died at the age of nine from osteosarcoma, a bone tumour, in 2019.
Enrique set up a foundation in her name with his wife, Elena Cullell, to try to help other families who are stricken by the same condition.
Graham Hunter, a producer on the documentary and a football journalist who is friends with Enrique, described his personality as “demanding and inspirational”.
“As a footballer, he was exceptional. A Spanish Roy Keane. His ability to play everywhere on the pitch slightly cut how good he was because managers used him all over the pitch. He was trophy-laden at Madrid and Barca,” he says.
“He did not want to be a coach originally. [He] Accepted an invitation from Pep [Guardiola] I think to coach Barca B. Although he clashed a little bit with Messi and Luis Suarez but that [2015] Champions League victory, it was unbelievable. They won the treble.”
Hunter believes Enrique changed the playing style of the Spain team during his managerial tenure, introducing young talent like Pedri.
“He built what has become a winning franchise and he carries a huge amount of credit to him,” he said.
Hunter says Enrique did not just go to PSG to win the Champions League.
“He went to PSG to imprint his brand of football and to convince the players, the fans that it was a brilliant, modern way to play football and to do that, you have to win the Champions League. For him, he is as interested in how people see his football as attacking and inspirational as winning trophies.”
Who: Barcelona vs Arsenal
What: UEFA Women’s Champions League final
When: Saturday, May 24 (18:00 kickoff, 16:00 GMT)
Where: Estadio Jose Alvalade in Lisbon, Portugal
Follow Al Jazeera Sport‘s live text and photo commentary stream.
Barcelona are aiming to complete a three-peat of Women’s Champions League titles and win its fourth European crown in five years when it faces Arsenal in Lisbon on Saturday.
Al Jazeera Sport looks at a final that pits two of the biggest names in women’s football for the game’s biggest club prize.
Barcelona are out to reaffirm their status as the dominant force in European women’s football after they finally beat Lyon and successfully defended their title in last year’s final.
Their possession-hungry and high-scoring attack is led from the midfield by Ballon d’Or winners Aitana Bonmati and Alexia Putellas and several other members of Spain’s World Cup-winning team that beat England in the 2023 final.
Barcelona will be playing in its sixth Champions League final in seven seasons and a record-equalling fifth in a row at Lisbon’s 50,000-capacity Estadio Jose Alvalade.
The Catalan club has the chance to become the only team other than Lyon to lift the European Cup in three consecutive years.
Bonmati, the Ballon d’Or winner in 2023 and 2024, said the experience gained from previous finals is invaluable.
“I’ve learned a lot of things. It is the path that has fallen to us. The first final in Budapest was an inexperienced team that was going to see what happened. Now, we are the team to beat,” she said.
“Knowing how to be, knowing how to suffer, is very important. And never giving up. We have had finals where we have come back. We have had games of all colours.”
Standing in Barcelona’s way is an Arsenal team that has excelled as a spoiler this campaign and hopes it can pull off another upset and win its second European title.
“They’re a fantastic team and they’ve obviously got the recent history to prove it,” Arsenal defender Leah Williamson said about Barcelona in the build-up to the final.
“We respect them a lot, but it’s a final, so everybody turns up and everybody gives their best.”
First-year Barcelona coach Pere Romeu has a side that can hit from all angles with multiple scoring options.
They lead all the major team statistics in attack: most goals scored with 44, to Arsenal’s 25, the highest possession, best pass accuracy and most shot attempts.
Barcelona forward Claudia Pina leads the competition in scoring with 10 goals, ahead of Arsenal pair Mariona Caldentey, who joined from the Spanish club last year, and Alessia Russo with seven each. Bonmati and teammate Patri Guijarro lead the competition with five assists each.
Barcelona added to its winning squad in the offseason by signing Poland striker Ewa Pajor, who went on to lead the Spanish league with 23 goals.
Pajor, 28, is seeking her first European title after losing four finals with former club Wolfsburg, including the 2023 final to Barcelona after leading 2-0.
“The final is played in the details, and we can prepare the details before the game,” Pajor said. “What I have also learned, because I’ve played in four finals, you have to be there in the first minute until the end.”
Barcelona has rolled to a sixth consecutive Liga F title and has reached another Copa de la Reina final, but at the same time, it has proven beatable.
Barcelona’s home unbeaten run in Liga F came to an end after a record 64 games this season, and it lost to Real Madrid for the first time in 19 Clasicos since its top rival founded a women’s team.
They also started the Champions League with a rare group stage loss to Manchester City.
“We lost a couple more games than we are used to, and we lost some games that hurt more than others,” Barcelona forward Caroline Graham said, adding about the City defeat: “A lot of people thought that our run to be good in the Champions League was a bit over. That was a motivation to show that we still are good and that we can still compete against the best.”
Arsenal remain the only English team to win the biggest title in women’s club football after it won UEFA’s Women’s Cup in 2007 when it beat Umea, two years before the tournament was reformatted and renamed the Women’s Champions League.
Arsenal may be the underdog, but it is likely comfortable with that role given its recent run of comebacks.
Renee Slegers’s side rallied against Madrid in the quarterfinals, and then shocked eight-time winner Lyon in the semifinals when they rebounded from a 2-1 loss in London by winning 4-1 in France.
This is the English club’s only chance to win some silverware this campaign after finishing second to Chelsea in England’s Women’s Super League and failing to reach the finals of the FA Cup or League Cup.
“We’ve had to come back from a lot of difficult situations, from setbacks, but the persistence of the team and the [fact that we] keep on believing, that’s been key for us,” Slegers said. “We’ve done some magical things.”
Arsenal were Barcelona’s first opponents in Europe’s top club competition in the 2012-13 season, when the English side crushed the Catalans 7-0 over two legs.
Barcelona were nowhere near as good as they are now, however. They overwhelmed Chelsea, who went unbeaten across the 22-game Women’s Super League season en route to winning the title, 8-2 on aggregate in the Champions League semifinals.
“Everything leads you to be what you are now,” Putellas said. “In that first match of this competition, it was unthinkable what would come next. It’s thanks to work. I feel privileged to have been able to live this whole journey.”
Who: Manchester United vs Tottenham Hotspur
What: UEFA Europa League final 2025
Where: San Mames Stadium in Bilbao, Spain
When: Wednesday at 9pm (19:00 GMT)
Follow Al Jazeera Sport‘s live text and photo commentary stream.
Manchester United clash with Tottenham Hotspur on Wednesday in an all-English Europa League final, which has major implications on and off the field.
The winner of this final not only – and unexpectedly, based on their horrendous bottom-five domestic form – take home a European crown, but also punch their golden ticket for entry into next season’s lucrative UEFA Champions League, resulting in tens of millions of dollars in extra revenue.
Al Jazeera Sport chronicles the key talking points ahead of a classic winner-takes-most showdown between two of England’s highest-profile clubs looking to reverse their regrettable seasons with an unexpected European triumph.
There has never been any final, in any UEFA competition, where both clubs have been so low in their domestic league tables.
Both clubs head to Bilbao for the final, assailed by stinging criticism amid their worst seasons of the English Premier League era.
United sit 16th on the ladder, and Tottenham are one point worse off in 17th, with just one league game remaining.
Only the struggles of relegated trio Ipswich, Leicester and Southampton saved United and Tottenham from a highly embarrassing battle to avoid crashing into the second-tier championship.
UEFA allows the winners of their second-tier Europa League competition direct entry into the 2025-26 UEFA Champions League, without the need for additional qualifying matches.
Additionally, they will earn the right to play against the winners of the 2024-25 Champions League in the UEFA Super Cup on August 13.
For the losers of the final in Bilbao, the hangover from this catastrophic domestic season threatens to be a long one, with the possibility of European football exile until at least the 2026-27 season.
The winners of the Europa League final could receive up to a 65-million-euro ($73m) boost.
This calculation is reached by combining the Europa League prize money and the TV and gate revenue derived from the winning team’s participation in the league phase of next season’s Champions League.
The teams last met at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London on February 16, with James Maddison’s 13th-minute game-winner handing the home team a 1-0 victory against United.
Spurs have won all three of their meetings with United in all competitions this season, twice in the Premier League and once in the EFL Cup quarterfinals.
United’s last win in the Premier League was on March 16, a 3-0 victory at Leicester. Since then, Ruben Amorim’s side has registered six defeats and two draws in the domestic competition.
United’s only two victories in May came in the Europa League semifinals against Athletic Club.
Spurs have been equally dreadful in the final two months of the Premier League season, losing five and drawing once in their last six games.
Their last domestic league victory was a 3-1 home win against Southampton way back on April 6, leading to constant media speculation that manager Ange Postecoglou’s job is under threat for next season.
San Mames Stadium in Bilbao, Spain is the venue for the final.
With a seating capacity in excess of 50,000, the stadium is home to Athletic Club, who, by chance, are the team Manchester United defeated on May 8 in the Europa League semifinal to progress to the final.
UEFA has confirmed that the two teams will receive an allocation of 15,000 tickets each, with a further 11,000 tickets up for general sale and the remainder offered to hospitality and sponsors.
According to Manchester United’s official website, the Red Devils received a triple boost on the eve of the UEFA Europa League final with sidelined stars Diogo Dalot, Leny Yoro, and Joshua Zirkzee spotted taking part in the team’s build-up training session on Tuesday.
Zirkzee had been ruled out for the rest of the season after suffering a hamstring injury in April, but could be available for selection after missing United’s last eight games.
Another Dutchman, centre-back Matthijs de Ligt, is also questionable ahead of the match, but he was seen running through some training drills in an individual workout on Tuesday.
Striker Rasmus Hojlund, who has struggled up front for large parts of the season, is tipped to lead the line for Amorim’s side.
Spurs will line up without key midfield players Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski, as well as promising youngster Lucas Bergvall, who are all ruled out with injury.
Maddison, who was set to miss the rest of the season with a knee issue, did board the team bus for Bilbao, leading to rampant media speculation he might play in the final, despite being ruled out by Postecoglou.
Tottenham captain Son Heung-Min, who sustained a foot injury in April and missed seven consecutive matches, is on course to be fit for the final after making his first start against Aston Villa last Friday, according to the team.
Better news in the backline for Tottenham, with previously injured defenders Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven both available for selection.
United possible starting XI: Onana (GK); Yoro, Maguire, Lindelof; Mazraoui, Casemiro, Ugarte, Dorgu; Fernandes, Amad; Hojlund
Tottenham possible starting XI: Vicario (GK); Porro, Romero, Van de Ven, Udogie; Sarr, Bissouma, Bentancur; Johnson, Solanke, Son
The winners of the 2025 Europa League final will receive a prize money of 13 million euros ($14.6m). The runners-up are allocated 7 million euros ($7.87m).
Both clubs could use the money to pay down their debt: Spurs recorded an annual operating loss of 26 million pounds ($34.7m) last year, while United’s deficit was 113 million pounds ($151m) over the same period.
Ruben Amorim, Manchester United manager: “I feel it’s a mixed feeling. I’m really excited, but at the same time, I know my responsibility as Manchester United coach. I have always [had] that feeling of frustration for the season, so I want really badly to help the team win this final. We’ve got to give something to the club, to the fans, to the staff, to everybody.”
Ange Postecoglou, Tottenham Hotspur manager: “I mean, who cares if we’re struggling in the league? Why is that important? If it’s so easy to get to a final, then why doesn’t everyone who finishes in the top three do it?
“We understand our league form hasn’t been great. We understand the struggles we’ve had. A lot of them are because of the situation we’ve been in. But how does that diminish the achievement of getting to a final?
“I couldn’t care less who’s struggling and who’s not. I think both us and United have earned the right to be there.”
Son Heung-Min, Tottenham captain: “We always respect our opponents, but I think it’s important to do what we need to do. I think the Manchester United players would think the same. It’s definitely going to be a great game, but it will be a difficult one. But I think we want to win it even more.
“I have accomplished everything in the 10 years I’ve been at Tottenham, except for one thing [winning a European title]. I’ve worked hard to make up for that and have always dreamed of winning a trophy in a Tottenham shirt. So, I hope we can make that dream a reality.”
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE? You’re having a laugh.
We’ve all heard it. The derisory chant from opposition fans when one of the so-called ‘big guns’ is having an off day.
4
4
For example, Southampton supporters had every right to aim it at the multi-billionaires of Manchester City last weekend, when they couldn’t find a way past the worst team in the Premier League.
Only now what was once a mildly amusing terrace jibe sums up perfectly what the leading club competition in the world has become. A joke.
Next season there will be a record SIX English teams in the Champions League.
Almost one third of the entire Premier League will be waved straight into the bizarre league phase by Uefa’s welcoming doormen at an empty small town disco on a wet Tuesday night.
Anyone can come in. From Liverpool who finished top, right down to hapless Tottenham or abject Manchester United hovering above the relegation zone.
It is time to officially ban the phrase ‘elite competition’ whenever the Champions League is mentioned on TV and radio or written in print.
There was a time when you had to win your domestic league to progress into the highest level of European football the following season.
Simple as that.
CASINO SPECIAL – BEST CASINO BONUSES FROM £10 DEPOSITS
4
We are now at a point where English Premier League teams have to work harder to stay out of the modern Champions League than to get in.
Spurs and Man United, regular participants in the past, have done spectacularly well trying to cock up their seasons. Yet
by virtue of winning the Europa League one of them will be alongside Liverpool, Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich, the already declared winners of their respective leagues.
Erratic Chelsea, under the guidance of boss Enzo Maresca, have lost to Ipswich, Fulham and Brighton.
From winning five Premier League games in a row, they went winless in the next five and couldn’t string a pass together.
They lag 20 POINTS behind the bona fide champions of England from Anfield and are fifth.
Don’t bet against them being in next season’s Champions League.
The constant tinkering and chiselling away at a once simple game has led to Uefa getting its knickers in a right old twist.
Fifth in this year’s Premier League grants a free pass into the treasure trove of the Champions League thanks to the coefficients which measure success where once it was about winning.
A whole page is devoted to thrill-a-minute ‘coefficients’ on the governing body’s website to explain how a system that would baffle Stephen Hawking’s much cleverer cousin actually works: “Uefa calculates the coefficient of each club each season based on the clubs’ results in the Uefa Champions League, Uefa Europa League and Uefa Conference League.
“The season coefficients from the five most recent seasons are used to rank the clubs for seeding purposes (sporting club coefficient).
“In addition, the season coefficients from the ten most recent seasons are used to calculate revenue club coefficients for revenue distribution purposes only.”
And that’s just the overview.
There’s a gag in there somewhere about how many coefficients does it take to ruin a game of football? Only I can’t see a funny punch line.
There was a time back when the world was black and white in the 1950s when two imaginative French journalists took inspiration from South America and came up with the idea of the best clubs from each country competing for a trophy on our continent.
Ironically, it wasn’t called the Champions League back then. It was the plain old European Cup. A cup fought over by teams in Europe. Simple eh?
Liverpool’s first steps into the European Cup came in 1964, our sole representatives having won the league the previous season under Bill Shankly.
Next season they share the honour with five other English teams and some of them are pretty ordinary.
If Spurs win the Europa League and follow it up by winning the Champions League next year, the champions of Europe will come from a team currently 17th in England’s top division.
You can argue it won’t happen. Yet somehow a side which has lost more league games than it has won this season is in a European final next week.
That’s cup football for you and it’s a wonderful lottery. Qualification for the Champions League is not. It’s a boring carve up.
4