That’s all we have for now from our live blog as Australia celebrates Ange Postecoglou leading Tottenham Hotspur to the Europe League title in Bilbao, Spain.
Spurs fans celebrate at full time in the Beehive Pub, Tottenham.Credit: Getty Images
Spurs won the match 1-0 after a Brennan Johnson goal just before half-time and Postecoglou has become the first Australian and first Greek-born manager to win a major European title while the club has broken its 17-year trophy drought as well.
So from Athens to Melbourne to Tottenham to Bilbao and beyond - there will be joyous celebrations going on.
A huge thanks to Vince Rugari for leading the blog through all the chaos of this match, it’s been a pleasure to step in and handle things post game.
We will have more coverage to come from Vince in the coming hours, so please keep an eye out on ourwebsites.
Bye for now and have a lovely day.
Spurs player ratings
Here are the player ratings for the Spurs players today via The Telegraph, London.
Guglielmo Vicario
The Tottenham goalkeeper looked nervous at times. Never more so in the second half when he almost handed United an equaliser with a desperately bad punch. In the first half, he needlessly patted the ball out for a corner. But he did save from Garnacho and made a crucial last-gasp stop. 6
Pedro Porro
It was Porro’s early cross that had Onana in trouble and almost found Richarlison. The right-back took most of the set-pieces and was Tottenham’s most creative player in the absence of James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski in the first half. He was less of a threat when Spurs retreated, but defended well. 7
Pedro Porro of Tottenham Hotspur poses for a photograph with the UEFA Europa League trophy.Credit: Getty Images
Cristian Romero
A serial winner with his country Argentina, Romero was one of the few Tottenham players with some real trophy pedigree on his side. He had to cut out a dangerous Dorgu cross and, starting as captain for the night, was first to argue the case of his team-mates with the referee and the opposition. 8
Micky van de Ven
Got Vicario off the hook with an incredible acrobatic clearance to stop Hojlund’s header crossing the line. The Dutchman had been wrapped in cotton wool since the semi-final victory over Bodo/Glimt, with Ange Postecoglou keeping him fit for the final. That move was justified, as nothing and nobody could get past Van de Ven. 9
Destiny Udogie
Perhaps the hardest task of the Tottenham players by trying to keep Diallo quiet. The Manchester United winger danced his way around Udogie on more than one occasion in the first half, but Tottenham’s left-back broke up the pitch effectively when he had the chance. 6
Yves Bissouma
The midfielder stayed down after being fouled by Mazraoui. No free-kick was given and he did not need treatment. That summed up an all-action display from Bissouma, who, along with Bentancur, did his best to keep Fernandes quiet. 7
Rodrigo Bentancur
This has been a strange season for the Uruguayan following a lengthy suspension and injuries. But he has been an important presence in the latter stages of the Europa League. In Bilbao he battled hard for every ball and tried to break up United’s attacks. 7
Tottenham’s Pape Matar Sarr, left, heads the ball past Manchester United’s Harry Maguire.Credit: AP
Pape Sarr
With Maddison and Kulusevski both out injured, Sarr was given the role as Tottenham’s advanced midfielder. Postecoglou’s team lacked some craft without their most creative players, but Sarr made a vital contribution with the cross from which Spurs opened the scoring. 7
Brennan Johnson
It is normally Johnson at the back stick for Tottenham, but this time the forward made his presence felt at the front post. He was adjudged to have got the slightest of touches to help the ball over the line after Sarr’s cross had hit Shaw. Johnson will go down in the history books as Tottenham’s first goalscorer in a final since Jonathan Woodgate in 2008. 8
Richarlison
This was Potescoglou’s big decision. Tottenham have been statistically better with Richarlison in the team this season, but it was still a surprise that he went with the Brazilian over club captain Son Heung-min. The Brazilian was a physical presence for Postecoglou’s team and turned his way into space a couple of times. 6
Tottenham’s Richarlison celebrates after winning the Europa League final.Credit: AP
Dominic Solanke
Held the ball up well as Tottenham maintained their Europa League tactic of going long when they needed to. The striker passed up a great chance when he failed to control a pass from Bissouma that would have put him through on goal. 6
‘It cost us in the league’: Ange takes blame for Europe focus
By Roy Ward
We touched on Ange Postecoglou’s cheeky retort to one of his critics, former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher, following this morning’s Europa League win.
But Carragher asked Postecoglou a great question on CBS Sports about how he kept his belief that the team could win in Europe despite their struggles and the Spurs coach gave an excellent answer.
Here you can see the inter-play between Ange, a shouting Micah Richards and Carragher before the questions began.
“This has been the toughest couple of years I’ve had in my career, but I knew it going into it because this club has had world-class managers, a lot better credentialled than I am, and haven’t been able to get there,” Postecoglou told CBS Sports.
“I knew I had a massive challenge in front of me ... this year we had the added stress of the injury situation.
“I’ve just had this laser focus, I still believed we could win something this year. We went deep into the Carabao Cup and, once we were knocked out of that, my focus became Europe.
“That has cost us in the league and that is down to me. But I just had a feeling inside me that this was achievable this year, and I’m thankful it all worked out.”
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South Melbourne’s tribute to Ange
South Melbourne, Ange Postecoglou’s home club, have paid a glowing video tribute to their favourite son’s success with Tottenham this morning.
Check out this video, which has some choice cuts of Ange’s playing days and his early coaching stint at the club.
Amorim has ‘nothing to show’ Man United fans after loss
Under even more pressure after losing the biggest game of the season, Ruben Amorim was left asking Manchester United fans to have some faith in the future.
His team lost 1-0 to Premier League rival Tottenham in the Europa League final on Thursday AEST as United caps off one of the worst seasons in club history.
Ruben Amorim, Manager of Manchester United, gives instructions to his players from the touchline during the Europa League final.Credit: Getty Images
“I have nothing to show to our fans, I’m really honest with that,” Amorim said. “But again, I will continue to do things the way I know.”
Amorim said he “will not quit” or “change,” and didn’t want to talk about his future right after the loss.
“We have to see. This moment, I’m not going to be here defending myself. I have nothing to show to the fans and say, ‘I’m going to improve because of this...’” he said.
“So in this moment, it’s a little bit of faith. Let’s see. I’m always open. If the board and the fans feel that I’m not the right guy, I will go the next day. But I’m really confident about my job.”
The 40-year-old Amorim, who took over in November after the firing of Erik ten Hag, has led United to 16th in the Premier League, where it has a club-record 18 defeats in a single campaign since the Premier League began in 1992.
Manchester United’s Bruno Fernandes after his club’s defeat.Credit: AP
The team’s last hope of playing in a European competition next season was to win today.
“We have two plans for the market and we have to understand it is tough for a club like ours not to be in the Champions League,” Amorim said.
“But we have to use the other side. We have more time to think and to work hard during the week and to be better in the Premier League, that will be our focus.”
Amorim said he felt his team played better than Tottenham and deserved the victory on Wednesday.
“We didn’t perform perfectly today, but we were better than the opponent,” he said. “In the second half, we tried everything with the central defenders, with players wide, the process going in the box. There are some days I have said we were really poor, but I think today was not that day. We were not perfect though and we have a lot to improve.”
AP
Party time for Ange despite unclear future
By Roy Ward
Spurs coach Ange Postecoglou can’t be sure of his future at the club, but he plans to coach the last Premier League game of the season this weekend and then take a family holiday and see what fate has in store for him.
Critics have circled in the second half of the season as the club struggled to win EPL games and fell to the lower end of the table, but this breakthrough Europa League title has shown the potential of Tottenham under Postecoglou.
Daniel Levy, Chairman of Tottenham Hotspur, greets Ange Postecoglou, Manager of Tottenham Hotspur after winning the Europa League.Credit: Getty Images
It also showed he was willing to adjust his tactics to fit the moment, but when asked about his future, Postecoglou made his case.
“I said yesterday that I’m, kind of, not relaxed, that is not the word, because I’d be disappointed if we couldn’t continue on this path,” he said.
“But you know, I said it’s not a criticism. I understand why it would be difficult for a club like this to buy into one person’s vision.
“I remember when, even when I signed, the club really, even Daniel [Levy] sort of said, you know, we went after winners. It didn’t work. And now we’ve got Ange and, mate, I’m a winner. I’ve been a serial winner my whole career. It’s what I’ve done more than anything else.
“I know people talk about my football, which I’m very proud of, but I know people dismiss my achievements, because they didn’t happen to happen on this side of the world, but for me, they’re all hard-earned.
“And all I’ve done my whole career is win things, and I understand, obviously, the way things have gone in the league, you know, people are rightly to be concerned about, I said, I don’t think there’s a true reflection of where we’re at.
“But whatever happens, my self-belief in what I do doesn’t waver, and I’ll continue to kind of push on to do what I do.”
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Johnson claims winning goal
Spurs forward Brennan Johnson bundled in a scrappy goal in the 42nd minute en route to Spurs’ first silverware since they won the 2008 League Cup and their first European title since 1984.
There was some conjecture that it should have been recorded as an own-goal after the ball hit defender Luke Shaw, but Johnson has claimed it.
Brennan Johnson watches the ball go into the net.Credit: Getty Images
Johnson’s goal was not the prettiest, as Pape Sarr’s cross appeared to glance off both him and United defender Luke Shaw then beyond goalkeeper Andre Onana.
“I knew I touched it, and then I kind of looked up because I didn’t catch it clean and then the ball was trickling in the goal. I can’t describe the feeling,” the 23-year-old said.
The Welsh star added he was overjoyed for his club.
“I’m so happy right now,” said a smiling Johnson.
“This season hasn’t been good at all, but I swear not one of us players right now care about that. This is what it’s all about, this club hasn’t won a trophy for 17 years.
“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,” he told TNT Sports.
The Europa League has been the one positive for both Spurs and United, with United languishing 16th in the Premier League and Tottenham 17th.
“Ever since I came here, it’s been ‘Tottenham are a good team but can never get it done’. We got it done,” Johnson said.
Roy Ward with Reuters
Watch: Ange’s Keating moment
Big profits to come for Spurs
According to various reports, Tottenham should take home around 26 million pounds (AUD$54 million) in total prize money for winning this season’s Europa League, but the big prize is a UEFA Champions League berth next season.
Spurs will now be one of six Premier League sides in next year’s competition, in which teams earn more than almost AUD$2 million for each win in the league phase before earning much richer pay days should they progress through the knockout stages.
Manchester United co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Spurs chairman Daniel Levy.Credit: Getty Images
Some outlets have suggested that when you pull together additional TV revenue, home game profits, sponsorship bonuses and other rewards, today’s win could earn Spurs countless millions during next season’s Champions League and this is despite Spurs being destined to finish well down the table after struggling in the EPL.
Please note, some of these figures are estimates based on this season’s prize money.
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Kane congratulates Spurs
By Roy Ward
It may be one of the great “what if” questions of the English Premier League.
What if Spurs legend Harry Kane had remained with the club when Ange Postecoglou signed as manager?
Kane memorably played on the end-of-season tour of Australia and then moved to German giants Bayern Munich, where he played a big role in winning this season’s Bundesliga title.
Would Spurs have had more success with Kane still at the club or did his move allow Postecoglou to buy more players to fit his system of play?
We will never know the answer, but Kane has sent his best wishes on social media this morning, as a former Spurs captain and one of their most celebrated players, you would think Kane is overjoyed for his old team.
