Ange Postecoglou makes history as Tottenham beat Manchester United in Europa League final

Ange Postecoglou has made history as the first Australian manager to win a major European trophy, with his Tottenham outfit defying Manchester United in a tense Europa League final.

Ange Postecoglou said he always wins trophies in his second season. And he was right.

Proving to all the English critics that he is a Tottenham hero and not the clown they all somewhat cheered for as Spurs’ English Premier League season trailed off into a disaster, Postecoglou now stands as a man vindicated, hailed as a ‘legendary manager’ by a football great.

The first Australian manager in English Premier League history has now become the first Australian manager to win a European trophy after the Spurs defied late surges from Manchester United to win the Europa League final and end a 17-year Tottenham trophy drought.

Spurs, who had not won European silverware since 1984, will play in next season’s Champions League, while failing to qualify for it is a severe financial set-back for Manchester United.

Ange Postecoglou lifts the Europa League trophy after his side’s 1-0 win. Picture: Andrew Milligan/PA

“Ange goes down as a legendary manager to win the European Cup,” Spurs great Gareth Bale told TNT Sports.

“Tottenham’s gone from winning European Cups to, obviously, a massive drought, to now getting that off their backs.

“Hopefully now this is a stepping stone to build on, they’ll have a cash injection, qualify for the Champions League, they’ll be able to get players in who want to play Champions League football and strengthen from there.”

Despite their triumph in Bilbao, manager Postecoglou’s future is still on the line following a shambolic domestic campaign, with Spurs sitting a place below United in the lower reaches of the Premier League table.

But Socceroos legend Robbie Slater says this is the greatest feat of any manager in Australian football history and he surely cannot be sacked by the Spurs now that he has delivered them a trophy and entry into the Champions League.

“Where does this sit in Australian football? As a manager and as a coach this is at the top with a very clear distance behind him,” Slater said.

“Where to now for Ange? I would be astonished if he is not Tottenham manager next season.

“You look at the reaction of the fans and particularly the players, they’re in the Champions League. It is a massive prize and Ange will be the Spurs coach when the Premier League kicks off next season.”

Postecoglou furiously insisted he was “not a clown” on the eve of the final and had the last laugh on a nerve-racking night at the San Mames, as he made good on his claim to always win a trophy in his second season in charge of a club.

Following the victory Postecoglou declared his intentions to stay with Tottenham beyond this season.

“My thought process and what I’ve been doing this year has been trying to build a team that can be successful for four or five years,” Postecoglou said on TNT Sports. “I’ve said that (I want to stay on), I don’t feel like I’ve completed the job yet, I believe we’re still building.”

Postecoglou’s thoughts were echoed by his players, including the final’s sole goalscorer Brennan Johnson.

“This season hasn’t been good at all, but I swear, not one of us players right now care about that,” Johnson told TNT Sports.

“This club hasn’t won a trophy for 17 years, this is what it means — it means so much! All the fans get battered, we get battered, not winning a trophy, not winning anything, but getting to get the first one in a while today, I’m so happy.

“Ever since I came here it’s been, ‘Tottenham are a good team, but they never get it done’ — we got it done!”

Tottenham Hotspur strike first on the big night 🔥

↳ UEFA Europa League. Live & Exclusive. #StanSportAU#UEL#UELFinalpic.twitter.com/I2sEaqY4uY

— Stan Sport Football (@StanSportFC) May 21, 2025

Doubts still surround the future of Spurs boss Postecoglou. But the Australian has delivered on his promise early on this season to maintain his record of winning silverware in his second season at various clubs.

“He’s done his job, he said he wins in his second year and he has,” added Johnson.

“I’ll be looking forward to his interview, but I can’t thank the manager enough for how much trust he’s had in us because some of the performances this season, as I say, haven’t been good enough. But especially in the Europa League, he had a really good way of getting everyone up for it and today it shows.”

Fans came from far and wide to pack Athletic Bilbao’s stadium, some taking quite preposterous routes and sleeping in cars to avoid eye-watering prices, but they could not escape a final lacking in quality.

Tottenham Hotspur strike first on the big night 🔥

↳ UEFA Europa League. Live & Exclusive. #StanSportAU#UEL#UELFinalpic.twitter.com/I2sEaqY4uY

— Stan Sport Football (@StanSportFC) May 21, 2025

It was a match between teams languishing in 16th and 17th place respectively after dismal Premier League campaigns and that was the essence of it too, played at high intensity but with low confidence, and a prize on the line so big it overawed.

There were a large number of turnovers, neither side keeping the ball with any ease, moves ending in panicked defending and balls being thumped to safety, or a litany of clumsy fouls.

Harry Maguire blocked well from Tottenham’s Pape Sarr early on after Johnson nipped in ahead of Luke Shaw to break in down the right.

Manchester United fans chanted Ruben Amorim’s name, backing their Portuguese coach despite the club’s worst Premier League season in half a century.

At the other end, 22-year-old United winger Amad Diallo, one of the few players high on self-belief, flashed a shot across goal and then left Destiny Udogie spinning, trying in vain to find him as he dribbled past.

Ange Postecoglou and Ruben Amorim share a moment after the match. Picture: David Ramos/Getty Images

Spurs made the breakthrough after 42 minutes and, perhaps fittingly, it came in the form of an extremely scrappy goal.

Tottenham midfielder Sarr, who had completed just a single pass to this point, curled in a cross to the near post for Johnson.

The winger’s attempted flick bounced off Shaw’s shoulder, brushed Johnson’s boot again and crossed the goal-line in slow motion with Andre Onana unable to claw it out with a desperate arm.

Spurs sat back in the second half, trying to protect their slender advantage and look for opportunities to strike again on the counter-attack.

They nearly found one when Yves Bissouma played in Dominic Solanke, but the striker could not control the pass and the chance went to waste.

Manchester United almost equalised when Tottenham goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario came off his line but failed to claim a set-piece pounded forward from deep.

The ball dropped for Rasmus Hojlund but his header over the stranded Spurs stopper was sensationally cleared in acrobatic fashion by Micky van de Ven.

HOW?! 🤯 That was some clearance putting everything on the line!

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— Stan Sport Football (@StanSportFC) May 21, 2025

Spurs sent on captain Son Heung-min for the ragged Richarlison, with the South Korean international a surprising non-starter.

Manchester United turned to Alejandro Garnacho and Joshua Zirkzee to try and dig them out of their hole, but fell to a fourth defeat against Spurs this season.

Shaw had a chance to redeem himself at the end for his part in Johnson’s goal but his header was pushed to safety by Vicario.

“I still can’t believe it, what we’ve done tonight is unbelievable. We’ve written history. These football players have written history in 2025,” said Spurs keeper Guglielmo Vicario.

Amorim said winning the trophy would not solve United’s many deep-lying problems but could set the club up well for the future, however United leave Bilbao without even that.

For the first time since the 2014-15 season they will not play European football next term.