Bilbao’s San Mames is the venue as Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United battle it out for Europa League glory.
Wednesday’s final is more than just a chance to win continental silverware for both clubs, especially the Red Devils.
The two lowest-ranked surviving teams in the Premier League, Spurs and Man Utd have a unique opportunity to salvage pride in an otherwise humiliating campaign.
For Ruben Amorim, that rings particularly true.
Perceived as a saviour and potentially Sir Alex Ferguson’s long-lost heir when he joined the Old Trafford outfit in November, Amorim has endured a disastrous start to his Premier League journey.
Lifting the Europa League crown would unlikely erase the memory of the club’s worst top-flight finish in decades, yet it would buy the ex-Sporting CP manager some peace.
More than just a final
United won this competition in 2017 under Jose Mourinho but lost to Villarreal in the showpiece event four years later under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
Failure is not an option this time as the Red Devils gear up for their first continental clash against Premier League opposition since a 3-1 aggregate loss to Liverpool in the 2015/16 Europa League last-16.
Omens look good for the 20-time English champions, knowing they defeated Chelsea in their only previous all-English European final back in the 2007/08 Champions League campaign.
Replicating that success at San Mames would make Man Utd only the fourth English team to win multiple Europa League titles and potentially lay the foundation for a brighter future.
More importantly, this is United’s best chance to settle the account with Tottenham and banish the demons of their recent meetings with the London club.
Unfavourable match-up
Despite Spurs’ equally disappointing domestic season, they’ve become a bogey team for Man Utd.
In addition to completing their first-ever Premier League double over the Red Devils, Ange Postecoglou’s side knocked the Theatre of Dreams heavyweights out of the EFL Cup.
As such, they have become the first team to beat Man Utd three times in one season since 2012/13 while extending their unbeaten run against Amorim’s charges to six matches.
Losing the final would see United go an unprecedented seven straight matches against Tottenham without winning and lose four times in the same season to a specific opposition for the first time since 1985/86.
However, there is a silver lining.
Indomitable Europa League run
Things have not gone Man Utd’s way in the domestic championship, but they’ve gone from strength to strength on the European front to compensate for their Premier League shortcomings.
Amorim’s men have reached the final as the only Europa League team yet to lose this season, winning nine while drawing five of their 14 games in Europe’s second-tier competition.
Only three teams had previously achieved that feat, highlighting the magnitude of the Red Devils’ incredible continental form.
Further confidence comes from United’s eye-catching scoring exploits en route to the final.
United’s 35 goals in this season’s Europa League is a tally surpassed by only three teams in the competition’s history. Just three more in the final would see them claim the record outright.
Player to watch
Bruno Fernandes has been a rare bright spot in this dark tunnel, and the captain’s form has peaked in Europe.
With seven goals, he heads into the final as the competition’s joint-best goalscorer this season alongside Ayoub El Kaabi of Olympiacos and Bodo/Glimt’s Kasper Hogh.
Another goal would see the 30-year-old take his overall Europa League haul to 28 goals, with only Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (34) and Radamel Falcao (30) bettering his record in the all-time charts.
How Man Utd could line up in the final
(3-4-3): Onana; Yoro, De Ligt, Maguire; Mazraoui, Ugarte, Casemiro, Dorgu; Diallo, Højlund, Fernandes