The Londoners have disposed of the surprise team of the competition, Bodo Glimt (3-1), in the semi-finals go to the C3. The Mancunians went to win on the lawn of the Athletic Bilbao (0-3).
The Red Devils Shower San Mamés
In numerical superiority from the 35th minute, Manchester United, who has only Europe to save its season, corrected the Athletic Bilbao (3-0) on Thursday in San Mamés in the first leg of the Europa League and approached a new final. The Red Devils, only fourteenths of the Premier League, brought down the Basque Lions, helpless on their lawn despite a magnificent atmosphere, after the severe expulsion of the defender Dani Vivian for an obstruction on the Danish goalscorer Rasmus Hojlund, and who see their final dream at home, May 21, go away.
The English club, put on the good rails by the Brazilian Casemiro (30th) and carried by a double of his Portuguese captain Bruno Fernandes (37th SP, 45th+4), approaches him a third final of C3, the last chance to save a nightmare season and find the Champions League. The ultra-realistic Mancunians took advantage of the opposing defensive generosity to open the scoring against the course of the game, when the Basques had just created the best occasions (7th, 11th, 19th), before collapsing following the disputed penalty granted to Hojlund and the Red Card of Vivian.
This situation, revised by video arbitration, provoked the anger and misunderstanding of the players and the staff of Bilbao, who demanded, in vain, a hand of the Argentinian Alejandro Garnacho at the start of the action. “”There are actions that make me doubt. The one before the penalty comes with a garnacho hand, which the referee did not see. And then it is a duel of Vivian with Hojlund, where the contact is minimal, and he drops. We were unlucky that it was whistled ”reacted the Basque striker Inaki Williams on Movistar +.
“We were not very lucid, we should not look for an apology, we take 3-0, but we are able to go up. We have seen that Lyon (eliminated in the previous round 5-4 AP, editor’s note) had posed problems there and we will try everything to get there ”he added.
They then spent their time defending, and could even have undergone an even heavier humiliation, but the Moroccan side were united Mazraoui (45th+4) and the Brazilian midfielder Casemiro (64th), first scorer of the match, found the bar and the opponent’s post.
They will now need a huge feat on Old Trafford’s lawn next Thursday to go up this delay in three goals and join Tottenham, or the Norwegians of Bodo Glimt, in the final.
Spurs take a serious option
Tottenham moved away his domestic concerns for a radiant evening against Bodoe/Glimt, a surprise guest of the last square in the Europa League, which he dominated 3-1 in the semi-final to go to London on Thursday. The current 16th of the Premier League took a giant step towards the final of May 21 in Bilbao after a one -way match, or almost, against the Norwegian Poucet of the competition.
The attackers Brennan Johnson (1st), James Maddison (34th) and Dominic Solanke (61st), on penalty, delighted the supporters of the Spurs, exhausted by a nightmarish season in the league, but overexcited Thursday in their northern London cauldron. Their team has dominated its subject as rarely this season, carried by a very high level atmosphere, and helped by the fragility of an opponent with much more limited means.
Tombers of Twente, Olympiacos and Lazio, the Yellows of the Polar Circle were deprived of two holders on suspension, including ex-Lensois Patrick Berg, and had three less replacements than their opponents on the bench at kick-off. They also had more than 60,000 supporters hostile on the back at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, more than the number of inhabitants of Bodoe, and a bunch of English stars to face on the Terrrain.
The start of the match was catastrophic for the double champions of Norway in title, exceeded in the engagement, a little naive defensively, and punished by a head of Johnson 40 seconds after the kick -off. James Maddison doubled the bet after having nicely controlled a long ball and then launched a cross shot, passed between the goalkeeper and two defenders.
Goalkeeper Nikita Haikin made a beautiful parade on a volley by Rodrigo Bentancur (38th), but he could not do anything on the penalty obtained by Cristian Romero and transformed by Solanke. His captain Ulrik Saltnes reduced the gap after a nice dribbling in the surface followed by a shot, deflected by an opponent (83rd), to maintain a timid hope of qualification before the return round, May 8 in Norway.
In the final, Tottenham could therefore find Manchester United, a classification neighbor (14th) that the Spurs beat three times this season, twice in the league and once in the League Cup.
