United turn to Europa League as season’s saviour

MANCHESTER: Manche­ster United’s financial crisis, exposed by co-owner Jim Rat­cliffe this week, has hea­ped more pressure on Ruben Amorim’s men to deliver Europa League glory and a return to Champions League revenues next season.United host Real Sociedad on Thursday with their last-16 tie finely poised after a 1-1 draw in Spain last week.The Red Devils sit 14th in the Premier League meaning their hopes of salvaging a miserable season depend on European glory.Ahead of announcing plans for a new 100,000-seater stadium to replace Old Trafford on Tuesday, Ratcliffe defended the ruthless cost-cutting he has implemented throughout the club during his first year in charge.United have not yet detailed how they plan to finance the reported 2 billion ($2.6 billion) cost of the new stadium.Last month, the club announced that up to 200 further redundancies were anticipated after 250 jobs were cut last year.Ratcliffe claimed the club would have “run out of money at Christmas if we don’t do those things” in a series of media interviews.The English giants have made cumulative losses of 410 million in the last seven years after a series of expensive mistakes in the transfer market and in managerial hires.However, only once in the past 35 years have they missed out on European football entirely.That fate looks almost certain this season unless United lift the Europa League in Bilbao on May 21.“It’s massive,” said United midfielder Christian Eriksen of the Sociedad game. “We know there’s a lot of pressure on that game, but it also comes with being at this club. You play for trophies so we have to play well to go through.”Sociedad are also dreaming of making the short trip to Bilbao for the final to salvage a disappointing campaign.Imanol Alguacil’s men sit 11th in La Liga and lost the first leg of their Copa del Rey semi-final 1-0 at home to Real Madrid.Tottenham Hotspur, 13th in the Premier League, also desperately need Europa League glory to save their season.Rumours suggest manager Ange Postecoglou’s job depends on turning around a 1-0 first leg deficit against AZ Alkmaar in London.Postecoglou has been hampered by a lengthy injury list for most of the campaign, but has few excuses with Spurs finally approaching full strength.First-choice centre-backs Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven made their return in Sunday’s 2-2 draw against Bournemouth, while record signing Dominic Solanke played 90 minutes for the first time in nearly two months.“We need everyone. From the supporters, players, staff, from the club, we need everybody with that game to turn it around,” said Spurs captain Son Heung-min. “Quality doesn’t bring the wins. The games always need a mentality and the care and the performance. Hard work always matters. We need to be focused, take it seriously, respect our opponent and do everything we can to turn it around, especially at home.”Rangers already have one foot in the last eight after a stunning 3-1 first leg win away to Fenerbahce.“I don’t think it’s over,” said Fenerbahce boss Jose Mourinho. “The only thing I tell them is, don’t celebrate too much. Because there is a second match. It’s my only advice.”Athletic Bilbao must overturn a 2-1 first leg deficit against AS Roma to maintain their dream of playing the final in their home stadium.Lazio, Olympique Lyon­nais and Eintracht Frankfurt are strong favourites to make the quarter-finals after away wins at Viktoria Plzen, FCSB and Ajax respectively last week.Published in Dawn, March 13th, 2025