Tottenham vs Man United LIVE: Team news and press conference updates before Europa League final

Another tricky tie for the Red Devils was made worse by the loose lips of Andre Onana in the build up as he fought a war of words with Lyon midfielder (and former Man Utd player) Nemanja Matic before the first leg.

Quarter-finals: Lyon – 2-2 (a); 5-4 (AET) (h); 7-6 on aggregate after extra-time

Andre Onana endured a nightmare first leg in France, where his barny with Lyon midfielder Nemanja Matic was followed by him all-too easily allowing in a Thiago Almada free-kick.

Leny Yoro and Joshua Zirkzee put United ahead, but the under-fire goalkeeper parried the ball into the path of Rayan Cherki to level in stoppage-time.

A scarcely-believable second leg followed at Old Trafford. Manuel Ugarte and Diogo Dalot first-half efforts had United in control, only for the visitors to score four without reply.

Corentin Tolisso and Nicolas Tagliafico goals in quick succession took the match to extra-time, when Lyon kicked on despite Tolisso’s sending off for two bookable offences as Cherki and Alexandre Lacazette rocked the home side.

But Ruben Amorim’s men dug deep as a Bruno Fernandes penalty was followed by Kobbie Mainoo’s excellent 120th-minute leveller and Harry Maguire’s match-winning header moments later.

Following United’s unbeaten run through the group stages Ruben Amorim’s men where given a tough tough against Spanish side Real Sociedad in the round of 16.

Last 16: Real Sociedad – 1-1 (a); 4-1 (h); 5-2 on aggregate

Absentee-hit United failed to turn a positive performance into victory in San Sebastian, where Joshua Zirkzee put the visitors into a deserved lead only for Mikel Oyarzabal to level from the spot with the hosts’ first shot on target.

The VAR spotted a handball from Bruno Fernandes, whose second-leg hat-trick inspired an eye-catching comeback win against 10-man Real Sociedad.

Oyarzabal’s second penalty of the tie had given United a scare, before the captain’s treble and a Diogo Dalot effort in the second leg sent them through with ease.

Despite suffering one of their worst ever seasons in the English top-flight, Manchester United have been incredible in Europe this season.

They are yet to lose a game and if they are successful against Tottenham in the final it will prove to be one of the best European campaigns in recent history.

But will they prove to be worthy Europa League champions?

Here’s a look at how they reached the final in Bilbao:

Group stage: Man Utd – third of 36 teams, 18pts

United made an inauspicious start to the new-look group phase under Erik ten Hag, whose former club Twente secured a shock 1-1 Old Trafford draw in September.

Harry Maguire’s late goal saw the 10-man Red Devils record a 3-3 draw at Porto the following month, before Jose Mourinho’s Fenerbahce held them to a 1-1 stalemate in Turkey.

After Ten Hag was sacked, interim boss Ruud van Nistelrooy oversaw the end of United’s 380-day wait for a European win by beating PAOK 2-0 at Old Trafford, where Ruben Amorim took charge for the first time in the hard-fought 3-2 triumph against eventual semi-finalists Bodo/Glimt.

United followed that up with 2-1 wins away to Viktoria Plzen and at home to Rangers, before rounding things off with a 2-0 victory over FCSB in Romania as they avoided the knockout phase play-offs.

It is 7am on Sunday morning at Gatwick airport, three days before the Europa League final, and there are already a lot of Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur shirts. Some are travelling to Bilbao this early because flights are almost a thousand pounds cheaper.

A few have friends on connections hundreds of miles in the opposite direction, through Malaga and even Marrakesh. A group are getting the 35-hour ferry from Portsmouth. Some are only in Bilbao for the game itself, due to a total lack of accommodation. Even hostels are going for £550.

Spurs fan Adam Nathan talks of “spending the best part of another season ticket to attend the game”.

Uefa has confirmed that the two teams will receive up to 15,000 tickets each, with a further 11,000 tickets up for general sale and the remainder offered to hospitality and sponsors.

The final is expected to be a packed house though questions remain over Uefa’s ability to handle the sheer crowds of fans expected to flock to Bilbao for the match.

Ange Postecoglou is set to give a press conference in the afternoon with the Tottenham boss speaking to the media around 3.45pm.

Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim will speak later on at 6.30pm.

Both managers will provide injury updates on their squads and give their thoughts on how the final will play out tomorrow.

However, there is no chance that a Manchester United-Tottenham final could be moved to an English venue, with Bilbao’s San Mames stadium awarded the rights to host the Europa League final way back in 2021, the same year that Uefa decided the Basque city would host the 2024 Women’s Champions League final.

The Europa League final is set for Wednesday 21 May at San Mames, Bilbao, with kick-off scheduled for 8pm BST.

Viewers in the United Kingdom can watch the match live on TNT Sports 1 with coverage beginning at 6pm BST. Plus a live stream will be available for free via discovery+.

Subscribers will have access to the match but those without a subscription can watch by downloading the app and registering their details without signing up for a subscription.

After dismal seasons in the Premier League, which have seen both sides languish in the bottom half of the table for months, the final at the San Mames offers a chance to salvage the campaign.

Welcome to The Independent’s coverage of the Europa League final.

The match itself takes place tomorrow evening as Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United clash in Bilbao.

The final is a crucial one for both teams who have been underperforming in the Premier League this year but one of them will be rewarded with a place in next season’s Champions League.

Today, Ange Postecoglou and Ruben Amorim will give their last press conferences before the game and there’ll be injury updates and insights into what we can expect.

We’ll have all the latest news and updates throughout the day so stick with us as we build up to the Europa League final.