They were already announcing the finale as the worst in years. Until the 71st minute came. "It's going to be famous"
The first and only goal had to wait 42 minutes. An inconspicuous situation turned into huge problems for the defense of Ruben Amorim's team. Tottenham maintained a favorable result until the end and saved the season. The meeting in Bilbao was a fight for the trophy and a ticket to next year's Champions League .
For a long time, however, fans watched a final unworthy of such an important match watched by millions around the world. It is no wonder that the initial reactions were not very favorable.
"9 shots, 3 on target, 21 fouls. The score as of the 54th minute of the Europa League final" – Kuba Seweryn from Sport.pl calculated during the match.
"A strong candidate for the title of the worst European cup final in recent years. As expected," sad Maciej Łanczowski from the weekly "Piłka Nożna".
"Playing the Tottenham vs Manchester United Europa League final on a loop will probably be a new method of obtaining information from a person interrogated by the secret services," the Ekstraklasa Trools account ironically wrote.
"I'll take any final result – apart from a draw – without hesitation. I won't last another 30 minutes," wrote journalist Mariusz Moński.
Much changed in the 72nd minute, when fans and pundits suddenly came alive. After a free kick, Vicario came out of goal very uncertainly, and Hojlund shot accurately. However, the Dutch stopper was on duty, who showed off an incredible, acrobatic entry.
"COSMIC INTERVENTION. Micky van de Ven saved Tottenham from conceding a goal in a SPECTACULAR way" - exclaims the Polsat Sport account, which publishes a recording of that moment.
"It was worth staying in front of the TV for the second half just for that intervention by van de Ven," admitted an editor from the Retro Futbol website, who had previously complained about the spectacle.
"This will be the famous defense of the year!" – adds Adam Romer, editor-in-chief of the "Tenisklub" magazine.
"Van de Ven is like Kłos with Ukraine" – compares Żelisław Żyżyński. "I also had the same association" – confirms Przemysław Gajzler from Przegląd Sportowy Onet.
The journalists are referring to the interventions of the former Polish footballer from the qualifying match for the 2002 World Cup. The Polish national team won that match against Ukraine 3:1. The media called that move by Tomasz Kłos a "karate punch".
The Roosters maintained their advantageous result, and the goal scorer Brennan Johnson and the Dutch defender became heroes of the fans and the team. "At the start, one was more for Tottenham, but after the match, it's a shame about Manchester United, they deserved at least one goal," admits Przemysław Michalak from the Weszlo.com website.
"I felt that the English would take it" - ironically Piotr Wołosik, co-host of the Przegląd Sportowy Onet program "Ofensywni". Let us recall that even before the final it was known that after the change of regulations and the "English" clash in Bilbao, the Premier League will have as many as six representatives in the Premier League.
"2025:
- Harry Kane with the trophy
- Tottenham with a trophy" - reports Polish footballer Patryk Lipski, emphasizing that so far the former Spurs striker and his former team have had a huge problem winning cups. After transferring to the Bundesliga, the Englishman won the German championship with Bayern Munich.
After the match, the former president of the Polish Football Association also posted a comment on X. "A good goalkeeper, careful defense and you can win. Was it deserved? I don't know... An exciting, good match. The winner is Tottenham" - Zbigniew Boniek assessed in a slightly more positive tone than most experts.
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