Mason Mount’s strike that sealed Manchester United’s Europa League final berth was as sublime as Ruben Amorim’s team were slipshod until the substitute took charge.
With 72 minutes gone, Leny Yoro prodded the ball to Mount who, with the sweetest touch of his right instep, swivelled, then bent the equaliser past the helpless Julen Agirrezabala.
A jubilant Mount ran to the ecstatic Stretford End, Amorim punched a hand, and Athletic Bilbao were 4-1 down on aggregate. They were soon four behind, as Bruno Fernandes chipped a free-kick from the right to the near post where Casemiro stooped and headed in.
This means United face off against Tottenham at Athletic’s San Mamés Stadium on Wednesday week.
Forget lose their “mind”, as Amorim admitted United can do, they would need to misplace arms, legs, and boots to cede a 3-0, first-leg advantage to team missing their finest quartet in Iñaki and Nico Williams, Oihan Sancet and Dani Vivian. And so, it proved.
Keep it tight early was surely an Amorim instruction, plus, of course, do not concede – please. Given the Portuguese’s own admission that his players can freeze here the last thing required was further encouragement to the almost 4,000 Los Leones fans who crammed into their quadrant and whose noise informed their team they still believed.
A sliced André Onana pass, that went for a throw, boxed United in and led to an Athletic chance only eight minutes in, was anathema, then. The ball was worked from right to left and to the lively Alex Berenguer, who had Onana’s goal gaping before him: but the No 7’s composure went awol and he sprayed over.
From this juncture, more pressure that featured another errant Onana pass and Berenguer firing in a free-kick that United’s goalkeeper fisted out. To break out, Amorim’s men hoped for a quick counter as when Casemiro slickly backheeled to Bruno Fernandes – he fed Patrick Dorgu, Athletic were turned, and United thundered forward.
The right-wing-back tapped to Rasmus Højlund, whose curving run created space, and a miscontrol-then-pass to an in-running Fernandes led to the captain firing off a shot that was blocked.
Two more United breaks followed and each ended with Amorim throwing his hands up in disgust as sloppy play ceded possession. The second time, Berenguer was able to run from deep in his territory to around 20 yards from goal: the effort bounced wide but those in red were warned.
This occurred as the half-hour approached so it was so far, so (just about) good for United. But then disaster: United again lost the ball upfield, it was hoofed forward, and Harry Maguire, after an aimless Maroan Sannadi header, was in control. Yet a wild crossfield pass meant for Leny Yoro went to Álvaro Djaló and when his attempt rebounded to Mikel Jaureguizar, the No 23 blazed home from 25 yards, Onana’s fingertips merely steering it on and in.
Athletic’s fans partied and the comeback felt on. United needed to reach the safe harbour of half-time with no more goals conceded. Manuel Ugarte decided the best way was to surge forward, as he did through the middle – the ball went to Garnacho, who squared it, but Dorgu, stepping in front of Fernandes to take over, failed to finish.
So, too, Garnacho when spurning a gilded chance to restore the three-goal lead: the winger’s sprint on to Dorgu’s through ball was smart, the lob that went wide certainly not. The crowed “oohed” and the 20-year-old shook his head as he considered how costly this might prove.
Garnacho went close to discovering the answer almost straightaway when Unai Gómez spun a low shot that Onana only just clutched on to and so the players wandered off knowing the second half was sure to be as frantic.
Amorim’s team is not adept at keep-ball yet doing so for even a few minutes would allow them to recover and arrest Athletic’s relentlessness. But the pattern of the contest continued as the visitors added to their compendium of chances, the next a Berenguer free-kick spiralled in from the left that no colleague could profit from. Then Gómez appeared to be in on goal before Noussair Mazraoui stepped across and, moments later, the ubiquitous Berenguer dipped in a corner that the home rearguard scrambled out.
United were in siege mode, pinned in their half and desperate for respite so Amorim made a triple change. Off went Mazraoui, Ugarte, and Garnacho for Luke Shaw, Mount and Diallo, whose zigzagging foray down the right, seconds later, augured well. But, once more, United’s nerves jangled when Unai Núñez headed marginally past Onana’s right post. Now came Mount’s two best moments in United colours, together with the strikes of Casemiro and Højlund.
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