Manchester United set a foot in the Europa League final of this season after turning to victory in the first leg of their last four meetings with the Athletic Club.
In San Mames in Bilbao, the venue for the final, later this month, United fascinated the domestic crowd with the ruthless performance that she rarely saw in 2024/25, but was usually saved for Europe when it came out.
Three goals in the first half caused the athletic club damage that would have hoped to continue and to raise the trophy for home lawn, with defender Daniel Vivian being released for the hosts during this time.
Casemiro handed the lead, whereupon Bruno Fernandes scored twice before the break. It could have been more to hit the wood twice and to force the home goalkeeper in several parades.
How the game unfolds
United finally exhibited her stand early, with Alejandro Garnachos not five minutes just five minutes a sign of what would come. The Argentine wing player had the ball on the net, but a flag was raised for the offside, and a Var check confirmed the decision on the field.
Then there was a sporting pressure when Andre Onana before Alex Berenguer, before Yuri Berchiche and Inaki Williams saw the header, missed the goal. United defender Victor Lindelof to leave the club in summer, then played the hero when he blocked a Berenguer goal shot directly in front of the line when the game of his quarter brand approached.
After United survived the Bilbao attack, she had her hosts paid for not being exploited. Casemiro broke with a header nearby after half an hour, but there is a lot of recognition to Harry Maguire to see the searching ball in the box tailored by Manuel Ugarte.
United had to thank Var when the lead was quickly doubled. The referee refused to award a punishment in real time when Vivian Rasmus Hojlund got out of balance, but pointed to the point and produced a red card for the defender after consulting the pitch-side monitor.
Fernandes suddenly converted from the position and united against ten players.
Patrick Dorgu did almost 3-0 in the final phases of the first half, which was refused by a strong rescue, moments in front of Fernandes. Hojlund fought for the ball in the sporty territory in which he climbed to Ugarte, whose instinctive film brought the captain into the goal. He held his serenity to end the helpless juler Agirrezabala to take control of control and in Dreamland.
It could also have been four quickly, Nussair Mazraoui, who hits the crossbar from the edge of the box in the first half in the first half.
In the second half and the sporty triggering, things were not to be compared in relation to the numbers when Var checked a potential foul and red card verb on Maguire because he had stopped the isolated striker Maroan Sannedi. The referee did not act and Var was okay, but the home team was so outraged that the replacement goalkeeper Unai Simon was carded yellow because of his protests.
Athletic lost his head 3: 0 down and apparently on the way to breaking out of a competition that they hoped. Yeray Alvarez was carded because he had chopped Garnacho, and the best chances for United, was saved as an Agirrezabala in front of Casemiro, who also went against the post a minute later.
The hero Nico Williams, the euro 2024, was dull and increasingly desperate, was looking for a penalty by noticing himself in the box. In the meantime, Agirrezabala held the score at the other end by refusing to have a potential hat trick and then Garnacho at a distance.
Take a look at Athletic Club’s player reviews against Man UTD.
United has a 3-0 buffer next week before the second leg in Old Trafford. Ruben Amorim will expect his team to approach this game as if the tie is still and is still building on it, but it makes them difficult favorites to reach again in Bilbao on May 21.
After winning this trophy against Ajax for the first time in 2017 and returned to Villarreal in 2021, but loses through punishments, this time you can compete Tottenham Hotspur. Spores are in the other semi-finals against Bodo/Glimt 3-1 on aggregate.
In the final of the All-English Europa League, Chelsea prevailed in 2019 in front of Arsenal in Baku. The only final that two English clubs involved was also Spurs, the first UEFA Cup final, against Wolverhampton Wanderers before 1972. Two -legged Spurs won a total of 3: 1.
United scored more goals (three) in all of her previous European home games this season in half of the football.
Since the beginning of April you have only scored two goals from the Premier League in five domestic games. And yet there are 14 goals in the last four European League excursions, including the second on-board of the last 16 against Real Sociedad and both quarter-final legs against Lyon.
As it is, this team seems to be better suited for the performance in European competition.
This is not a consolation for Ruben Amorim, even if it increases the likelihood of lifting a trophy in his first season in the club and securing the qualifications of the Champions League. He, his employees and the club hierarchy still have a lot of work to do to ensure that United can also compete better in Germany next season.
Amad Diallo brought his long -awaited return from the injury from the bank after it has been excluded since February. This is a big boost with four weeks of the season that was still to be played because he was able to play in the form in which he was unfortunately.
Matthijs de Ligt performed as a replacement, after not quite as long, while Mason Mount and Luke Shaw also continued to build their game sharpness here.