Enzo Maresca has sent Tottenham a warning about Manchester United as the two sides prepare to face each other in the Europa League final next week.
Manchester United have shifted their focus to the Europa League final, where they’ll take on Tottenham in Bilbao on Wednesday evening.
Rúben Amorim’s domestic campaign has fallen apart, with United failing to win any of their last eight Premier League matches. However, their European journey has been nothing short of exceptional.
After finishing third in the league stage, United met Real Sociedad in the round of 16 and cruised to a 5-2 aggregate victory—Bruno Fernandes grabbing a second-leg hat-trick to seal the deal.
The quarter-finals brought chaos and brilliance in equal measure. A 2-2 first-leg draw away to Lyon set the stage for a wild night at Old Trafford. United went 2-0 up and then trailed 4-2, before a seven-minute flurry of goals from Fernandes, Kobbie Mainoo, and Harry Maguire turned the tie on its head.
In the semis, United made light work of Athletic Club, thrashing the Spaniards 3-0 in the first leg and 4-1 in the second. Now, only Ange Postecoglou’s Tottenham stand between them and European glory.
United left Maresca surprised vs Chelsea
On Friday evening, United went head-to-head against Chelsea in their penultimate fixture of their Premier League season, with the Blues running out as 1-0 winners at Stamford Bridge.
However, speaking after the game, Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca admitted that one aspect of United’s play left him surprised despite his side’s triumph of the night.
Speaking in his post-match press conference after the fixture, Maresca admitted that he did not expect United to be so strong in the one-on-one battles.
“Tonight we struggled on the ball because we didn’t expect them to be so aggressive man-to-man,” Maresca commented.
“I usually watch five or six games of the other team, and I’ve never seen them so aggressive man-to-man. They surprised us a bit on that.”
Tottenham must be wary of United’s aggressive nature in the final
It has not been lost on any football fan that this Europa League final has major consequences for both teams, with Champions League qualification, financial funding, and a trophy all on the line next week.
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While United have been poor and lacklustre in domestic competition this season, they have been a different animal in Europe, scoring 19 goals across their six knockout fixtures.
With Amorim’s men clearly showing how ready they are to go to war on the field next week with their aggressive performance against Chelsea, Postecoglou must take note of Maresca’s warning when he sets his team up for the final.
While Amorim chose to field a strong team on Friday evening, Postecoglou rotated many of his key players as Spurs lost 2-0 against Aston Villa.
While Tottenham’s players may, therefore, be a little fresher, United’s performance against Chelsea shows Amorim’s players have extra fire and momentum heading into the fixture.
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