Ange Postecoglou makes Aussie history with Spurs-United Europa League final locked in
Updated . First published
Ange Postecoglou has made history by becoming the first male Australian football manager to reach the final of a major European competition.
Postecoglou's Tottenham Hotspur ended Bodø/Glimt's fairytale on Friday (AEST) with a 2-0 win in the second leg of their Europa League semi-final, north of the Arctic Circle in chilly Norway.
Spurs won the tie 5-1 in dominant fashion and will meet Manchester United in a dream all-England final in Bilbao on May 22 (AEST).
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After a scoreless first half in Bodø, Dominic Solanke and Pedro Porro struck to ease Postecoglou's nerves and send Spurs through.
Postecoglou is under immense pressure to keep his job after a disastrous Premier League campaign.
But winning a coveted European title would make him hard to sack.
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Yves Bissouma of Tottenham Hotspur celebrates. Getty
"This is a big, big morning," ex-Socceroos captain Craig Foster said on Stan Sport.
"For Australian coaching, this is absolutely immense. Ange has broken a lot of barriers in his career, and he's broken another one here. First Australian coach in a major European final.
"It's big. Win or otherwise, it doesn't matter - he has already created a new level. For Australian coaches and for Australian football generally, it's a very, very big moment and for fans, it's marvellous.
"They got the job done today."
United beat Athletic Bilbao 4-1 in the second leg at Old Trafford and won 7-1 on aggregate.
It sets up an all-England Europa League final for the second time in six years after Chelsea beat Arsenal to lift the trophy in 2019.
United came back from 1-0 down against Bilbao, with Mason Mount coming off the bench to score twice in the second half.
Casemiro and Rasmus Hojlund were also on target.
A major title, alone, would be enough to salvage what has otherwise been a Premier League season to forget for both Spurs and United.
But the added prize of a place in the lucrative Champions League would put the winner back among Europe's elite next term.
That hasn't looked likely for either team for most of the campaign as they have languished closer to the relegation zone than the top five.
United is 15th in the standings having lost a club record 16 games in the Premier League.
Pedro Porro and Micky van de Ven of Tottenham Hotspur celebrate. Getty
They are also certain to record their worst ever points total in the modern era, as well as their lowest finish.
For Tottenham, it's even worse - sitting one place below United after a club record equalling 19 losses in the Premier League.
Now one of those teams has the chance to effectively erase their woeful domestic form by winning the final, which will be the fourth time they have faced each other this season.
Fans of FK Bodo/Glimt watch the game from nearby apartments. Getty
Spurs won all three of the previous encounters — twice in the league and also in the English League Cup.
"If we don't win the final, it means nothing for us," United coach Ruben Amorim said.
"It's hard to describe what it's like to be manager of this club. You want to give them (fans) something, because we've been so disappointing in the Premier League. We are struggling, both of us, so I don't know what is going to happen. That is a good thing and a bad thing with this team. I never know." - with AP
