At least seven players are set to miss tonight's Europa League final between Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United.

The two English rivals will lock horns at the San Mames stadium in Bilbao, approximately 1,300 kilometres from London and 1,700 kilometres from Manchester.

As far as European finals go, this is extremely huge, but not for the quality of football expected from either side, but for what is at stake for both of them.

When referee Felix Zwayer blows the final whistle in Spain, one of the two teams will have salvaged their season by qualifying for the Champions League, while the other will officially have recorded one of the worst seasons in their history.

Tottenham are 17th while United are 16th in the Premier League standings, which just speaks to the fact how the two have been disappointing this season.

A mid-season managerial change for United, sacking Erik ten Hag and bringing in Ruben Amorim, hasn't worked the wonders many thought it would. Ange Postecoglou, meanwhile, has had to grapple with serious injuries to key players throughout the season.

In Bilbao, both managers will miss players they would have desperately wanted to have. Postecoglou will suffer the most as Spurs will be without at least five first-team players.

Lucas Bergvall, Radu Dragusin, Dejan Kulusevski, James Maddison and Timo Werner will not play a part in the final. Kulusevski and Maddison are particularly big misses as they are the main creative force in how Postecoglou sets up.

The rest weren't guaranteed starters, but the former Celtic boss has always relied on them as squad players throughout the season.

Tottenham have beaten Manchester United three times this season, but their manager believes form will have little to no impact in the final.

"Maybe because it's a final, those things aren't important. If we'd have lost all three games, the question would be about pressure, not having beaten them. What I do know is, and I've been in this situation a few times in my career, in the big games, even your form going into it, it doesn't matter," he said, as captured on Tottenham's website.

"What matters is how the players cope with the occasion, how they cope with understanding the importance of the game, both clubs, you just don't know how players will react to such a big occasion."

For Amorim, he welcomed Joshua Zirkzee, Diogo Dalot, and Leny Yoro back to the fold, but will remain without Matthijs de Ligt and Lisandro Martinez. The latter is expected to miss a significant chunk of the year with a knee injury.

Captain Bruno Fernandes rallied his teammates to show up, saying that winning the trophy could change the fortunes of the club.

"As players, you just think about what we have ahead of us and what we have ahead of us is the chance to get our hands on the trophy. It won't change the past. It won't affect what the past has done for us either, but what it can affect is the future."

In a related report, Paul Scholes predicted the Europa League final.

The Manchester United legend backed his former side to win, but admitted he likes Postecoglou and his team.

Scholes believes the Red Devils' history forces him to pick them over Tottenham, who have a "good manager."

Source: TUKO.co.ke