Europa League final in Bilbao has been rescheduled, not taking place on May 21st as previously planned.

Exhilarating Europa League Semi-Final Showdown Ahead

We're all set for the first leg of the semi-finals in the Europa League as "Athletic" host "Manchester United" on May 1st, with the return match scheduled for May 8th. Both teams have their own stories to tell.

Mayhem at Old Trafford

While bookmakers' odds may suggest that "Tottenham" is the favorite for the second most prestigious continental trophy, it's a deceitful illusion. "Tottenham" is competing in the Europa League final, against Norwegian "Bodo/Glimt", while the odds of "Athletic" and "Manchester United" are almost equal. The one who emerges victorious in this big match on May 8th will likely become the favorite for the final on the 21st.

Athletic (Spain) vs Manchester United (England)

|* Europa League, Semi-final, First Leg* May 1st, Thursday, 22:00 (Moscow time)* Bilbao. San Mamés Stadium (53,289)* Referee: Eskos (Norway)* Return match - May 8th

Athletic's triumph | Manchester United faces "Athletic" after a nail-biting miraculous victory over "Lyon" in the quarter-finals. The English club trailed 0-2 but came back strong, scoring three goals in a row on the 114th, 120th, and 121st minutes to take the match into extra time, where they eventually won 5-4.

|Athletic's record-breaking season | "Athletic" has won all 6 Europa League matches at home this season with a combined score of 14:2, and a mere one defeat in 33 rounds of the national championship.

|Photo: AFP April 17, 2025, Manchester. "Manchester United" - "Lyon" - 5:4 (ET). MU players and fans celebrate reaching the Europa League semi-finals.

Another 96th-minute rescue

Three days after the miracle against "Lyon", United lost their English Championship match against "Wolverhampton", interrupted by rest for some key players, including Bruno Fernandes, Harry Maguire, and Casemiro. United's season in the PL has quality as the club is currently 14th in the standings.

Победа "Атлетика"

Bournemouth Dress Rehearsal

The rehearsal match before the trip to Bilbao took place last Sunday in Bournemouth and was more lively. United's lineup was close to optimal, and they attacked a lot: 25-8 in shots in favor of the guests and 6-1 in shots on target. Nevertheless, United had to come back again. The only "shot" from Bournemouth that hit the goal was a goal - this happened before the break, leading to a 1-1 draw.

Injuries

"Athletic" | "Manchester United"

Ничья

Photo: manutd.com April 27, 2025, Bournemouth. "Bournemouth" - "Manchester United" - 1:1. In attack - Argentine striker of MU Alejandro Garnacho.

|Interestingly, "United" had a numerical advantage in the end, just like with "Lyon". In the middle of the second half, Brazilian "Bournemouth" legionnaire Évanilson received a red card.

|Injury update | United's key player Óihan Sunset and another promising midfielder, U. Gómez, are out due to injuries, but the rest of the squad is fully available.

|Suspensions | -

Победа "Манчестер Юнайтед"

|Manchester United's Last 5 Matches

Daло, Zirkzee, De Ligt, Coller, Heaven, L. Martínez, Diallo | * 27.04. English Championship. "Bournemouth" - "Manchester United" - 1:1 (1:0).

Goal: R.Heillunn (Ugarte), 90+6 - 1:1.

Lineup: Onana, Mazraoui (Obi-Martin 76), Maguire (Lindelof 66), Dorgus (Eriksen 90), Joro, Shaw, Fernandes (Mount 65), Casemiro (Mainu 65), Ugarte (Evanilson 46), R.Heillunn, Garnacho.

"Атлетик" в финале

20.04. English Championship. "Manchester United" - "Wolverhampton" - 0:1.

17.04. Europa League. Quarter-finals. "Manchester United" - "Lyon" - 5:4 (AET).

Goals: Ugarte, Dalo, Fernandes, Mainu, Maguire.

13.04. English Championship. "Newcastle" - "Manchester United" - 4:1.

"Манчестер Юнайтед" в финале

Goal: Garnacho.

10.04. Europa League. Quarter-finals. "Lyon" - "Manchester United" - 2:2.

Goals: Joro, Zirkzee.

|Athletic Play the Tough Way

"Athletic" played two games in the national championship between the quarter-finals and semi-finals of the Europa League, with less than three days in between. The team nearly left Madrid with a point in their first match against "Real".

Suspensions

| The second game, against "Las Palmas", ended with a 1-0 win for Athletic. However, in this match, top scorer Iñaki Williams had to be substituted due to injury in the 22nd minute, and another key player, Óihan Sunset, suffered an injury.

|Squad Losses

Iñaki Williams, Óihan Sunset | Dalot, Zirkzee, De Ligt, Coller, Heaven, L. Martínez, Diallo

| "Athletic"'s Last 5 Matches

Травмы

23.04. Spanish Championship. "Athletic" - "Las Palmas" - 1:0 (1:0).

Goal: I.Williams (I.Ruiz), 5.

Сансет, У. Гомес

Composition: Simón, Vivian, Y.Alvarez, Berchiche, De Marcos, I.Ruiz (Prados 84), Sunset (Canales 21), Hauregizar, Berenguer (N.Williams 65), I.Williams, Sannadi (Guruzeta 84).

20.04. Spanish Championship. "Real" - "Athletic" - 1:0.

Дало, Зиркзе, Де Лигт, Колльер, Хевен, Л. Мартинес, Диалло

17.04. Europa League. Quarter-finals. "Athletic" - "Rangers" - 2:0.

Goals: Sunset, N.Williams.

13.04. Spanish Championship. "Athletic" - "Rayo Vallecano" - 3:1.

Goals: Sunset (2), N.Williams.

Дисквалификации

10.04. Europa League. Quarter-finals. "Rangers" - "Athletic" - 0:0.

## Past Encounters and Match Predictions

On April 23, "Athletic" hosted "Las Palmas" at home, and this time the only goal was scored by the Bilbao club - 1:0. Iñaki Williams was the scorer, outsmarting the defender and goalkeeper with two elegant touches.

In this match, the younger of the Williams brothers, Nico, returned to the team after missing the previous game due to a minor injury. However, another key player for "Athletic", Óihan Sunset, suffered an injury.

This loss could be costly for the team in their clash with MU. In the current season, Sunset has been one of the most promising discoveries of La Liga, with 15 goals already to his name. Unfortunately, the 25-year-old midfielder has had a streak of bad luck this spring: he recovered from one injury at the beginning of April, only to suffer another one almost immediately.

|Betting and Prediction for the Match

Given the current form of both teams, "Athletic" is expected to have the edge in their home match against Manchester United. With their strong defense and home advantage, "Athletic" seems to be the better bet for this clash.

Despite bookmakers favoring Tottenham, the odds for Athletic and Manchester United in the Europa League semi-finals are nearly equal, making the May 8th match a potential game-changer for the final.
Rasmus, a promising midfielder for Manchester United, is out due to injuries, but the rest of the squad is available for the semi-final match against Athletic.
In the first leg of the Europa League semi-finals, UEFA will referee the match between Athletic (Spain) and Manchester United (England) at the San Mamés Stadium in Bilbao on May 1st.
In the previous match against Lyon, Manchester United miraculously came back from a 0-2 deficit, scoring three goals in the last six minutes of regular time to win 5-4 in extra time, with Rashford scoring the winning goal.