Roy Keane criticizes Man Utd's defeat in Europa League final

"If we only rely on Harry Maguire to get out of trouble, then Man Utd will be in trouble, of course," Man Utd legend Roy Keane criticized his former team after losing to Tottenham in the Europa League final at San Mames Stadium (Spain) on the morning of May 22.

Brennan Johnson scored the only goal to help Tottenham defeat Man Utd in the Europa League final (Photo: Getty).

The "Red Devils" suffered a 0-1 defeat after Brennan Johnson's only goal late in the first half, and were helpless in finding an equalizer throughout the second half. As a result, Tottenham ended their 17-year wait for a major title, while Man Utd went empty-handed this season and for the first time in 10 years did not have a place in the European Cup.

"Just when you think things can't get any worse, Man Utd show the opposite. They escaped the crisis by reaching the Europa League final and that covered up the big cracks in the team.

"They were very easy to beat all season. They had a few lucky games in the Europa League, including reaching the final. But in the end, they were not good enough. Man Utd did not show enough quality in both the first team and the reserves," Roy Keane frankly criticized Man Utd's weakness this season.

Man Utd relied on Harry Maguire to score in the final minutes but failed (Photo: Getty).

In the final at San Mames, Man Utd had 72.3% possession, 16 shots and 6 on target, but failed to capitalise. Tottenham, meanwhile, won despite having just 3 shots, 27.7% possession and just 115 passes.

Notably, Man Utd continued to use center-back Harry Maguire as a reserve striker in the last 10 minutes with the hope of bringing luck like in the second leg of the quarter-finals against Lyon but was unsuccessful (center-back Harry Maguire scored in the 120+1 minute to help Man Utd win the final match against Lyon with a score of 7-6).

"I'll tell you one thing, Man Utd were a disgrace tonight, even in the semi-finals. They pushed a 6ft 4in centre-back into a centre-forward position in the last 10 minutes of the game, trying to play a pass into the box.

Is that how you get out of trouble? That's how they got to the final, just waiting for Maguire to score," English football legend Alan Shearer also criticized Man Utd's tactics.

"Man Utd have never done well enough, they have been terrible not only in this game but all season. They are terrible, it's a shame on them.

Man Utd are not the same club as 20 years ago, just in name. They are a million miles away both on and off the pitch. I don't know how they will get through this," the former Newcastle player concluded.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-thao/roy-keane-chi-trich-that-bai-cua-man-utd-o-chung-ket-europa-league-20250522165140183.htm