Man Utd and Tottenham have plenty of parallels – but has Europa League proved a poisoned chalice for Spurs? | OneFootball

“Sometimes a cup competition can hide the fact you’re still struggling,” said Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in 2021, the Manchester United manager playing down the importance of trophies as a marker of his team’s progress.

“Sometimes it’s more of an ego thing from other managers and clubs to finally win something”, added the Norwegian, who preferred to focus on league position as a yardstick for how his side were progressing.

Whether or not you agree, it would certainly be interesting to see what Ruben Amorim and Ange Postecoglou think. The first quote did not apply to either manager, with their runs to the final of the Europa League last season failing to mask the obvious struggles at United and Tottenham Hotspur.

But Postecoglou got the chance to boost his ego with a trophy, Spurs’ 1-0 win in the Europa League final providing the chance for a turnaround, United seemingly doomed to mediocracy or worse. It certainly felt like that in the stands of the San Mames and on the streets of Bilbao.

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United’s club standing and financial advantages have enabled the club to fight for Europe despite the chastening loss in the Europa League (Getty Images)

There were plenty of parallels between the clubs at the time, from the obvious struggles on the pitch to their runs to the final and questions over the managers. But while the United hierarchy came under the microscope, less was made of Tottenham’s struggles in the boardroom. After all, a trophy after 17 years is surely a success. Perhaps we all fell for the facade that winning a trophy can provide.

This moment was Tottenham’s to enjoy. At the time, Postecoglou suggested the Europa League win “accelerates the opportunities to build a team who can be successful”. He was right on paper, though he added that he felt that while there was a lot of work to be done, it was “not as much work as people may think”. He was not correct in this assertion.

Of course, Postecoglou was sacked 16 days after the final, a Premier League season with 38 points proving that Solskjaer’s first theory can only go so far.

Thomas Frank is now the man under the microscope in the Tottenham hotseat, the Dane facing a seemingly impossible task in getting the club to compete both domestically and in Europe.

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Frank has led his side to fourth in the Champions League league phase table, though they are struggling domestically (Getty Images)

The parallels with United remain, though there are some important differences. While both clubs invested heavily over summer, United’s ability to spend over £200m on a new frontline alone – even without any European football – puts them in a place that it’s difficult for Spurs to compete with. In terms of league performance, Tottenham are languishing in 14th in the Premier League, 12 points behind United as they visit Old Trafford for Saturday’s early kick-off.

The boardrooms remain eerily similar, however. Daniel Levy’s exit last year was a surprise given his role in transforming Tottenham into the latest of the ‘top six’ clubs, but as has been the allegation against United, it was suggested that there was too much of a focus on business rather than “sustained sporting success”.

As with United, plenty of change has been promised at Tottenham, the usual PR speak included in statements that promised “more wins more often” in this “new era” for the club. Tottenham sporting director Johan Lange even recently revealed “big ambitions” for the club in this summer’s window.

United fans can sympathise with their Spurs counterparts when it comes to this sort of empty statement. Not every trophy offers the opportunity for a rebuild, but the Europa League does – with suggestions Spurs have already earned over £70m so far from the competition this season – and given the size of the club, Tottenham should have the ability to capitalise.

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Spurs have nine losses and seven wins across the Premier League campaign so far (Getty Images)

This is obviously where the frustration stems from. Fans see a state-of-the-art stadium, reports of over £600m in revenue – ranking them in the top 10 clubs in the world – and a summer spend of £170m, but a team in 14th.

It was not necessarily the wrong decision to hire Frank. He has a record of sustained success at Brentford and managers don’t become ‘bad’ overnight, while injuries have played a huge part in the derailment of Spurs’ season, with 11 potential absentees for the United game, at least six of whom would be regular starters.

Rather, like United, Spurs’ on-pitch struggles remain a reflection of problems in the hierarchy. Many of those issues relate to recruitment, with little evidence of the ‘right’ people in the key positions related to transfer dealings.

The list of sub-par signings Tottenham have made in recent season makes for worrying reading. Richarlison, Mathys Tel, Brennan Johnson, Guigliemo Vicario, Yves Bissouma and Wilson Odobert arrived for a sum approaching £200m, and at the very least all would need to be replaced before the club could have a chance of challenging for a title.

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The likes of Xavi Simons have failed to hit the ground running since arriving in north London (Getty Images)

There have been some successes – Maddison, Kulusevski and Micky van de Ven among them – but some of the decisions have been staggering. The club must have had enough evidence to steer clear of the likes of Randal Kolo Muani, while they even had six months of evidence regarding Tel before deciding to sign him for £30m and then omitting him from the squad for the Champions League.

To make matters worse, the hierarchy are not taking any responsibility, as alluded to by captain Cristian Romero, who said it was “disgraceful” that the club only had “11 players available” for the draw with Manchester City last week. Romero’s comments were met with the statement from sporting director Johan Lange instead, in a week where reports suggest their captain could leave at the end of the season.

So Solskjaer’s comments are relevant once again, this time for Spurs as they visit Old Trafford. The relative success in Europe has not been enough to distract from their league form, the ego boost of winning the Europa League now replaced with a harsh reminder of where the club stands. No matter what you’ve won in the past, the results in the last few weeks are always the most important.

However, while Frank may pay with his job, the cycle at Spurs looks set to continue. United fans know better than anyone that most problems at a club can be traced back to the hierarchy, with their own board needing to get everything right in a vital summer if they want to get closer to challenging again.