Micah Richards believes that one Manchester United star could make a major impact for Ruben Amorim’s men in the Europa League final against Tottenham.
Manchester United reached the 2025 Europa League final and the Red Devils will now travel to the San Mames Stadium on Wednesday evening in Bilbao.
Ruben Amorim’s men secured their place in the final of the 2024-25 edition of the tournament after United knocked La Liga outfit Athletic Club out of the competition.
United came from 1-0 down against Athletic Club in the return leg of the Europa League semi-finals and sealed a stunning 4-1 win at Old Trafford on the night.
The Red Devils already had the advantage over the Spanish side going into the second leg after United’s 3-0 win over 10-man Athletic Club in the first leg in Spain.
United need to lift the Europa League trophy on Wednesday evening if the Red Devils want to secure European football for the 2025-26 season at Old Trafford.
The Europa League run offers the Red Devils a route back to the Champions League and for Amorim to secure his first piece of major silverware as United manager.
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Photo by Michael Regan - UEFA/UEFA via Getty Images
Photo by Michael Regan – UEFA/UEFA via Getty Images
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What Micah Richards expects to see from Casemiro in the Europa League final between Man Utd and Tottenham in Bilbao
Casemiro has seen a resurgence in form in the later stages of the campaign and has established himself as a key midfield influence for Red Devils boss Ruben Amorim.
The 33-year-old former Real Madrid star’s future had been uncertain amid the 2024-25 season and Casemiro had struggled to make a real impact for the Red Devils.
However, Casemiro has impressed for Manchester United in the Europa League campaign and his experience on the European stage has proven to be invaluable.
The Brazil international has scored twice and picked up three assists in 12 Europa League appearances en route to United’s showdown in the final with Tottenham.
Micah Richards has now told Gary Lineker and Alan Shearer that he could see five-time Champions League winner Casemiro making a major impact for United again.
The 36-year-old Sky Sports pundit has said that Casemiro has been “laughed” at for some time and Richards has tipped United to beat Spurs 1-0 in Wednesday’s final.
Speaking on The Rest Is Football podcast alongside Gary Lineker and Alan Shearer, Richards said: “I’m going to say, I think a lot of people have laughed off Casemiro or laughed at him for a while now.
“But I think in these competitions, sometimes it goes down to set pieces. So, I’m going to say Bruno assist for a Casemiro goal, 1-0.”
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Ruben Amorim asked about Man Utd’s future ahead of the 2025 Europa League final vs Tottenham in Bilbao
Speaking at his pre-match press conference on Tuesday, Amorim insisted that lifting the Europa League trophy is “really important” for how people will look at United.
“A new future, for me it is not the case, but it is going to help us to finish the season, if people will look at our team in a different way because winning a European title is really important,” he said, as per Manchester United’s official website.
“But, again, it’s not going to change our season. The players know, everyone knows, the fans know, the staff know, but winning a European title can help us have that feeling to build the future.”
The Europa League final is hosted at the San Mames Stadium in Bilbao and United and Tottenham’s clash in Spain is scheduled for an 8pm kick-off time in the UK.