Manchester United's season will depend on the Europa League. According to coach Ruben Amorim himself, success in the European second division tournament will not change much of their awareness of the campaign. It was already a disaster.
Raising a trophy, for the third consecutive campaign, will help ease the pain and above all, get revenue from the Champions League next season. It will also give Amorim and the Man United leaders a foundation to continue reforming.
However, Athletic Bilbao will not be an easy opponent to bully. The Basque side are eyeing a place in their home final at San Mames.
This stadium has been renovated over the past decade and creates an impressive structure along the river flowing through the center of Bilbao. The last time Man United went there, they were led by Sir Alex Ferguson.
The La Liga team with a small budget and an unshakable self-development policy has run, fought and thought ahead of the "Red Devils". They won 3-2 at Old Trafford and it was at San Mames that Bilbao continued to defeat their opponent 2-1. Now, Amorim can hardly bear the same experience.
Back in 2012, after a disappointing bid in the Champions League, the Red Devils faced the Europa League, where they were one of the favorite teams to win. They beat Ajax in a narrow defeat but faced a Bilbao side in every aspect, leaving Ferguson with no answer.
Coach Marcelo Bielsa has left the Premier League giants completely helpless. Currently, Bilbao is still a tough team in the European arena.
Of course, if they lose, on the positive side, Amorim's confidence will not be affected much. Because the Portuguese strategist's confidence has hit rock bottom. There is little to keep from him after his appointment, apart from the Manchester derby win and perhaps the FA Cup success against Arsenal.
What if the Portuguese coach makes similar statements to Ferguson? And those making decisions at Old Trafford will wonder how much they should support their captain this summer amid rumours of a reform.
After Man United's loss to Bilbao 13 years ago, Ferguson said: "We accept that we were convincingly defeated and deserve criticism from public opinion. That is probably the common context of Man United in the European arena this season.
Man United are always expected to easily qualify for the Champions League group stage. And so I was subjective when I wasn't careful.
Maybe in the long run, putting young players on the field will bring benefits, but in the minds of the fans, they want to see us win. Man United have disappointed fans, so next season I will try not to repeat those mistakes."
Amorim needs an excellent performance from the Man United players to overcome Lyon in the quarter-finals. Three goals in the final minutes lit up Old Trafford, but that type of game could not be relied on too often.
Amorim may have lost the semi-final, but his performance on the pitch will provide more solid evidence of the scale of his upcoming rebuilding process.
