Ruben Amorim has explained what it would mean to Manchester United if they went all the way in the Europa League.
Manchester United face Athletic Club in the Europa League semi-final, with the first leg taking place at San Mames on Thursday night.
That means the second leg will be held at Old Trafford next week and United are hoping to take an advantage into the that game.
United go into the game with Amad Diallo and Matthijs de Ligt returning to the squad after spells out injured, although neither player is likely to feature in the starting line-up.
A potential final against either Tottenham Hotspur or Bodo/Glimt awaits United if they can get past their next hurdle versus Athletic Club. That presents the Red Devils with a glorious chance to play in the most prestigious European competition again next season, despite sitting 14th in the Premier League.
Ruben Amorim’s views on potential Europa League success
After a turbulent domestic campaign, United fans have had very little to shout about this season.
That could change if United end up victorious in the Europa League.
However, Amorim has stressed that even Europa League glory will not solve United’s problems, as he claimed that there will still be major issues at Old Trafford even if they qualify for the Champions League.
There are financial benefits that come with qualifying for the Champions League, such as a £100m boost to the club’s revenue. That could transform Amorim’s transfer budget but United’s head coach has warned that it will take a lot more than winning Europe’s second-tier competition to turn the club around.
“Nothing is going to save our season,” Amorim told reporters at his press conference. “Of course people are going to look in a different way for this season, especially for the coach. Again, it’s something more in the core of our club. We need to change a lot of things and we need to be consistent.
“Europa League is not change anything in our problems – it’s going to give us Champions League next year, more money to spend – but the problems are still there. We have to change the minds of our fans with consistency, good decisions, good recruitment, good academy. This is what we need to change to take our club back to the top.
“This is more of a shortcut to go to the European games. Nothing more. The problem we need to solve in a different way with more time and we’re really clear on that.”
After enduring their worst season in Premier League history, United could finish as low as 17th, but still manage to qualify for the Champions League.
| Position | Team | Played MP | Won W | Drawn D | Lost L | For GF | Against GA | Diff GD | Points Pts |
| 14 |  Man UtdManchester United | 34 | 10 | 9 | 15 | 39 | 47 | -8 | 39 |
Amorim was asked whether it is fair that the Reds could still qualify for Europe’s biggest competition.
“Maybe you can say it’s not fair because the best teams, the champions, should be in Champions League, but you have this competition to give value to this competition, it’s like one cup in our league. If you win the cup you go to European games. It’s the rules, I don’t know if it’s fair or not but if there is that possibility we have to try and reach it.”
How Manchester United will approach Athletic Club
Amorim believes Athletic Club pose a similar threat to Bournemouth, who United drew 1-1 with on Sunday.
That means Amorim is expecting Ernesto Valverde’s side to press high up the pitch.
“We change each game,” Amorim added.
“Against Bournemouth, we saw a team that press really high. Bilbao, it is more or less the same thing. We will see the strengths of the opponent.
“We will play the game that we see.”
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