Tottenham: Winning UEL could be turning point for club, says Ange Postecoglou

Ange Postecoglou believes winning the Europa League and ending Tottenham's 17-year wait for a trophy could be a turning point for the club.

Spurs are preparing for a huge showdown against Manchester United in the Europa league final in Bilbao on May 21 as they look to secure their first silverware since the League Cup in 2008.

Europa League glory would be the north London club's first European trophy since the UEFA Cup in 1984 and Postecoglou thinks earning silverware would change the perception of Spurs going forward.

When asked what winning a trophy at Spurs would mean, he said: "For me personally, great, it's another trophy I can reminisce about in my old age. But more importantly for the club, I've always said that it's the significance of what it does to people that really impacts you.

"A lot of the success I've had has been really significant stuff. Yokohama hadn't won the championship for 14 years, Australia had never won a continental championship, and Brisbane hadn't won one.

"South Melbourne, my first job, hadn't won in seven years and Celtic was one year, but that's a long time in Scotland. They had to wrestle back the dominance they've had for so long.

"When you look at the historical backdrop of this club for the past 20-odd years, it feels like a turning point for how people perceive this club and how this club perceives itself, which I think is the biggest thing.

"Until you do it, irrespective of what else you accomplish, people are going to say you haven't won anything. In our game, and in life in general, that's the things that matter most when people asses where you are at."

German referee Zwayer to officiate Europa League final

UEFA has confirmed previously Felix Zwayer will take charge of the all-English Europa League final between Manchester United and Tottenham.

The 43-year-old refereed last week's Champions League semi-final second leg between Paris Saint-Germain and Arsenal, with May 21 in Bilbao to be his second UEFA showpiece having refereed the 2023 Nations League final.

Zwayer took charge of England's semi-final win against the Netherlands at Euro 2024, ahead of which then boss Gareth Southgate insisted the appointment of a previously suspended official was "not even a consideration".

The German was given a six-month ban by his country's football federation in 2006, having worked as an assistant referee alongside Robert Hoyzer.

Zwayer was one of the officials who brought Hoyzer's match-fixing plot to light, with the relatively short duration of Zwayer's ban a recognition of that contribution. Hoyzer was banned for life.

England midfielder Jude Bellingham was fined in 2021 by the German federation after he referenced Zwayer's involvement in that scandal following a defeat for his former club Borussia Dortmund against Bayern Munich.