Champions League return more important than Europa League glory for Man United s Ruben Amorim

LONDON – Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim believes that a return to the Champions League is even more important than winning his first trophy in charge of the Red Devils when they face Tottenham Hotspur in the Europa League final.

Victory in Bilbao on May 21 will hand a lifeline to one of the struggling English giants by propelling them directly into the lucrative league phase of next season’s Champions League.

United and Tottenham will end up just outside the English Premier League relegation zone and the losers will miss out on European competition entirely next season.

A return to Europe’s elite club competition is estimated to be worth at least £85 million (S$146.6 million) to United, according to The Athletic, and would allow Amorim more resources to rebuild his squad.

“For me, the Champions League is more important. For everything, to prepare the next season. We are supposed to be in the Champions League. Europa League here is not enough and you have to have that feeling here,” he said, ahead of a league trip to Chelsea on May 16.

“The best way to help us get to the top in a few years is the Champions League. It is not the title, the trophy. The most important thing is how this title could help us to get back to the top faster.”

A dramatic run to the final has salvaged a torrid start to Amorim’s time at Old Trafford.

Since taking charge in November, he has won just six of 25 Premier League games.

The Portuguese has at times been brutal in the assessment of his team, including labelling them the worst in the club’s history. However, he rejected suggestions he could resign if United compound a miserable season with defeat in Spain.

He explained that his heated