ANDY DUNN Why everybody should ignore what Man Utd are saying about winning the Europa League

Right now, one of the few dispiriting things about professional football is the tendency of modern players and managers to apologise to fans. It seems there are a lot of people who expect those players and managers to beat themselves up when things are not going so well.

Perform terribly, say sorry to your followers, maybe even refund their travel expenses. It is faintly pathetic.

clearly thinks so. When asked if he thought the team “owed them (supporters) one in this competition, given what they have been going through”, Maddison did not exactly toe what has become the party line.

“They or we? We’ve been going through it.” And when it was then suggested “you’ve been putting them through it with the results in the league”, Maddison responded: “On purpose?”

Good on him. At the moment, there is a lot of talk about fans. Real fans, tourist fans, etc etc. The game has probably always had both.

READ MORE:

READ MORE:

But here’s the truth. If you support a club, you support the players through thick and thin. Or thin and thin, in some cases.

That’s the contract. You don’t ask them to say sorry or to pay for your ticket and bus fare if they happen to play badly.

There is only one thing players and managers should apologise for … not trying. And it is very rare that players and managers do not try.

That is Maddison’s point. The Spurs players have not deliberately been rubbish. So what do they owe to anyone? And the same goes for I’ve seen United a lot this season and, mostly, they have been pretty hopeless. But they have always tried.

And so, when something actually does come off, they should be allowed to enjoy it, and should be suitably lauded for it. Instead, feels compelled to spend half his time self-flagellating, saying that this Europa League run is nice but winning the whole thing will still NOT save United’s season.

Alejandro Garnacho and were the latest in a long line of players to say likewise. It’s rubbish. Lads, it WILL save your season. You probably know that so don’t be afraid of saying it.

It is a major trophy and, rightly or wrongly, it will mean you participate in next season’s You have already given your supporters the odd memorable occasion in this tournament and there might well be another in Bilbao in a couple of weeks time.

You might yet win more than Manchester City win this season. You might yet win more than Arsenal win this season. It goes without saying that your domestic form has been lousy this season so there really is no need to say it.

But you were 31 points in arrears of last season’s Premier League champions and you were never really going to win it this season. Yes, there has been a very significant under-performance in the Premier League but United have excelled in Europe, albeit in the second-tier competition.

Would Amorim and Maguire prefer to be battling it out in a Premier League title race right now rather than be in the lower reaches of the table but with a Europa League final almost certainly to look forward to?Probably the former.

But if they safely negotiate the second leg of the semi-finals and then win in Bilbao on May 21, their season WILL be saved. And anyone saying otherwise is just playing to the gallery.

and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our