Tottenham fearing dismal European record in Spanish territory

After a dismal Premier League campaign, Tottenham Hotspur are looking to salvage their campaign with the Europa League. Ange Postecoglou's men have been beaten a club-record 21 times in the league and are on course for their worst season since returning to the top tier in 1978, but Wednesday's showpiece sees them in line to end a 17-year trophy drought.

They will be facing Ruben Amorim's Manchester United in the Europa League final on May 21, but they might not be too thrilled with the location selected to host it. Athletic Bilbao's San Mames will be the venue for the showdown, something that Spurs supporters might be fearing due to the club's dismal record in Spanish territory.

The north London side have never been able to win in any of the seven official matches they played in Spain. The first occasion was in the 1982 European Cup Winners' Cup, with Spurs travelling to Catalonia for the second leg of their semi-final tie against Barcelona. Keith Burkinshaw's side fell to a 1-0 defeat after Simonsen's goal sealed a 2-1 win on aggregate for the Catalans, who went on to win the tournament.

Then came the trip to Real Madrid's Santiago Bernabeu for the second leg of the 1985 Europa League quarter-finals, at the time called the UEFA Cup. Although they managed to avoid defeat, a 0-0 draw was not enough to seal their ticket to the semis due to their 0-1 loss in the first at home. Sevilla were the next Spanish side to add to Spurs' woes in 2007.

A 2-1 defeat at the Ramon Sanchez-Pizjuan in the first leg of the Europa League quarters ended up being too much for Spurs to recover from, with the second leg in the English capital ending in a 2-2 draw. That was the Premier League side's last blow in the Europa League, as their next four all came in the Champions League.

In 2011, Tottenham suffered a 4-0 beating in the quarter-finals at Real Madrid. The two met again in 2017, this time in the group stage, with Spurs managing to scrape a 1-1 draw. Mauricio Pochettino's side finished with the identical scoreline in their visit to Barca a year later, still in the group stages. But the most painful remains the 2019 Champions League final defeat to Liverpool, which took place in Atletico Madrid's Metropolitano.

Contrary to Tottenham, their upcoming rivals boast of a winning record in Spain. Despite their ups and downs in recent years, Manchester United head into their 11th match in the southern Mediterranean country off the back of six wins and three draws out of 10, with their sweetest one being their extra-time comeback against Bayern Munich in the 1999 Champions League final at the Camp Nou.

The Red Devils are also familiar with the San Mames, having recently demolished Athletic Bilbao on Basque soil, repeating themselves in the second leg in Manchester to book their ticket to the Europa League final. Tasked with returning to glory for the first time since 2008, these figures may invite pessimism for Ange Postecoglou's Spurs.