Both Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur kept their hopes alive for a major trophy and a Champions League berth with impressive first-leg victories in the Europa League semifinals on Thursday.
United dominated Athletic Bilbao with a 3-0 win at San Mames in Spain, while Tottenham triumphed 3-1 at home against Norway's Bodo/Glimt.
Despite struggling in the Premier League and sitting in the lower half of the table, both teams have a chance to salvage their seasons in Europe's second-tier competition.
With silverware and a spot in next season's Champions League on the line, United delivered one of its best performances of the season, taking a commanding lead over 10-man Bilbao.
Casemiro headed Ruben Amorim's team in front in the 30th minute after a cross from Harry Maguire.
It was 2-0 seven minutes later when Rasmus Hojlund was brought down in the box by Dani Vivian, and a penalty was awarded after a VAR review. Vivian was shown a red card for the foul, and Bruno Fernandes converted from the spot.
Fernandes got his second and United's third in the 45th minute when he ran through on goal and curled a shot past goalkeeper Julen Agirrezabala.
The United captain has now scored 19 goals and provided 16 assists in all competitions this season. According to statistician Opta, Liverpool's Mohamed Salah is the only Premier League player to have made more goal contributions this term, with 56.
"I want to score goals, I want to be involved. I know one of my qualities is getting goals and making assists, so I just need to keep going,” Fernandes said.
United's win could have been even more emphatic with Noussair Mazraoui and Casemiro both hitting the woodwork.
The second leg is at Old Trafford next Thursday, and United is potentially just 90 minutes away from returning to Bilbao, which will host the final on May 21.
The run in Europe is in stark contrast to United's dismal domestic form, which will see it end the season with a club-record low points total and its lowest position in the Premier League era.
Sitting 14th in the standings, United has never looked likely to challenge for Champions League qualification through its league position. But it has saved some spectacular performances for the Europa League – including the epic comeback against Lyon in the quarterfinals when it rallied from 4-2 down in extra time to win 5-4.
Amorim, however, warned against complacency in the second leg.
"They (Bilbao) can do the same thing at Old Trafford because they are really strong, they are really intense,” he said. "Of course, we are in the advantage. We have our fans, but again, this could change.”
Under-pressure Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou could yet live up to his proclamation that he always wins a trophy in his second season.
That record – which he carried through with former clubs Brisbane Roar, Yokohama F. Marinos, and Celtic – has looked in serious jeopardy for much of a season that has seen Spurs lose 19 times in the league.
But a 3-1 win against Bodo/Glimt at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium will fuel belief that Postecoglou could deliver the goods again.
Spurs were ahead inside a minute through Brennan Johnson, and James Maddison doubled the lead in the 34th minute.
Dominic Solanke's penalty in the 61st minute made it 3-0, but Ulrik Saltnes gave the Norwegians hope ahead of next week's return leg in Norway by pulling a goal back in the 83rd minute.
"I don’t think the scoreline reflects our dominance, but at the end of the first leg, all you want is to be in a good position, and we’ve got ourselves into a good position,” Postecoglou said.
Chelsea completed a good night for English teams by beating Djurgarden 4-1 in Sweden in the first leg of their UEFA Conference League semifinal. Nicolas Jackson scored twice in the win.
Real Betis won 2-1 against Fiorentina, with on-loan Manchester United forward Antony scoring a goal to maintain his impressive form since moving to Spain.
