Ajax vs Manchester United head-to-head: A closer look at the Europa League finalists' past meetings

Tonight’s Europa League final between Manchester United and Ajax sees two historic giants of the European game go head-to-head.

Perhaps surprisingly given the past successes of both clubs, tonight’s meeting in Stockholm will be just the fifth time the Red Devils and the Dutch side have faced each other in competitive fixtures.

All of the previous four games also took place in Europe’s second-tier competition, with the sides playing out two-legged ties in both 1976 and 2012. Here, we take a look at how each of the contests panned out.

The first time the two sides were paired together came in the Europa League’s former guise, the UEFA Cup. United were playing in their first European tie since 1969, having been relegated to the old Second Division during the intervening time, while Ajax were three years on from the last of their three consecutive European Cup victories. In the first leg of the tie at Amsterdam’s Olympic Stadium, the home side’s captain Rudi Krol scored the only goal of the game to leave the return leg at Old Trafford finely poised.

Despite starting the tie as underdogs, a decent first leg display had given the Red Devils the belief they could turn the tie on its head back in Manchester. With Old Trafford rocking, Lou Macari’s goal shortly before half-time levelled the tie, before Sammy McIlroy scored a second half winner to send Tommy Docherty’s side through. That was as good as it got for United on their European comeback, though. After being handed another tough draw in the second round, they were eliminated by Italian outfit Juventus.

Almost 45 years on from their previous competitive encounter, the sides were once more drawn together in the competition now known as the Europa League. Despite being in the middle of a period of great domestic success under Frank de Boer, Ajax were no longer the renowned force in Europe they were when the teams had last met. United, meanwhile, had become a global juggernaut under Sir Alex Ferguson but a rare season of Champions League underachievement meant they finished third in their group and were parachuted into the second-tier competition. The English side were big favourites to emerge victorious, and second half goals by Ashley Young and Javier Hernandez handed the Red Devils a comfortable first leg advantage.

After Hernandez scored once more early on at Old Trafford to put United three up in the tie, Ferguson’s side took their foot off the gas and ended up almost paying the price. Armenian Aras Ozbiliz levelled on the night for the Dutch team, before now-Tottenham defender Toby Alderweireld’s 87^th minute goal set up an unexpectedly nervy ending.

Had the Red Devils conceded again in the dying moments, they would have been eliminated on away goals. As it was, they hung on to progress but their poor European campaign was ended in the last 16 by Athletic Bilbao.