Manchester United were putting on the bravest of brave faces as they headed out of Bilbao at lunchtime on Thursday.
Yes, the club remain solidly behind head coach Ruben Amorim – who had said after the match that if the ownership or the fans did not want him, he would leave “the next day”, without talking about compensation.
Yes, the club have a Plan B when it comes to transfers and will be in a position to reshape Amorim’s squad this summer.
And yes, the club still believe they will return towards the upper end of the English game in the not-too-distant future.
But there are some basic realities words alone will not solve.
After losing 1-0 to Tottenham in Bilbao, knowing there will be no European football of any kind next season and with losses still high despite a second round of redundancies, there are significant questions for United to answer.
Here we assess what the defeat means for their finances, transfer plans, on who might leave and for Amorim.
What does it mean for their finances?
At some point between now and the beginning of July, United will announce their third quarter financial results to the New York Stock Exchange.
This will be an opportunity to address any monetary issues for the 2025-26 season that have arisen because of the defeat in Spain.
We know for certain United will experience a £10m reduction in payments from their £900m, 10-year sponsorship deal with Adidas because they have missed out on the Champions League. As that penalty is spread over the length of the contract, which runs to 2035, the damage on an annual basis is not onerous. But few would look at this season and be confident of United returning to the Champions League in 2026-27 and therefore avoiding another penalty.
Beyond that, there is the issue of Premier League prize money. Each place in the table is worth £3m. That means, in their current position of 16th, United would receive £33m less than for finishing fifth.
The club make about £4.3m in gate receipts for every home game at Old Trafford – and there would have been at least four more of those in the league phase of the Champions League.
Add in the generous prize money on offer in Europe’s elite competition, and that is how we have calculated that Wednesday’s defeat by Tottenham has, at a conservative estimate, cost United £100m.
As has been widely reported, a second round of redundancies is on the way, this time affecting the football department. The reductions are likely to affect the scouting, medical and science teams.
There has been no word on whether that is likely to be the end of the matter. But it is clear, from axing of staff trips, free lunches and other perks, nothing is off limits in Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s determination to make United a leaner organisation.
But these cost-cutting initiatives can only do so much. As with any Premier League club, by far the biggest expenditure is on transfer fees and player wages. If this season is any guide, United, who have spent in excess of £900m on transfers over the past five years and whose last annual wage bill they confirmed at £365m, have been awful at both of these fundamental elements