Ultimately, United won their first Europa League title by invoking the rule they held in contempt in 1999. Ajax fielded a starting side with an average age of just 22, but have won nothing with their kids. United turned up in no mood to bow to the exuberance of youth, with the selection of Marouane Fellaini as a number 10 against the club of Cruyff a harbinger of things to come. United were simply too physical, and too defensively disciplined to give Ajax a sniff.
The Mourinho era now has a second trophy, Champions League football, and above all, a team playing in the perfect image of their manager.
Here's how we rated the players on the Europa League winning team of 2016/17, Manchester United.
Sergio Romero - 6.5
Nigh on impossible to rate: he had nothing to do, although was almost caught out in the final minute before being rescued by Valencia.
Antonio Valencia - 7.5
Valencia tonight became the seventh man to captain United in a European final, and the first man from Ecuador to do so. He was excellent, and offered United constant attacking thrust on the right-wing. Great season.
Chris Smalling - 7
With plenty of protection, Smalling was composed. Strong in the air, it was his header that led to Mkhitaryan's superb finish to bury Ajax. too a kick in the face for his troubles with five minutes to go.
Daley Blind - 6.5
Like Smalling, utterly comfortable against his former side.
Matteo Darmian - 8
Darmian has not exactly enjoyed the unwavering confidence of Mourinho this season, but he was outstanding here. with Mkhitaryan offering little protection in front of him, he dealt very well with the explosive Traore.
Ander Herrera - 7.5
Kept on a leash: sitting in front of the back four to block of any potential service to Dolberg's feet. It worked well in the first half: the Ajax striker's first touch was the kick-off after Pogba's opener. Went looking for trouble to help disrupt the referee's attention as Mata escaped a red card late on.
Paul Pogba - 8
An extremely fortunate goal perhaps a karmic return for rattling the woodwork so often this season. He and Fellaini brought a level of physicality to midfield that Ajax couldn't live with, and his height proved useful with a couple of important defensive headers. Looked slightly vulnerable when Ajax ran at him, and earned the brief scorn of his manager for needlessly conceding a corner in the second-half. Unlucky not to get a penalty in the second-half.
Marouane Fellaini - 7.5
And on the seventh day, Jose created Fellaini. He is the quintessential Mourinho player, and if to reinforce the point, he was selected as a number 10 against the club at which tiki-taka hatched. He did brilliantly, and went against his usual nature: less careless on the ball than usual, and kept his prodigious elbows by his side.
Juan Mata - 7
Defensively more reliable than Mkhitaryan, and tucked in to offer Valencia oceans of room to run into on the counter. Knitted play together well, although was fortunate to escape red in the second half.
Henrikh Mkhitaryan - 6.5
His performance a microcosm of United's: generally disappointing in open-play as he dropped very deep, particularly after the first goal. But for all those limitations, he had the killer instinct just after half-time that the Ajax players didn't have: deft, whereas Ajax were utterly bereft.
Marcus Rashford - 6
When the Swedish groundsmen arrive to work tomorrow morning, they'll find a couple of lone furrows ploughed by Rashford. United's tactic involved long balls, to either the specific target of Fellaini's velcro chest or in the general direction of the space ahead of Rashford. In the wildman Sanchez, Rashford found his pace matched, meaning all he got for his efforts in the first-half was a kick in the balls.
Future Mrs rashford might be in for a surprise. pic.twitter.com/u9CQxk5JSk
— Arsenal☆ (@20arsenal) May 24, 2017
Subs
Jesse Lingard for Mkhitaryan (73') - 6.5
Lingard has a remarkable record of scoring in cup finals for United, and he should have done so here: streaking clear in the final ten minutes, but ultimately running out of gas as Sanchez ate up ground behind him.
Anthony Martial for Rashford (80') - N/A
Anonymous.
Wayne Rooney for Mata (89') - N/A
For what is presumably a farewell, Rooney came on to jog about before adding one of the few medals that has yet to adorn his trophy cabinet.
Jose Mourinho - 9
A 100% record in European final maintained, this will sit with Inter Milan v Barcelona on the shelf of the prototype Mourinho victory.
