FC Sevilla – AS Roma Football Europa League Final, May 31, 2023. Sevilla players with the cup for the winner of the competition.
Budapest – Sevilla football players beat AS Roma in the final of the Europa League after a penalty shootout and with their seventh triumph confirmed the position of the most successful team in the history of the competition. The Italian striker Paulo Dybala opened the scoring in the 35th minute, but Gianluca Mancini scored an own goal in the 55th minute. The match in Budapest did not offer another goal even in extra time, and the score was 1:1 and was decided by penalties. Gonzalo Montiel scored the winning goal in the 4:1 shootout in the fourth series.
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Photo gallery: European Football League 2022/23
Sevilla also managed the seventh major European final and secured participation in the next year's Champions League. The Andalusian club won five times in the Europa League and added two triumphs in the UEFA Cup, the predecessor of the EL. The current captain Jesús Navas was there four times, who was also present at the premier victory in 2006.
Coach José Luis Mendilibar is celebrating the first trophy in his career. The 62-year-old coach only took over the team in mid-March after being dismissed by Jorge Sampaoli.
AS Rome did not follow up on last year's triumph in the European Conference League. In his sixth European Cup final, coach José Mourinho left defeated for the first time. “Wolves” lost their third fight for the trophy, failed in the European Cup in 1984 and seven years later in the UEFA Cup.
Spinazzola had the opening chance in the 12th minute, but after Celik's back pass, he only hit the prepared goalkeeper Búnú from an ideal position. The nervous and fragmented first half did not offer another chance for a long time. It wasn't until the 35th minute that Mancini sent Dybal with a vertical shot to the end, who sent the ball with a cross shot to the back post. The Argentinian world champion recovered in time after a four-game absence due to injury, and with his fifth goal in the competition, he reached third place in the scorers' table.
Sevilla only threatened at the end of the seven-minute setup, when Rakitic hit the post with a shot from 20 meters. The Romans thus kept a clean sheet in the opening act of the ninth playoff match.
Coach Mendilibar made two changes in the lineup in the second half and the Spanish team took the initiative. In the 55th minute, Sevilla took advantage of the pressure to equalize when Navas' cross from the right was headed into Mancini's own net.
The Romans threatened after set pieces, but Sevilla held Búnú. The Moroccan goalkeeper caught both Abraham's prompt finish after a scrum in front of the goal, and substitute Belotti with a great save after the signal from the free kick. A quarter of an hour before the end, English referee Taylor awarded a penalty kick after Ocampos fell in the box. But the video referee revealed that Ibañez had poked the ball cleanly to the opponent, and Taylor corrected his verdict.
As in the previous two seasons, the final went to extra time with a score of 1:1. The added half hour, including the additional 14 minutes of regulation, offered both sides a cautious game, and so they had to decide on penalties for the third time in a row. Smalling's header after a corner kick from the 11th minute of regulation hit the bar from above.
Two heroes from last year's World Cup in Qatar shone in the shootout. Búnú only failed against Cristante, he kicked Mancini's shot into the middle and Ibañez's attempt tipped the bar. He thus followed up on his performance from the round of 16 of the World Cup, in which he did not miss a single penalty against Spain.
Sevilla's scorers, on the other hand, were infallible. Ocampos, Lamela, Rakitič and Montiel gradually established themselves. It was the Argentinian defender who converted the winning penalty in the World Cup final against France. He did not succeed for the first time today, but the goalkeeper Patrício left the goal line earlier and from the repeated attempt Montiel already ended the match.
After the semi-final triumph over Juventus, the Spaniards defeated another Italian team at the end of the competition. They also won their second match with AS Roma, in the first one they knocked them out in the round of 16 in 2020 on their way to their last triumph in the Europa League.
FC Sevilla – AS Roma 1:1 after extra time. (1:1, 0:1), on pen. 4:1
Goals: Mancini's own 55th – Dybala's 35th. The penalty was converted by: Ocampos, Lamela, Rakitic, Montiel – Cristante. They did not convert the penalty: Mancini, Ibanez. Referees: Taylor – Beswick, Nunn – Attwell (video, all English). ŽK: Rakitic, Lamela, Montiel, Jordán, Ocampos, Mir (off the pitch) – Matic, Pellegrini, Mancini, Cristante, Celik, Zalewski, Karsdorp (off the pitch), Mourinho (coach). Spectators: 65,000
Lineups:
Sevilla: Búnú – Navas (95. Montiel), Badé, Gudelj (120. +8 Marcao), Telles (95. Rekik) – Fernando (120. +9 Jordan), Rakitic – Ocampos, Torres (46. Suso), Gil (46. Lamela) – Nasírí. Coach: Mendilibar.
AS Roma: Patrício – Mancini, Smalling, Ibaňez – Celik (91. Zalewski), Cristante, Matič (120. Bove), Spinazzola (106. Llorente ) – Pellegrini (106. El Shaarawy) – Dybala (68. Wijnaldum), Abraham (75. Belotti). Coach: Mourinho.
