Sevilla beat AS Roma 4-1 on penalties in the Europa League final held at the Puskas Arena to win their 7th title of the competition.
The match ended in a 1-all stalemate after 120 minutes and and Sevilla proved to have more nerves to withstand the pressure that comes with a penalty shootout.
The first chance of the game came in the 11th minute for Roma but Leonardo Spinazzola’s shot went straight to Sevilla’s goalkeeper Yassine Bounou.
In the 34th minute, Namanja Matic dispossessed Ivan Rakitic in the middle of the park and the ball fell on Gianluca Mancini who played in Paulo Dybala and the Argentine slotted the ball into the bottom corner to give Roma the lead.
After going behind, Sevilla mounted more pressure but Roma shifted into defensive mode to counter Sevilla’s attacks. The best chance for Sevilla came in the 6th minute of added time when Rakitic sent a powerful shot but it just hit the upright.
The second half started with Sevilla still applying pressure to Roma’s defense and it eventually paid off in the 54th minute when Mancini put the ball in his own net that came from a Jesus Navas cross.
Sevilla had a penalty overruled by VAR in the 76th minute after it was determined that Mancini did not make contact with Lucas Ocampos. No serious chances were created by both sides until the end of normal time so the match was pushed into extra time.
Extra time was more about playing out the minutes until the penalty shootout and the time Roma wasted while taking their free kicks is testament to that.
The triumph also means Sevilla have qualified for next season’s Champions League.
