Sevilla, as is seemingly always the case, won the Europa League, triumphing in a penalty kick shootout after a 1-1 extra time draw with Roma.
It’s Sevilla’s seventh Europa League title, by far the most of any club (even if you include winners from the tournament’s former life as the UEFA Cup). Remarkably, all of those triumphs have come since 2006, and represent over half of the club’s major trophies.
It also makes clear which unusual phenomenon, between Sevilla’s invincibility in the Europa League and Jose Mourinho’s perfect record in European finals, is more powerful. Mourinho had won all five of his previous finals, winning in this competition, the Champions League, and even the Europa Conference League. Until Wednesday, Mourinho’s sides hadn’t even given up a goal in a final since the 2002-03 UEFA Cup.
However, Sevilla’s astounding history in the Europa League continued after an own goal got the Spanish side level in a dour, attritional final. Sevilla survived a Chris Smalling header that clipped the bar in the 11th minute of stoppage time in extra time, before showing more nerve in a penalty kick tiebreaker.
Roma — who have been less than stellar from the spot during the 2022-23 season — had to watch Sevilla go four-for-four in the shootout, while Gianluca Mancini and Roger Ibañez saw their shots saved by Yassine Bounou.
The reactions, predictably, were over the top.