Sevilla came from a goal-behind to reach the 2022/23 Europa League final by beating Juventus 2-1 after extra time and 3-2 on aggregate. Serbian forward Dusan Vlahovic gave the visitors the lead in the second half after an absorbing opening period before another substitute Suso levelled it up for the hosts with a stunning strike. Former Tottenham Hotspurs player, Erik Lamela then grabbed the all-important winner in extra-time.
It was anyone’s game in the second leg at the Ramos Sanchez-Pizjuan after it ended 1-1 between these two last week with Youssef En-Neysri’s first-half opener cancelled out by Federico Gatti’s header from a corner in the last minute. Both teams got chances to strike the early blow in the first-half of the second leg but failed to take it. Lucas Ocampos’ header was expertly denied by Wojciech Szczesny while Moise Kean hit the post and Di Maria lifted a golden chance over the bar at the other end. In between, Ivan Rakitic slammed an effort to the stands from a scoring position.
Adrien Rabiot did put the ball back into the net from Manuel Locartelli’s pass although the Italian midfielder made his run a little too early as the offside flag went up. Juan Cuadrado seemed to have clattered Oliver Torres inside the box later in the half but both the officials on the pitch and VAR declined the appeals in a controversial moment of the match. The second period started in a similar fashion with Juventus now putting the early pressure with Rabiot’s darting run from midfield ended in a shot saved by Yassine Bounou.
The Frenchman was once in the spotlight bursting into space and then dragging his strike wide off the post for a big miss. Gleison Bremer’s header from a Leonardo Paredes free-kick also skimmed the post. However, Juventus did not have to wait long to break the deadlock with super-sub Vlahovic scoring only seconds after coming onto the pitch by capitalizing on Loic Balde’s error and dinking it past the onrushing Bounou. It forced Sevilla to throw everything at the opposition getting their equalizer through Suso and then Lamela’s winner, who set up the Spaniard’s goal, in the following extra-time. Szczesny had to pull out two big saves before that but his efforts went in vain.
Sevilla will go on to face AS Roma in the final at the Puskas Arena in Hungary next month but will miss star left-back Marcos Acuna was sent-off for a second bookable offence in the game. They are also in hunt for European places in La Liga after overturning their miserable campaign. There are three Italian sides competing in three European finals for the first time since 1997/98 season but Juventus will not be among them as they re-focus on their battle for the top-four in Serie A.
Stats and Record
Numbers game
Sevilla have now reached a record-extending fifth Europa League final by beating Juventus in their fifth meeting in European competition. They are also the first team to eliminate the Turin giants from the semi-finals of the competition since Benfica did in the 2013/14 season.
Victory lap
Sevilla have won 100% of the #UEL semi-finals they've contested:
2005/06 v Schalke
2006/07 v Osasuna
2013/14 v Valencia
2014/15 v Fiorentina
2015/16 v Shaktar
2019/20 v Man Utd
2022/23 v Juventus
And they've gone on to lift the trophy every single time. pic.twitter.com/QoHm1XFxnh
Sevilla have never lost a two-legged tie in the Europa League knockout stage when playing at home in the second leg. They have progressed from ten such ties and won 25 of their last 28 matches in the competition played at the Ramos Sanchez-Pizjuan, losing just once and drawing the other.
Just two
Juventus have now recorded only two victories against a side from Spain from their last 18 away matches in the knockout stages of a major European competition. They have kept only one clean sheet across that period, coming in a goalless draw against FC Barcelona in the Champions League back in the 2016-17 season.
Zero
Sevilla have never lost a semifinal tie in their last seven appearances in the UEFA Cup or the Europa League. They have progressed from all five in the latter and won the competition every time. Meanwhile, the 2022/23 season gets worse for Juventus as they will spend it without winning any trophy for the first time since the 2009/10 and 2010/11 campaigns.
Only seconds after
Dusan Vlahovic scored after 58 seconds coming on to the pitch to give the Italian side the lead. It was the fastest scored by a Juventus substitute in the Europa League since the 2009/10 season or the Champions League after the 2003/04 campaign in its current format.
