The Hindu : Sport : Sevilla crowned champion

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, May 18, 2007
ePaper

Sport

Sport

Sevilla crowned champion

Glasgow: Sevilla goalkeeper Andres Palop saved three penalty kicks in a 3-1 shootout win over Espanyol after a 2-2 draw in the UEFA Cup final on Wednesday.

The teams were 1-1 after 90 minutes and 2-2 following 30 minutes of extra time before Palop saved penalties from Luis Garcia, Jonatas and Marc Torrejon at Hampden Park.

Sevilla took the lead in front of a raucous crowd at the tournament's first all-Spanish final when Adriano Correira scored in the 18th minute. Albert Riera made it 1-1 in the 28th, and Espanyol created several good chances after that but failed to convert.

With Espanyol attacking early and its defence pushing up, Correira carried the ball in from the left of midfield and ran unchallenged on goal.

He cut back onto his right foot and, with a defender rushing in to tackle, curled a shot from 10 yards past Espanyol goalkeeper Gorka Iraizoz's left hand and in at the far post.

However, Espanyol was back in the game 10 minutes later.

Riera picked the ball up and broke down the left. He ran inside Daniel Alves before hitting a shot from 20 yards that deflected off the recovering right back's sliding challenge and beat Palop to make it 1-1.

Sevilla holds out

The defending UEFA Cup champion withstood heavy pressure in the second half at Hampden Park but imposed itself after Espanyol's Moises Hurtado was sent off in the 68th for a second yellow card for halting a counterattack on the edge of the area with a tackle on Alexandr Kerzhakov.

With greater numbers and more experience than Espanyol — nine of Sevilla's starting 11 played in last season's 4-0 final rout of Middlesbrough — Sevilla went 2-1 up in the 105th when Jesus Navas crossed from the right and Kanoute tapped the ball in from close range.

Jonatas gave Espanyol hope with his 115th-minute equaliser, but could not repeat his accuracy in the shootout.

Sevilla came close to winning in extra time when Frederic Kanoute scored to make it 2-1, but substitute Jonatas hit a swerving shot with five minutes left to send the game to a shootout. Kanoute, Ivica Dragutinovic and Antonio Puerta scored in the shootout for Sevilla, while only Walter Pandiani scored for Espanyol.

"We thought they were catching up with us and then they drew level," man-of-the-match Palop said. "But penalties are complicated."

Sevilla, which matched Real Madrid's 1986 feat of retaining the trophy, can now go for an unprecedented treble in Spanish soccer by adding the Spanish league and Copa del Rey titles. The team is third in the league and has reached the final of the Copa.

The results:

UEFA Cup final: Sevilla 2 (Correira, Kanoute) bt Espanyol 2 (Reira, Jonatas) on penalties. — AP

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail