Manchester United Goalkeeper, David de Gea, missed the only penalty of a marathon shoot-out as Villarreal won the Europa League with victory over the Red Devils at Gdansk Stadium.
Both teams played out a 1-1 draw after full time and an added extra time with Gerard Moreno opening scoring in the first half for Villareal, while Edinson Cavani equalized early in the second half for United.
Moreno’s goal moved him level with Giuseppe Rossi as the Yellow Submarine’s leading all-time goal scorer with 82 (30 of which have come this season).
Cavani’s goal was his sixth goal in five Europa League games for United.
Prior to de Gea’s penalty miss which was kept out by his opposite number Geronimo Rulli, there had been an astonishing 21 successful spot-kicks with Villarreal winning the shoot-out 11-10 on a night that saw both teams showing class in spot-kick artistry.
With head coach Unai Emery having lifted this trophy an incredible four times and Villareal winning their first major European trophy, the Yellow Submarines will go into the Champions League next season seeking to add that trophy to the club’s and Emery’s cabinets.
On his own, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is yet to win a trophy at United after yet a drab performance from his boys.
Quick Facts to Note:
- Villarreal becomes the first side to win in their first appearance in a major European final since Shakhtar Donetsk in the 2008-09 UEFA Cup.
- Manchester United have lost six of their last seven penalty shoot-outs in all competitions, only winning against Rochdale in the EFL Cup in September 2019 in that time.
- Villarreal boss Unai Emery is the first manager to win either the UEFA Cup or UEFA Europa League four times, surpassing Giovanni Trapattoni.
- United striker Cavani became just the third player aged 34 or above to score in a major European final for an English club, after Gary McAllister (36) for Liverpool in the UEFA Cup final versus Alaves in 2000-01 and Didier Drogba (34) for Chelsea in the UEFA Champions League final versus Bayern Munich in 2011-12.
Azuka Edokobi is a Writer , a Farmer, a Supply Chain Expert and an Entrepreneur
