Erik Lamela propelled Europa League specialists Sevilla into the final once again with a 2-1 victory over Juventus on Thursday, sealing a 3-2 aggregate triumph in a gripping clash. Lamela headed home in extra-time to complete an impressive comeback for the record six-time winners of the competition, who will face Jose Mourinho’s Roma in Budapest on May 31 after they edged past Bayer Leverkusen.

Dusan Vlahovic fired visitors Juventus ahead in the second half, two minutes after coming on as a substitute, but Suso smashed home from outside the area to take the game to extra-time. Lamela connected perfectly with Bryan Gil’s cross in the 95th minute to delight the Ramon Sanchez-Pizjuan, and Sevilla held on to reach the final for the first time since 2020. “A lot of things went through my head, good moments, bad moments. It was a unique moment,” Lamela told Movistar.

“Now we are a step away, it’s a great opportunity. It’s a night I will remember forever, it’s something incredible to play here, in front of all these fans.” Juventus failed to set up an all-Italian final against Roma, but Italy still has with one representative in each of the three European finals. Inter Milan reached the Champions League showdown against Manchester City by seeing off rivals AC Milan on Tuesday, while on Thursday Fiorentina beat Basel to reach the Conference League final where they will face West Ham.

Defeat is concerning for Juventus, who are second in Serie A but braced for a potential points deduction which could knock them out of the top four. Winning the Europa League would have been an alternative route to Champions League qualification. Massimiliano Allegri’s side, without the injured Paul Pogba, were significantly better than in the first leg but fell short.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan-INP