Aston Villa dominated Freiburg in the Europa League final in Istanbul, winning 3-0 with goals from Youri Tielemans, Emiliano Buendia, and Morgan Rogers. Tielemans scored late in the first half with a powerful volley, and Buendia doubled the lead with a precise curler just before halftime. Rogers added a third goal after the break to complete a convincing victory. The win delivered Villa’s first silverware since 1996 and their first major European prize since 1982. The triumph also capped a strong late-season run that included qualification for the next season’s Champions League after a win against Liverpool. Unai Emery secured a fifth Europa League title with the club’s latest European success.
"Aston Villa ended their 30-year trophy drought in style as spectacular goals from Youri Tielemans and Emiliano Buendia inspired a 3-0 win against Freiburg in the Europa League final in Istanbul. Unai Emery's side took the lead late in the first half through Tielemans' thunderous volley on Wednesday, before Buendia increased Villa's advantage with a sublime curler seconds from the half-time whistle. Morgan Rogers' second-half goal finished off the outclassed Germans, sealing Villa's first silverware since the 1996 League Cup and their first major European prize for 44 years."
"That famous European Cup final upset of Bayern Munich in 1982, secured by Peter Withe's goal in Rotterdam, has stood as the most iconic moment in Villa's 152-year history, but Villa's current players were determined to follow in the footsteps of the club's golden generation. Villa's long-awaited continental conquest was the latest Europa League masterclass for Emery, who has now won the tournament five times after victories with Sevilla in 2014, 2015 and 2016, and Villarreal in 2021."
"Emery said this week that he did not feel like the king of the Europa League, but his team's coronation received the royal seal of approval from Villa fan Prince William, who was celebrating with about 20,000 ecstatic supporters at Besiktas Stadium. Hollywood actor Tom Hanks, another famous Villa fan, joined the party, sending a good luck message to the team before kickoff."
"It has been a memorable finish to the campaign for Villa, who sealed qualification for next season's Champions League with a win against Liverpool last week. Villa's success over the last six days would have been impossible to imagine when they started the season with a run of six matches without a win, scoring just twice in that dismal streak."
Read at www.aljazeera.com
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]