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Ayoub El Kaabi broke Fiorentina hearts in the Europa Conference League final by scoring a late extra-time winner for Olympiacos.
The Italian side returned to the final of the competition once again after losing to West Ham at the same stage last term but it was more devastation for the Serie A side.
Vincenzo Italiano’s men certainly had the better of the match and created more chances during normal time, but they lacked the killing touch.
Olympiacos were content to sit in and hit on the counter-attack, as they have done all season, but even they were finding it difficult to break down their opponents.
The match was destined for extra time with only a handful of shots hitting the target in Athens but it was El Kaabi who struck the magic blow.
The Morocco international got down low to meet a Santiago Hezze cross and send the sea of red in the stands in raptures just four minutes before a potential penalty shootout.
Fiorentina rallied in the final seconds but looked beaten after the killer blow.
Their players fell to the floor in devastation when the full-time whistle went while the Olympiacos cohort dashed over to their fans to celebrate.
Olympiacos. History makers 👏
The first Greek side to win a UEFA club competition 💫@johnsportraits x #UECLfinal pic.twitter.com/Dq3B8TSA5N
— UEFA Europa Conference League (@europacnfleague) May 29, 2024
How it happened
As expected, it certainly had the feel of a home game in Athens, with plenty of Olympiacos fans filling the stadium.
There were jeers every time the Fiorentina cohort were on the ball and the players were perhaps overcome by the situation as the Greek side had the first opportunity of the match.
A clever corner resulted in Daniel Podence picking up the ball on the edge of the box and curling an effort towards goal, only to see it tipped around the post by Pietro Terracciano.
Despite their first start, Olympiacos soon had their backs to the wall and the Italian side responded through Andrea Belotti,…
Source link : https://www.101greatgoals.com/news/olympiacos-1-0-fiorentina-europa-conference-league-final/
Author : Mitch Fretton
Publish date : 2024-05-29 21:55:34
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