Europa League 2015 Final: Start Time, TV Info, Live Stream for Dnipro vs Sevilla
Sevilla have history in their sights when Unai Emery's side take on Dnipro in the Europa League final in National Stadium in Warsaw, Poland, on Wednesday.
No team has won the competition, either in its current guise or its previous incarnation as the UEFA Cup, four times, per UEFA's official website, but that is the target for the Spanish club.
In addition, there is also the prize of a place in the Champions League for the winner of the Europa League for the first time.
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Dnipro are appearing in a final for the first time and will again be the underdogs after continually defying the odds to reach Poland.
Here is all the information you need on where to catch the game and a closer look at the 2015 Europa League final.
Date: Wednesday, May 27
Time: 7:45 p.m. (BST)/2:45 p.m. (ET)
Live Stream: ITV Player (UK), Fox Sports Go (U.S.)
TV Info: ITV4 (UK), Fox Sports 1 (U.S.)
Match Preview
Sevilla are the Europa League holders after beating Benfica in last year's final, and they already know what it takes to successfully defend their title.
In 2006, Sevilla beat Middlesbrough in the final before following up 12 months later by overcoming Spanish rivals Espanyol.
The carrot of a place in the Champions League will also provide an extra incentive for Sevilla after they missed out on fourth place in La Liga. Sevilla ended the season with a 3-2 win at Malaga, but it wasn't enough to overhaul Valencia.
In reaching the final in the Polish capital, Sevilla have overcome a tough set of opponents. They beat Borussia Monchengladbach in the first knockout round before besting Villarreal and Zenit St Petersburg. They will have expected a sterner test in the semi-finals against Fiorentina but thrashed the Serie A club 5-0 on aggregate.
Sevilla have threats all over the pitch, with the likes of Carlos Bacca, Aleix Vidal, Kevin Gameiro and Jose Antonio Reyes able to score and create goals.
Reyes has been captain at times this season, but there is a chance it will be his last game for Sevilla, as he is out of contract in the summer and has yet to agree a new deal, per Ian Hawkey of the Daily Telegraph.
Dnipro, meanwhile, have survived the odds to get this far after beating Olympiakos, Ajax and Club Brugge before meeting Napoli in the semi-finals. After a 1-1 draw in Italy, Yevhen Seleznyov scored the only goal in the return to send Dnipro into the final.
For goalkeeper Denys Boyko, who has been in excellent form in the knockout phase, it is a dream come true to be in the final. He said, per UEFA's official website:
"The final is the final. I have no predictions or expectations. We must go out and play the best we can – whatever will be, will be. We want to win the competition, of course, but all through this tournament we've only been thinking about the next game. Even though it's been very difficult for us, we've always managed to qualify for the next round. That was our dream, and we made it come true. Now we have to take the final step.
"
Dnipro still have a game left to play in the Ukrainian League and are in contention to qualify for the Champions League without the need to win the Europa League final.
Like Sevilla, Dnipro also have a player who is tipped to be on his way in the summer. Yevhen Konoplyanka is out of contract, and Stoke City want him, per Simon Jones of the Mail on Sunday.
One man who knows both of these teams well is Juande Ramos. The Spaniard was Sevilla's coach for the 2006 and 2007 final wins, and he also spent four years at Dnipro before leaving in 2014. Ramos, per Ben Hayward of Goal, said:
"Sevilla's style is nothing like Dnipro's. Sevilla are a big team with lots of quality, a strong side in European terms.
Dnipro, meanwhile, are a hard-working team and [Yevhen] Konoplyanka is really the only player who stands out from the rest. It's a team based fundamentally on the collective. They never stop working and never stop fighting. The players work hard and sacrifice in what is a physically strong side. But they cannot compare with Sevilla.
"
The referee for the final will be Premier League official Martin Atkinson, per the Press Association (via the Guardian), and he also took charge of the first leg of the Champions League semi-final between Juventus and Real Madrid.
It is foolish to write off Dnipro given how impressive they have been already in the competition this season against higher-profile opponents.
But Sevilla represent a different pedigree of opponents after winning the tournament three times since 2006. As holders, the Liga side will not be giving up the trophy without a fight, and it seems certain to be a hard-fought game.
Sevilla's extra class is likely to make the difference, and they can make up for the disappointment of missing out on fourth place in La Liga by winning the Europa League to qualify for the Champions League.
Prediction: Dnipro 1-3 Sevilla
