Sevilla vs. Shakhtar Donetsk: Score and Reaction from 2016 Europa League, Leg 2
Sevilla will have their chance to win a third successive UEFA Europa League crown after booking their place in this season's final following a 3-1 win over Shakhtar Donetsk in Thursday's semi-final second leg, triumphing 5-3 on aggregate. They'll face Liverpool in the competition's decider on May 18.
Kevin Gameiro continued his fine run of scoring form with a brace in Andalusia, and Mariano powered home a wonder strike to seal the tie after Eduardo de Silva initially levelled the scoring on the night for Shakhtar.
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Liverpool clinched a 3-0 win over Villarreal in Thursday's other semi at Anfield to book a 3-1 aggregate victory, making them the first English club to reach a European final since Chelsea won this competition in 2013.
The Blizzard's Jonathan Wilson helped illustrate just how prolific Sevilla have been, and indeed continue to be, in Europe's second-tier contest:
Sevilla bookended a 2-2 draw in Lviv last week by scoring the first and last goals of the night, and it was once again manager Unai Emery's contenders who were quickest off the mark in the reverse fixture.
It was France international Gameiro who converted an 82nd-minute penalty in the first leg to salvage a draw for Sevilla, but it took the striker just nine minutes to resume his scoring run on Thursday evening.
Egged on by a raving Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan crowd, Gameiro snapped up the ball following a sloppy touch from Maksim Malyshev in midfield, storming down on Andriy Pyatov's goal before firing into the far corner.
Including his goals in the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Supercup, Gameiro clinched a landmark record, per statistician MisterChip, and his goal meant Shakhtar now needed two goals to advance:
But the Ukrainians responded well to going a goal behind and, after a show of shambolic defending in the early exchanges, managed to shore things up at the back for the remainder of the half.
Shakhtar's build-up was precise as Marlos came off his right flank, cutting an incisive pass through for Eduardo to latch on before opening his body to pass the ball home and tie the scores. In doing so, the Brazil-born striker improved a superb record in the Europa League:
Manager Mircea Lucescu's side took heart in their equaliser, and Marlos even went close to adding a second in first-half added time, but Shakhtar could feel content going in level at the break.
Their stride was broken yet again, however, and Gameiro took even less time to reopen Sevilla's lead when play resumed, running free of Pyatov after Grzegorz Krychowiak's through ball to convert into an open net. Goal's Ben Hayward detailed just how valuable a signing he's been for the club:
And Shakhtar's misery was soon amplified by an unstoppable effort from right-back Mariano, who put the Spaniards almost out of range with a laser-sighted bullet from distance.
Once again, Sevilla looked set to have their shot at Europa League glory, and event organiser Christian Machowski highlighted their apparent love for the competition after Mariano's show-stopper of a third:
One area in which Shakhtar were the dominant party was ill-discipline, and after seeing three players carded in the first period, frustrations showed as Darijo Srna and Eduardo joined their team-mates in the book.
Sevilla were eventually left to toy with their opponents, and Gameiro came off to rapturous applause in place of Vicente Iborra, with a final now to focus on. However, OptaJohan raised the point that while his home form has been amazing, questions may be asked of how he'll fare in Basel in a fortnight's time:
The Primera Division outfit have shown an almost eerie favour toward this competition in recent years, and Emery will now have his opportunity to claim a hat-trick of Europa League crowns.
Villarreal could have set up a pair of all-Spanish European finals, with Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid contesting the Champions League curtain call, but Liverpool are also assured to provide a stiff contest come May 18.
Post-Match Reaction
After a tense first leg, Sevilla ultimately finished the semi-final tie streaks ahead of their opponents, but Shakhtar boss Lucescu felt the lines were far closer than the score might suggest.
Speaking to the media after Thursday's result, the Romanian even went so far as to suggest the Spanish titans were fortunate to advance to the Basel final, per Shakhtar's official Twitter account:
Despite the defeat, Lucescu added he was quick to congratulate his players on their European run, but again echoed his belief the team "deserved more" in their trip to Sevilla:
Emery will undoubtedly feel otherwise after such a major success, but the job is still far from complete, especially considering Sevilla are yet to win outside Spain this season.
