Atalanta BC’s Ademola Lookman, Matteo Ruggeri and El Bilal Toure on Thursday all got on the scoresheet to send the Italian side to their first Europa League final with a 3-0 win over Olympique de Marseille for a 4-1 aggregate victory.
They are to play Bayer 04 Leverkusen, who overcame AS Roma, in their first European final in Dublin on May 22.
Lookman put Atalanta ahead in the semi-final second leg after half an hour with a long-range strike past Pao Lopez before setting up Ruggeri to net seven minutes after the break.
Photo: AFP
Atalanta’s repeated attacks, with Gianluca Scamacca and Davide Zappacosta threatening, overwhelmed the visitors, who had few chances. Substitute Toure put the nail in Marseille’s coffin with their third goal four minutes into stoppage-time.
“My first goal in Bergamo is a very big emotion,” Ruggeri told SkySports Italia. “Now we can dream with our eyes open that we’re in the final. It’s a moment to celebrate with our people.”
Atalanta are aiming for a trophy double as they also face Juventus in the Coppa Italia on Wednesday next week, with their 1963 Coppa Italia triumph being their only major silverware.
Photo: Reuters
Regarding the Europa League, coach Gian Piero Gasperini told a news conference: “It will be a historic occasion for a team like ours who don’t have the numbers [of fans] to win. It’s really incredible, but it bodes well for everyone.”
CONFERENCE LEAGUE
AFP, PIRAEUS, Greece
Olympiakos face ACF Fiorentina in the Europa Conference League final after making history on Thursday with their 2-0 win against Aston Villa in their semi-final second leg.
Jose Luis Mendilibar’s side clinched a 6-2 aggregate triumph thanks to a double from Villa’s chief tormentor Ayoub El Kaabi, who hit a hat-trick in the first leg.
On a raucous night at the Georgios Karaiskakis Stadium in Piraeus, Olympiakos, champions of Greece a record 47 times, booked their first appearance in a major European final.
The only other Greek club to reach a European final were Panathinaikos, who were beaten by Ajax in the 1971 European Cup final.
Fiorentina booked their return to the showpiece by defeating Club Brugge 4-3 on aggregate in the other semi-final on Wednesday.
Carlos Alcaraz on Monday powered into the French Open second round with a resounding win to start his title defense, while world No. 1 Jannik Sinner and three-time defending women’s champion Iga Swiatek also progressed at Roland Garros. Four-time Grand Slam champion Alcaraz struck 31 winners in a 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 victory over Italian qualifier Giulio Zeppieri and is to face Hungary’s Fabian Marozsan in round two. Alcaraz is now on an eight-match winning streak at the French Open and also took Olympic silver at Roland Garros last year, losing the final to Novak Djokovic. “The first round is never
TIGHT FINISH: Napoli only needed to do the same as or better than Inter, who won their game against Como 2-0 on the same day, leaving Napoli with a one-point lead The two players who Antonio Conte wanted more than any others secured Napoli their second Serie A title in three years on Friday. Scott McTominay scored with an acrobatic bicycle kick before halftime and Romelu Lukaku doubled the lead with a solo goal after the break in the decisive 2-0 home win over Cagliari. Conte became the first coach to win the Italian championship with three different teams. “Everyone contributed to this — but the coach most of all,” Napoli captain Giovanni Di Lorenzo said. “Napoli needed him to get back on top. He’s phenomenal.” Comparing it to his three Serie A titles won
The journey of Taiwan’s badminton mixed doubles duo Ye Hong-wei and Nicole Chan at the Malaysia Masters in Kuala Lumpur came to an end in the semi-finals yesterday after they suffered a 2-0 loss to China’s Feng Yanzhe and Huang Dongping. Ye, 25, and Chan, 20, teamed up last year and are currently ranked No. 23 in the world. The Taiwanese shuttlers took on China’s second seeds in the mixed doubles event, but proved no match for Feng and Huang, losing the match 10-21, 7-21. In the first half of the first game, the pairings were neck and neck at 6-7 until Ye
SSC Napoli coach Antonio Conte has dragged the team back from disaster and restored them to the top of Italian Serie A, but his future at the Scudetto winners is in doubt even after a triumphant season. The fiery 55-year-old has exceeded preseason expectations and bolstered his reputation as a serial winner by guiding Napoli to their fourth Scudetto, and second in three seasons. However, he might well be on his way in the summer after just one season at the helm as his charged relationship with Napoli owner Aurelio De Laurentiis has simmered throughout the campaign. Conte has said
RSS