Sevilla missed EL away win
Juventus Turin strikes in the 97th minute
05/11/2023, 11:15 p.m
FC Sevilla reaches for the seventh Europa League victory, but suffers a late setback in the semi-final first leg. Juventus Turin averts home bankruptcy at the last minute. In the Conference League, a German national player is meanwhile on course for the final.
Record winners FC Sevilla have the final in their favorite Europa League competition in sight after a valuable draw at Juventus Turin. The Spaniards drew 1-1 (1-0) against the Italian record champions in the first leg of the semi-finals, but lost an even better starting position due to the equalizer in the seventh minute of added time.
The fifth final appearance in the last nine years is still within reach. Youssef En-Nesyri (26th) scored the lead for the Andalusians who won the 2006, 2007, 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2020 cup. Federico Gatti (90+7) scored the late equaliser.
Sevilla, who convincingly eliminated Manchester United in the quarter-finals, were the more active team at Turin’s Allianz Stadium at the start. Lucas Ocampos failed with a header at the strongly reacting Juve keeper Wojciech Szczesny (17th), but the Moroccan World Cup striker En-Nesyri then scored the deserved lead for the guests on Ocampos’ assist (26th). The Andalusians remained the better team until the break, Juventus couldn’t think of anything against compact guests.
After the break, the hosts became a little more active, but coach Massimiliano Allegri’s team lacked precision. Only Gatti provided the long-awaited goal. The final will take place in Budapest on May 31, Bayer Leverkusen and AS Roma determine the second participant. Roma won the first leg 1-0 in their own stadium.
West Ham and Basel submit in Conference League
In the Conference League, the English club West Ham United with national player Thilo Kehrer has taken a big step towards the final. In the first leg of the semifinals, the Hammers won 2-1 (0-1) against Dutch representatives AZ Alkmaar despite being behind at the break. Tijjani Reijnders (41st) gave the visitors the lead, who are dreaming of the first international final since 1981 (then the UEFA Cup).
Said Benrahma with a penalty kick (67th) and Michail Antonio (76th) turned the game in favor of the Londoners, who failed last year in the semi-finals of the Europa League at eventual winners Eintracht Frankfurt. As at the weekend, Kehrer was allowed to play from the start in the 1-0 win in the Premier League against Manchester United.
In the other semi-final, FC Basel, led by German coach Heiko Vogel, also won 2-1 (1-0) at traditional Italian club Fiorentina. Arthur Cabral (25th) initially put Fiorentina in the lead against his former club – long-time Bundesliga keeper Marwin Hitz in the goal of the Swiss vice-champion had no chance when he placed a header. Andy Diouf (71st) and Andi Zeqiri (90th + 3) made the late turn. The second leg will take place next Thursday, the final will take place on June 7th in Prague, Czech Republic.