Villarreal win first European cup after astonishing shoot-out

With the Europa League final being the biggest game in the club’s history, Villarreal travelled to Gdansk, Poland tonight, with the biggest of opponents in their way, three-time Champions League winners, Manchester United.

The Action: Both sides were limited to shots from distance in a cagey opening 20 minutes, with the only real moment of note a bloody nose for former Spurs defender Juan Foyth.

And just before the half-hour mark it was left to set-piece wizard Dani Parejo to get things going, floating in a beautiful long-range free-kick for the excellent Gerard Moreno to get his foot on, as he always does, directing the ball past Spain teammate David de Gea.

An end-to-end encounter continued on into the second half, with plenty of set-piece quality still on display, but it was a scrappy one that got United back into the game, as Marcus Rashford’s long-range shot pinballed around the box for Edison Cavani to pounce on and poke home.

United looked on the brink of ending the tie when Bruno Fernandes presented Rashford with an open goal, but after the Englishman somehow missed a tap-in, the linesman spared his blushes.

An unsurprisingly low energy extra-time followed, with both sides failing to penetrate their opponent's box.

However, the penalty shoot-out to follow was one of the most extraordinary occasions in the competition's history, with 20 of the highest quality spot-kicks ever seen all buried by outfield players.

It was then the turn of the goalkeepers, with Gerónimo Rulli under huge pressure after letting three savable efforts through him in the shoot-out, but his effort rocketed into the top corner, with De Gea’s turn up next.

The Spaniard might have had similar pressure after continually disturbing Villarreal’s takers during their preparations, and put his effort low and to the side of Rulli, with the Argentine finally getting behind a shot to win the game.

The Big Picture: Ole Gunnar Solskjaer misses out on his first silverware with United while Unai Emery gets redemption for his final loss with Arsenal by becoming a four-time winner.

Expected Goals: Villarreal (0.89) *1-1 (1.11) Man Utd

Devastation for David De Gea 😫

A penalty shoot-out that went all the way to the goalkeepers, but it was Villarreal that came out on top in the end... 🟡

What a dramatic ending! #UELfinal pic.twitter.com/9kmoi6lCEa

— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) May 26, 2021