Diego Forlan's extra-time goal gave Atletico Madrid a 2-1 victory over Fulham in the first ever Europa League final.
Uruguayan ace wins final with late strike
Diego Forlan's extra-time goal gave Atletico Madrid a 2-1 win over Fulham in the first ever Europa League final.
The game in Hamburg had gone beyond the normal 90 minutes after Fulham came from behind to level in the first half.
Forlan had opened the scoring just after the half-hour mark when he deflected home Sergio Aguero's mis-hit shot.
But Roy Hodgson's men showed the spirit they have in Europe all this year as they levelled within five minutes with Simon Davies volleying home wonderfully at the far post.
The second half saw few chances for either side, and again extra-time looked like ending in stalemate until five minutes from the end when Aguero weaved his magic on the left before crossing for Forlan to prod home and break Fulham's hearts.
The Spanish outfit had been marginally the better side, with Aguero the greatest danger, yet Fulham seemed to have their measure once Forlan had thudded a shot against the post midway through the first half when Danny Murphy needlessly gave the ball away in midfield.
That illusion was shattered when Forlan capitalised on the good fortune that accompanied Aguero drilling a shot into the ground, instinctively prodding the ball past Mark Schwarzer, who could do little other than turn and watch it go in.
Not for a second did Fulham fret or panic. Not on the pitch or in the stands.
Even with Bobby Zamora at far less than full pelt, there was an incisiveness about Fulham's attacks which suggested they would get an opportunity of their own fairly soon.
Leveller
So it came to pass as Zamora, using strength rather than speed, unsettled the Atletico defence, leaving them ragged as Zoltan Gera tossed over a cross from the right.
Paulo Assuncao stretched to reach it but succeeded merely in nudging the ball on to Davies, who lashed a fierce volley past David de Gea.
The crispness of the finish was nearly matched by Forlan just before the break. Fortunately for Fulham, Schwarzer reacted to the Uruguayan's goal-bound snap-shot just in time and managed to push it away from his near post.
Both sides, Atletico because of the chance to briefly leap out of the shadow cast by Real Madrid that they are condemned to live under, and Fulham because of the sheer joy of being asked to perform on an occasion such as this, spared nothing in their search for victory.
Another smart effort from Davies brought an equally fine save from De Gea after an hour, by which time Zamora had made way for Clint Dempsey.
After all he has achieved this season, it was sad that Zamora was not able to give his best on an occasion such as this, coming after his rejection of a World Cup call because of the Achilles operation he must have to be fit for next season, they are opportunities that may never come round again.
That knowledge gave Fulham the grit to take the biggest game in their history to extra-time.
Not that they could relieve the pressure around their goal and when Forlan burst to the by-line and Raul Garcia bobbled his cut-back into the path of Aguero, Fulham hearts were in their mouths as the net rippled. Thankfully, it was the wrong side.
In the time that was left, Fulham looked to be the better side. But forcing the pace brought them no reward, and Forlan sent them to their knees and denied them their first ever trophy.
| Atlético de Madrid |
Team Statistics |
Fulham |
| 2 |
Goals |
1 |
| 1 |
1st Half Goals |
1 |
| 8 |
Shots on Target |
3 |
| 13 |
Shots off Target |
6 |
| 8 |
Blocked Shots |
2 |
| 9 |
Corners |
2 |
| 15 |
Fouls |
17 |
| 0 |
Offsides |
9 |
| 3 |
Yellow Cards |
1 |
| 0 |
Red Cards |
0 |
| 79.4 |
Passing Success |
75.9 |
| 17 |
Tackles |
20 |
| 70.6 |
Tackles Success |
65.0 |
| 51.4 |
Possession |
48.6 |
| 55.0 |
Territorial Advantage |
45.0 |
|
