Seville-Rome, tradition has triumphed
Even Mourinho had to bow to the weight of history.
It took 146 minutes Sevilla against Roma. It started in May and ended in June, a temporal irony that hides a footballing truth: last night was a real, “male” final as José Mourinho defined it after the game. The Portuguese had never lost in the final act of a European competition but he had – it’s almost odd to write this – bow to the tradition of those who lost instead Always won most beautifully: Seville, to be precise. Mendilibar’s team started almost fearfullyslightly loose and curled.
It seemed small compared to Roma, who approached the game with authority and malice, but also great quality. On his side, Mourinho’s team had a people that the Setúbal coach had skillfully set on fire during this Europa League. Thus, with authority and malice, Mancini recaptured a rocky ball in midfield with the help of Cristante, only to serve Paulino Dybala in depth. Once in the 34th minute the Argentine, a you for yourself With Bounou, he uncorked a finale that took it to the Capitol tracks.
Roma finished the first 45 + 7 minutes of added time with a deserved lead, even if they struggled a bit in the first half of the final. Then something changed.
Here the exegesis proceeds hesitantly. He stops, thinks, doesn’t understand. Perhaps with good reason: something has certainly changed, but not only thanks to the additions of Suso and Lamela, nor because of the Giallorossi’s excessive barricade at the beginning of the second half. Rather, La Sud has stopped singing. The people died, or rather their groups. Something happened, and while the guys were pulling their patch, for example, the groups didn’t start making the same shouts that had literally plagued the team in the first half and throughout the season. Logic (difficult to understand) by Ultras. Those were the crucial minutes in which to withstand the impact of the (expected and foreseeable) return of the Andalusians. Instead silence. Spurred on by Biris Norte, Sevilla equalized in the final through a deadly cross from Navas (who had won the first Europa League with Sevilla in 2006) and an unfortunate and clumsy Mancini own goal.
The 1:1 could easily turn into a psychodrama, but Rome survived. He started playing again despite missing some key players – Dybala, but we knew it, and then at the end Pellegrini and Abraham, who were also unwell yesterday. The stoic Matic went into convulsions at the end and Mourinho himself seemed less lucid than usual in his words at the end of the game when defeat was clear. Mou’s haunted eyes, which were sweating profusely, spoke of real, authentic pain and therefore the desire for salvation that grows from such defeats. This coach in Rome has truly become a travel guide. He loves his people, who love him uncompromisingly.
And that he was hailed king at the end of the massive series of penalties (which resulted in the two Giallorossi errors with Ibanez and Mancini, which could not have ended differently given the respective scorers and goalkeepers). The battle is lost, the war not even in my dreams. And considering that Rui Patricio had saved the last penalty, but Taylor (author of some Damn, as Mourinho put it in the post-match conference) ordered the penalty kick to be retaken. An arbitration that, and not only for the offensive episode of the missed penalty (that for Fernando’s handball after a Matic cross), has never been up to a game like this, quite the contrary.
This is how Montiel, an ordinary player, ended his season with two decisive penalties in two very difficult finals: that of the World Cup (with Argentina) and that of the Europa League (actually with Sevilla). Tradition prevailed but Mourinho almost managed to keep up with them. Better: to rewrite the divine laws that govern life here below and there above, from flesh to Eupalla.
“I said to the guys before the game: either we come back with the trophy or we’re dead. We’re dead”. However, this is not death yet. That’s why Roma fans at the end of the game applauded and comforted The players in the yellow and red jersey, above all Bove and Dybala, were desperate. But there was something else in that applause: salutes to a coach who wants to stay, but only under certain conditions. To rewrite the laws of Eupalla that make him a soccer Pericles.
