EUROPA LEAGUE
Which teams are through to the Europa League 22/23 semi-finals? Sevilla, Bayer Leverkusen, Juventus, Roma...
Here’s a breakdown of the teams to make it to the final four stage of the competition.
In a fantastic night of European football, eight team became four in the Europa League, the continent’s second competition. A mixture of great strikes, horrendous mistakes (you know who), late goals and red cards all added to the drama across the continent, and now only four teams have the chance of lifting the famous trophy in the final at the Puskás Aréna in Budapest, Hungary on 31 March 2023.
Manchester United faced a fragile Seville on a hot night in the Spanish south, Juventus travelled to Lisbon to take on Sporting CP, Union Saint-Gilloise took on Bayer Leverkusen and Feyenoord went up against Mourinho’s Roma.
Here’s how they got on, and who is into the final four:
Sevilla 3-0 Manchester United (Sevilla win 5-2 on aggregate)
Erik ten Hag’s Manchester United looked to overcome a late mini-collapse against Sevilla that they suffered at Old Trafford with just minutes to spare. The Red Devils let a 2-goal lead slip away with an agonising number of seconds to go, and it was Harry Maguire who got the headlines after his late own goal gave Mendilibar’s men hope for a miracle on home soil.
But it turned out that Sevilla didn’t need any magic, as Manchester United were going to give them goals like free tapas. Maguire and De Gea combined to commit hilarious errors in either half of the game which saw Sevilla score two gifted goals; a Badé beauty from a corner was a cherry on top for the home team who thrashed Manchester United 3-0 on the night.
Sporting CP 1-1 Juventus (Juventus win 1-2 on aggregate)
Adrien Rabiot’s 9th minute opener in the second leg gave Juventus a 2-goal advantage over Sporting CP in Lisbon and despite their best efforts, the home side could not claw back the deficit from the team who saw their Serie A 15-point deduction overturned earlier in the day. Marcus Edwards scored a first-half penalty and his side went on to have more shots and possession than Juve for the rest of the game, but they could not find the finishing touch.
Union Saint-Gilloise 1-4 Bayer Leverkusen (Bayer Leverkusen win 2-5 on aggregate)
Union Saint-Gilloise were the surprise package of the later rounds, and a 1-1 draw at the home of Bayer Leverkusen gave the Belgian side hope for the return leg. But it was not to be, and goals from Diaby and Bakker in the first half flipped the result in favour of Xabi Alonso’s side. Frimpong put them three up on the night before a Terho goal cut the deficit, but with ten minutes remaining, 20-year-old centre-forward Hlozek put the game and tie to bed with a late goal.
Roma 4-1 Feyenoord (Roma win 4-2 on aggregate)
Jose Mourinho’s fight to prove he can still get results at the top level took another turn after an entertaining affair at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome. Spinazzola put the home side ahead on the night and level on aggregate, but a late Paixão goal looked to have put Arne Slot’s side into the final four. But Paolo Dybala struck with one minute remaining on the clock to take the game to extra-time, where El Shaarawy put the Italian side up 3-2 on aggregate from close range in the 101st minute. Pellegrini added another goal on the tally with a late rebound from a Tammy Abraham shot to make it 4-1 and secure Roma’s passage to the next round at the expense of Santiago Giménez - who saw red - and Feyenoord.
Europa League 2022/23 semi-final teams:
- Sevilla
- Juventus
- Bayer Leverkusen
- Roma