Ayoub El Kaabi delivered the perfect ending to his spectacular season at Olympiacos as he fired the Greek side to Europa Conference League success.
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Final went to extra time after goalless 90 minutesEl Kaabi scored late winner to seal Olympiacos winFirst-ever European success for a Greek teamTELL ME MORE
The Morocco star popped up late on with the winning goal as Olympiacos ran out 1-0 winners after extra time against Fiorentina. To add some extra spice to the victory, they claimed their first-ever European trophy at the home of domestic rivals AEK Athens.
It seemed clear from the first half that it would be a low-scoring affair as both teams dropped their intensity after a lively start that saw them exchange attacks. Fiorentina soon took over as the more threatening team and had a goal ruled out for offside just nine minutes in, but their attempts on goal were fairly weak from then on.
Ex-Fiorentina star Stevan Jovetic created a chance to break the deadlock and his former team's hearts with a shot from the edge of the box for Olympiacos in extra time but a strong save kept it out. Jonathan Ikone will feel his shot towards the Greek side's goal should have been the decider in the second half of extra time, but he was comfortably denied and then catastrophe struck for his team.
After 116 minutes, El Kaabi sealed the Greek giants' first continental trophy when he got onto the end of a cross and headed beyond Pietro Terracciano. The competition's top scorer, it was his 11th goal and easily the most valuable.
A painfully long wait followed as the goal was reviewed by VAR but it was given the all clear and Olympiacos went wild as they sealed the title.
AdvertisementGettyTHE MVP
You have to hand it to El Kaabi. He had a frustrating evening and was a spectator for large spells of the first 115 minutes. But when the ball came flying into the Fiorentina box, he threw himself at it and managed to divert it into the net to make Olympiacos history.
GettyTHE BIG LOSER
He hasn't had the most fruitful of seasons since joining Fiorentina from Roma in the January transfer window, but Vincenzo Italiano would have expected much more from Andrea Belotti. The striker barely threatened throughout the game and was taken off just before the hour mark to end a flat performance from the Italy international.
WHAT COMES NEXT?
Olympiacos will celebrate their continental success well into the night and will compete in the Europa League next season thanks to the victory on home soil in Greece on Wednesday.