A brace from Sevilla captain Coke saw the Spanish outfit come from behind to win a third consecutive UEFA Europa League title after a 3-1 victory over Liverpool in Basel.
Unai Emery’s men, outplayed in the first half, responded with an emphatic second 45 minutes to leave Liverpool reeling and condemn Jurgen Klopp to a fifth-straight defeat in a major final.
Liverpool, who had dispatched Villarreal so impressively in the second leg of the semi-final, were the better side in the first-half and deservedly took the lead when Daniel Sturridge curled in a superb finish from the edge of the area.
But Sevilla, who came from behind to beat Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk in last year’s final, responded seconds after half-time with Kevin Gameiro’s 29th goal of the season, before Coke capped a fine team move to put the holders ahead.
Klopp, whose side also lost the League Cup final to Manchester City in February, introduced Divock Origi in a bid to find a response but Coke struck a crucial blow 20 minutes from time, steering the ball beyond Simon Mignolet from close range, despite Liverpool’s appeals for offside.
Liverpool produced a memorable comeback against AC Milan to win their last European trophy in 2005, but there would be no repeat of those Istanbul heroics as Sevilla became the first team to win Europe’s secondary competition three years running and ensured a spot in next season’s UEFA Champions League.
