and this is it the majority of fans are inside the stadium now and the tension is palpable here
ahead of the uefa europa league final my name is derek ray and with me in the commentary
position is of course lee dixon and we're just moments away from kickoff it's chelsea
facing leicester city well the long road from the start the competition
almost a year ago to the final is here both teams have the added advantage
of if they win this competition the champions league place is available
and this is how it looks for chelsea thiago silva plays with court zuma
in central defense and golo conte starts alongside giorgino in the center of midfield and it's an
interesting looking attacking constellation with three forwards listed from the start
well here's how leicester city will line up
looks as though they're going with the belt and braces approach yeah five three two or three five
two the midfield will be flooded when they've got the ball defensively those full bats will be asked
to supply support to their three centre-backs but it does enable you to play two strikers up front
given away by chelsea
ricardo
and then pereira a real chance
top class defending
rudy got
textbook defending inside the box
indeedy
and they are on the move again oh big chance
well they can say a big thank you to the goalkeeper that was
inspirational well that's as good as a goal at the other end brilliant save from the keeper
over it comes tremendous block and fiancho has it and now indeedy determined defending
and chelsea get the decision from the referee
couldn't keep it and that's going to be the goalkeeper's
ball tremendous intuition to win it back
tileman's james madison
here's tielemans
oh great defending
court zuma
has been equestra here's mount
and golo conte habits and chelsea have given us away
fruitful looking attack using a strength to hold on to the ball and wait for teammates to arrive
well derrick there's nothing between these two teams in terms of possession
can someone take control of this game take a few more risks hopefully we'll see a goal soon
can he find the net no worries for the keeper
under pressure doesn't seem to be bothering him
ionacho
so a throw into chelsea harvest vienna with it now excellent defending
t le mans and the fourth official confirming that we'll have one additional minute can they
create something from here well the first half of this europa league final is in the
history books and i think it's fair to say lee the game needs just a bit of a shove well i
was hoping not to use this word tonight but turgid it really is a very very turgid game
not enjoy the quest for europa league success and the second half of this final is underway
timothy castane johnny evans with it
so yun-chu has it tilamans
james madison now indeedy
madison good use of the ball but can they trouble the defense fire again towards goal simple catch
really mount
aspiely quetta and mount harvards can he put them in front oh no he's missed the opportunity
and they remain level well he found himself in a great position but he couldn't find the finish
a sloppy pass
strong play here on the shielding front a bit sloppy in possession vana chilwell
vicar pereira
james madison
do they mean business on this occasion
indeedy can they take advantage well he'll be hurt with himself ran into an offside position
so two substitutes to come on in one go
chill well
georginio
timona far from a good pass
james madison timothy castagna plenty of forward momentum here but can they produce
reddit well
inside the last quarter of an hour
ricardo pereira
and it crossed the touch line so a throw in here well chill well onto sean
fine tackle there to prevent the chance vardy
now indeedy tilamans
and still on the lookout for the goal that could be so important at this juncture
perez
madison well the keeper should grab hold of it so a goal kick is what's coming up here
and they're making a change
james mount
pulisic now and it's a quality pass offside by a fraction
one minute remaining so two minutes to be added on at the end
for fana evans now indeedy and a goal at this stage could be decisive they cannot be separated
here and it's on to extra and so the story continues the first period of extra time and
no one is leaving well fitness levels are going to be tested now derrick chilwell and goto kante
and threading it forward courageous goalkeeping but he's got the ball well
you have to be brave don't you diving at the feet of a player like that good goalkeeping
tilamans james madison
bardi now indeedy ah jose perez and with the goalkeeper
james throwings given
he thought he might have got away with it but the referee rightly going back and brandishing the
yellow card now chelsea showing good width but a crucial intervention inside the box
there will be one minute added on at the end
half time in extra time and still they are level
well on they go second period of extra time is underway
and chelsea with the ball again
pulisic top-class defending
thomas
all even but will it stay that way
dennis bryant
it needs an accurate cross it did appear that they might be on to something but not so
five minutes left in the second period oh big chance and the challenge crisp and clean
and how about that for reflex action perfect
perfect goalkeeping he waited he waited then look at him spring
and over comes the corner well he would love to have that header back
indeedy
has the strength to hang on to it and we will have just one
additional minute can they nudge in front later on here
party
it always had the potential didn't it to go to a penalty shooter in this europa league final
and that is exactly what has transpired
and so they penalty shootout about to commence and as a player this is when
you have to hold your nerve and he's beating the keeper no doubt head down lovely strike
and the penalty converts it here well that's hours of practice derek hours of practice
and he's denied them from the sports oh it's lovely goalkeeping really is
oh a target missed here free shot with the goalkeeper to beat and you missed the goal
well the paninka has julie fooled the goalkeeper well will you do pinenko
in the game absolutely top draw well he's gone for finesse and it's really paid off
oh my word look at the technique on that
and he scores well don't they look easy when they go in
and he's tucked his penalty away lee well he held his nerve simple as that
and he scores from the sport confident head down
lovely strike you want a pressure cooker this is it he must score
and now is his trolley final
well you can talk about the merits of penalty shootouts
to decide big tournaments big games so much nerves of steel are needed a little bit of a gamble here
and there who's going to come out on top but the end result is there for all to see what a night
they're not going to forget
a this moment for the losers it's a case of trying to forget about everything
that has just occurred well just the point derrick always be respectful of the losers
yes you're in raptures you're celebrating with your mates
always took time to go to the opposition and say unlucky the party has started
it's going to be quite the night of celebration here i'm very happy to be celebrating good times
in the europa league and now the trophy awaits them well all those months of
hard training sessions pre-season training you kind of look forward to get yourself
through those sessions and they'll be looking forward at moments like this
they've finally got their hands on this fantastic magnificent trophy
this is what they've wanted now it's in their possession the winners of the uefa europa league