UEFA Super Cup winner decided by penalties, Manchester City wins

Manchester City were in action for the first time ever in the UEFA Super Cup on Wednesday night. In Piraeus, Greece, they challenged the seven-time participant and 2006 winner Sevilla. The reigning Champions League champion is the winner of the trophy. The result was decided by a penalty shoot-out.

Both teams entered their domestic league competitions on Friday in different ways. While the Citizens won 3:0 at newcomer Burnley in the Premier League, the Spanish team lost 1:2 to Valencia in the opening round of La Liga and finished with ten men.

The teams had to cope with some absences. Pep Guardiola could not count on the sick Bernardo Silva or the injured Kevin De Bruyne, who is even facing surgery. Sevilla coach José Luis Mendilibar was unable to field, among others, the experienced Brazilian midfielder Fernando.

The favourite of the match created its first major pressure after seven minutes had been played. Goalkeeper Bono was first forced into an intervention by Palmer, then moments later Aké got a more dangerous finish. However, his header was also blocked by the Andalusian goalkeeper.

In the 17th minute, Grealish tried a corner from the penalty area, but his shot to the back post also missed the net. After a break to freshen up in the warm weather, the penalty for not converting chances came in the form of a conceded goal.

In the 25th minute, Sevilla were successful with a quick attack down the left. Acuña then sent a precise cross into the box and Youssef En-Nesyri headed the ball beyond Ederson’s reach.

Lamela could have increased the lead six minutes later from a good position, but his shot was well wide of the target. Manchester FC tried to equalise in the rest of the first half, but failed to do so due to consistent defending by their opponents.

Five minutes after the half-time break, Ederson made an important save, keeping out a close-range shot from the author of the opening goal, En-Nesyri. The Moroccan striker also failed with a ground effort to finish off another counter-attack. His teammate Jordan then headed a direct free kick into the Brazilian’s gloves in the 54th minute.

The interplay between the players in the pale blue jerseys lacked some quality at times without playmaker De Bruyne, while the Sevillistas Rojiblancos threatened from nasty breaks. Nevertheless, the sold-out Olympiakos stadium saw an equalising goal in the 63rd minute. Cole Palmer ran onto Rodri’s centre near his rival’s goal and cleared the ball into the net.

The 1:1 scoreline held up after En-Nesyri’s subsequent chance, with City’s saviour once again being the almost 30-year-old South American goalkeeper. In the 69th minute on the other side of the pitch, Palmer failed this time as his shot was saved by Bono.

In the final stages of regulation time, both teams created interesting barrages and chances. However, they couldn’t get the key strike and penalty kicks had to decide the winner. There is no more extra time in the Super Cup.

In the first four rounds of the shootout, the penalty shootout officials did not hesitate. In the fifth, Manchester City captain Kyle Walker scored despite the goalkeeper’s interference. And in the end, it was the winning goal, as Nemanja Gudelj only hit the crossbar. The English champions have now recovered from their recent defeat in the Community Shield battle and are celebrating another European trophy.

Source: UEFA