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Europa League: David de Gea as a tragic hero on penalties – sport

Who knows if it was just hyperbola. Or whether it was true after all, what the goalkeeper of FC Villarreal, Gerónimo Rulli, utterly enthusiastically said into a microphone that had been held under his chin after the unprecedented penalty shootout of the Europa League final against Manchester United.

“I haven’t shot a penalty in my life!” Rulli shouted. So now this: Even after 120 minutes in the final of Danzig the 1: 1 was still there, which had applied after the goals of Gerard Moreno (29th) and Edinson Cavani (55th) and thus after the end of regular time. It was followed by a penalty shoot-out that has never happened before – at least not at a continental final in Europe. 11:10 it was at the end, in words: eleven to ten. One can argue about whether the goalkeepers cut a good figure with every penalty, a number of which were excellent. There was nothing to suggest: that the Spanish goalkeeper of Manchester United, David de Gea, had become the tragic hero of the curious night in Gdansk.

He did not save a single one of the eleven penalties scored by Villarreal, the last one being converted by his colleague Rulli. Then de Gea straightened his knee-length trousers, ran towards the ball and tried to shoot it with his instep into the right corner of the goal. And missed. Rulli, 29, dived and fended off the ball. Villarreal had won the first title in its history, with a 1-1 and an 11:10 on penalties.

De Gea has not saved a penalty since April 2016

“Today our goalkeeper even scored!” Smirked Raúl Albiol, the bearded captain. “I’ve never seen anything like it,” groaned Dani Parejo, the playmaker who kicked the free-kick cross to make Morenos 1-0. Marcos Senna, the 2008 European champion, remembered an episode from the past in the stands. The penalty that the Argentine playmaker Juan Román Riquelme missed years ago against Jens Lehmann and Arsenal FC. At the time, it meant that Villarreal CF, without a title until Wednesday, missed the 2006 Champions League final. Messed up the greatest success in the history of the club. “As of today, Riquelme has one less backpack,” said Senna. A backpack that was much lighter than the one that de Gea now has to shoulder.

There are a number of theories that the Austrian writer Peter Handke was fundamentally wrong when he gave a story a title that became a household phrase: “The goalie’s fear of the penalty kick”. One theory is that goalkeepers shouldn’t be afraid of the penalty kick, especially not compared to the shooter. You have nothing to lose. The book and the resulting theories were all written before de Gea, and he’s 30 years old. And he’s long been a goalkeeper who actually has to be afraid of the penalty kick.

He hasn’t saved a single penalty since April 2016; that Spain was kicked out against host Russia at the 2018 World Cup also had to do with de Gea. He did not save a single out of four Russian penalties in the round of 16. “It’s not the night to point your finger at anyone,” assured Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, United’s most unlikely hero and current coach. That was not meant to be self-referential, but it could be interpreted that way. Ironically, Solskjaer, who scored the 2-1 win against Bayern in stoppage time as a substitute at the Camp Nou Stadium in 1999, coached himself.

He waited until the 9th minute of stoppage time before making the first substitution; He divided the next four into 115 and 122 minutes. “They were flat,” said Pau Torres. And also explained why Villarreal took over the scepter more and more after an hour of play. “We were actually sure that we would win before the end of the game,” said coach Unai Emery, who lived up to his fame as the Mr. Europa League. After his three triumphs with Sevilla FC, he has now been able to hold up the trophy for the fourth time.

Villarreal v Manchester United, ManU - UEFA Europa League - Final - Gdansk Stadium Villarreal manager Unai Emery poses w

Experienced cup picker: For the fourth time, coach Unai Emery won the trophy for the Europa League.

(Photo: Rafal Oleksiewicz / PA Images / image)

“I shot my last penalty in the F-Jugend,” said captain Albiol

When the game was over, everyone rushed towards Rulli. Also Pau Torres, who was by no means the only one who had tears in his eyes that evening, but perhaps showed the greatest emotions. Torres was born in the small town of Villarreal with a population of 50,000 and passed through the youth department of the club, which is known as “the yellow submarine” because of the jerseys. Torres saw friends, neighbors, former playmates, and Rulli’s wife, who wept in the Argentine flag that she wore like a cape on her shoulders, on the Danzig stadium, which was sparsely filled with spectators.

The patron Fernando Roig was missing, who had been denied access to the stadium after a – freshly survived – Covid infection. He flew home again and saw on TV how Rulli became a hero and de Gea a villain – how a Spanish team won the Europa League for the eighth time in twelve years. With an unforgettable penalty shootout.

“Penalties are not a lottery,” said Emery, who had not practiced penalties before the final. “I shot my last penalty in the F-Jugend,” laughed captain Albiol. In Gdansk he transformed safely – and thus played his part in ensuring that Villarreal made it into next year’s Champions League as an honorary participant – as the fifth Spanish team.

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