Inter Milan has advanced to the finals of the Europa League for the first time in a decade following their 5-0 victory over Shakhtar Donetsk in the Europa League Semifinals with the Italian team playing as it has never played before.
The game begun on a very tight and defensive not until Inter was able to break through the defence of Shakhtar, scoring four goals in the last half-hour of the game. The Italian Club will face the five-time champions of the Europa League, Sevilla in the finals, this Friday in Cologne. “We reached the final by beating a very strong team, don’t get fooled by the result,” Inter coach Antonio Conte said. “We were good not allowing them to play the way they wanted.”
Headers from Martinez in the 19th minute and Danilo D’Ambrosio in the 64th put Inter on course for its first major continental trophy ever since winning the Champions League in 2010 under Jose Mourinho. Martinez and Lukaku added three more goals in 10 minutes to make sure of the result.
Pyatov, the Goalkeeper for Shakhtar sliced a pass directly into the path Inter midfielder Nicolo Barella. He sped down the right flank and sent in a cross which Martinez converted into an easy opening goal with a header to the far post. Inter tightened its grip around Shakhtar’s neck when D’Ambrosio headed a goal in at the far post from the corner by Josip Brozovic.
Inter broke down Shakhtar’s usual passing style, pressing them back to their defensive line with constant attacks. “They completely closed down the start of our attacks,” coach Luis Castro said through a translator. Martinez got his second in the 74th with a low shot from the edge of the box. And four minutes later, Lukaku outpaced defender Davit Khocholava to score his second and Inter’s fifth in the 84th minute with a brilliant ball through the legs of the goalkeeper.
The Belgian has scored in all five of Inter’s Europa League games this campaign, and in a record 10 consecutive Europa League games, including five he played for Everton in 2014-15. Inter won the UEFA Cup, as the Europa League was then known, in 1991, 1994 and 1998. Conte’s team goes into the final on a six-game winning run, having conceded only once in its last seven games, in the 2-1 win over Bayer Leverkusen in the quarterfinals.
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Edem is a writer and loves to read. He believes that writing is an instrument of expression and an advocator of ideologies that can cause significant changes to our current dispensation and the future.
