Triumph of dreams

Eintracht Frankfurt’s captain Sebastian Rode lifts the trophy as the team celebrate after winning the UEFA Europa League at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan Stadium in Seville on Wednesday. Pics/AFP

Eintracht Frankfurt defeated Rangers 5-4 on penalties to win the Europa League on Wednesday after the final in Seville finished 1-1 at the end of extra time.

Aaron Ramsey missed for Rangers in the shoot-out after coming on as a substitute with only three minutes left of extra time, before Rafael Borre struck the winning shot to complete Frankfurt's remarkable triumph.

Celebrations continue

"We will celebrate for the next few days now," said Frankfurt coach Oliver Glasner. Borre was the hero of the night, after already cancelling out Joe Aribo's opener for Rangers as Frankfurt won their first European trophy since 1980 and booked their place in next season's Champions League group stage. "I dreamed of tonight, of a historic night for the club, a historic night for me," said Borre, the Colombian.

Rafael Borre

‘We are all heroes'

"It's my first European title. I will keep this memory forever. We are all heroes. Without the fans we wouldn't have made it," said Frankfurt goalkeeper Kevin Trapp.

Both clubs were looking to win a second European title in their history, Rangers after clinching the Cup Winners' Cup in 1972 and Frankfurt after they lifted the UEFA Cup 42 years ago. But Rangers came up just short at the end of an incredible run to the final. Only 10 years ago this week, Rangers fell into administration before being liquidated and relegated to Scotland's bottom tier.

Frankfurt had already beaten Real Betis, Barcelona and West Ham United en route to the final and they were probably deserving winners, shading a compelling contest that always seemed to lack real technical quality.

Fans aplenty

With a capacity of just under 43,000, Sevilla's Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan ground was never going to be big enough to house all the travelling fans, with Rangers bringing over an estimated 100,000 while around 60,000 followed Frankfurt to Spain.

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