On Wednesday evening, the second participant of the 2017-18 season final of the UEFA Champions League was determined.
In the "Olimpico" stadium, the "Liverpool" footballers secured their ticket to Kiev. "Roma" had a three-goal deficit, but did not give up and defeated their opponents in front of their own fans with a score of 4-2. "Roma" needed just one more goal to force extra time, but "Liverpool" progressed to the final with an overall score of 7-6.
The match started with active football. "Roma", losing the first match 2-5, had no choice but to attack their opponents, but in the 9th minute Radja Nainggolan's mistake cost the hosts dearly.
The Belgian midfielder gave the ball away in the center of the field, and Roberto Firmino capitalized on it by passing to Sadio Mane, who scored a precise goal to put the visitors ahead.
This goal affected the mentality of the hosts, as they now needed to score at least four goals. The hopes reignited in the 15th minute, when after Dejan Lovren's attempt to clear the ball, it hit James Milner's face and ended up in the net.
"Liverpool" did not falter after this unsuccessful episode, and "Roma" continued to make mistakes in their defense. In the 25th minute, a header from Edin Dzeko in a standard situation led to Georginio Wijnaldum heading the ball into the visitors' goal, giving them the lead again.
In the second half, "Roma" did not back down - in the 52nd minute, E. Dzeko corrected his mistake and equalized the score. Throughout the remaining time, the "Reds" spent more time defending - time was ticking away, and "Roma" needed three more goals.
In the 86th minute, "Roma" finally scored their third goal - an impressive shot by R. Nainggolan sent the ball into the opponents' net from a distance.
"Roma" still needed a miracle - to score two goals in the remaining seven minutes to take the game to extra time. In the final moments of the match, Ragnar Klavan handled the ball in the penalty area, and a penalty was awarded to "Liverpool" - R. Nainggolan converted the penalty, but it did not give them much chance.
There were also several controversial decisions in the match, such as Loris Karius avoiding a red card after a careless play in his penalty area, or when Trent Alexander-Arnold clearly saved his team from a goal by handling the ball. "Liverpool", despite the loss in Rome, celebrated reaching the Champions League final after an 11-year break.
On May 26th in Kiev, "Liverpool" will face "Real" for the title of the tournament. The "Reds" face a serious challenge - the Madrid team has won the tournament in the last two years.
Result:
"Roma" 4 - 2 "Liverpool"
(First leg: 2-5, final aggregate score: 6-7)
9' [0 - 1] S. Mane
15' [1 - 1] J. Milner (own goal)
25' [1 - 2] G. Wijnaldum
52' [2 - 2] E. Džeko
86' [3 - 2] R. Nainggolan
90+3' [4 - 2] R. Nainggolan (penalty)
Starting lineups:
"Roma": Alisson; Florenzi, Manolas, Fazio, Kolarov; Pellegrini, De Rossi, Nainggolan; Schick, Dzeko, El Shaarawy.
"Liverpool": Karius; Alexander-Arnold, Lovren, Van Dijk, Robertson; Henderson, Milner, Wijnaldum; Salah, Firmino, Mane.
