El Kaabi scores late to give Olympiakos Europa Conference League glory

Olympiakos became the first Greek club to win a European title after beating Fiorentina 1-0 after extra time in the Europa Conference League final on Wednesday.

Moroccan striker Ayoub El Kaabi scored the winning goal in the 116th minute that allowed José Luis Mendilibar’s team to make history at the home of local rivals AEK Athens.

Before Olympiakos’ success, Panathinaikos were the only Greek club to reach a European final, when they lost to Johan Cruyff-inspired Ajax in the 1971 European Champion Clubs’ Cup final.

Both teams started with great intensity, with Daniel Podence forcing a fine save from Fiorentina goalkeeper Pietro Terracciano before Andrea Belotti missed his shot after having a good opportunity in the other goal.

Fiorentina briefly thought they had taken the lead after nine minutes, but Nikola Milenkovic was immediately flagged for offside when he deflected a cross past Olympiakos’ Konstantinos Tzolakis.

Greek goalkeeper Tzolakis made a fine save at the feet of Giacomo Bonaventura soon after and Nicolas Gonzalez later completely missed his shot when he was well positioned as Fiorentina had the better chances in the first half.

Their sights on goal disappeared in the second half, although Tzolakis came to Olympiakos’ rescue in the 69th minute when he adapted well to dive back and clear Christian Kouame’s shot.

Olympiakos veteran Vicente Iborra almost opened the scoring with a header from a free kick that went close to Fiorentina’s goal in the final 10 minutes.

But this was the last big opportunity of regular time, as the match inevitably headed into extra time.

Olympiakos appealed in vain for a penalty four minutes into extra time, but the defender’s arm was deemed to be in a natural position when Stevan Jovetic’s cross hit inside the box.

Former Fiorentina icon Jovetic, featured on the Olympiakos bench, forced a good save from Terracciano with a 20-yard shot a minute later as the match seemed to come back to life.

However, the game became more tense again, as neither team seemed to want to take a risk that could cost them a draw.

Penalties looked certain until the 116th minute, when El Kaabi ducked to head Santiago Hezze’s cross to score his 16th goal in European competition this season.

The roar that greeted the validation of El Kaabi’s goal, after a long VAR check, in the 120th minute, by the majority of Greek fans in Athens, showed what the occasion meant for the club.

“Amazing. For Olympiakos and for me. I’m very proud of my guys. We’ve done a great job all year and we deserve it,” Jovetic told TNT Sports.

The Montenegrin striker added that tonight’s party in Olympiakos’ hometown of Athens “will be incredible”.

For Fiorentina, it meant defeat in consecutive Europa Conference League finals, having lost 2-1 to West Ham in 2023 following Jarrod Bowen’s 90th-minute winner.

“I have to praise Fiorentina, for two years in a row. A shame for them,” added Jovetic, who played for the Tuscan national team between 2008 and 2013.

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