Jarrod Bowen's late winner seals Europa Conference League glory for West Ham
CHAMPIONS: West Ham players celebrates with the trophy after winning the Europa Conference League final. Pic: AP Photo/Darko Bandic
West Ham’s 43-year wait for a major trophy was ended when Jarrod Bowen’s 90th minute winning goal settled a tense Europa Conference League final, and with it secured a place in next season's Europa League.
With the game apparently heading for extra-time after Fiorentina’s Giacomo Bonaventura had cancelled out Said Benrahma’s 62nd minute penalty, Bowen raced clear to collect Lucas Paqueta’s through ball.
The striker held his nerve to finish but the reaction of manager David Moyes and his players was anything but composed as they celebrated the goal that would deliver the club’s second European trophy, 58 years after victory in the 1965 Cup Winner’s Cup final and trigger exuberant scenes in the in the Fortuna Stadium in Prague.
A disappointing Premier League campaign was forgotten as Declan Rice became the first Hammers skipper to collect silverware since Billy Bonds lifted the FA Cup in 1980.
Victory was reward for their endurance and resolve against enterprising opponents. The only sour note on a night of triumph, however, was the sight of Fiorentina skipper Cristiano Biraghi being treated for a cut to his head after being struck by what appeared to be a plastic cup as he waited to take a first half corner.
This competition may have been derided in some quarters when it was first introduced in 2021 but its prestige has been quickly enhanced and there was no doubting its significance to both clubs. For West Ham, the build-up to the final was dominated by reminders of the club’s lengthy wait for silverware while Fiorentina last appeared in a European final 33 years go.
Moyes asserted that the final was “the biggest moment in his career”, a sentiment echoed by a number of his players. But if the Hammers were to succeed, they would have to stifle a Fiorentina side who came into the game as the competition’s leading scorers. The fact the Italians were also second only to champions Napoli when it came to keeping possession in Serie A also provided a clear indication of the type of challenge Moyes’ side would face.
An effort from West Ham forward Michail Antonio offered early hope but it soon became clear Fiorentina were capable of dominating for extended periods. The Hammers did little to help their cause in the first half, however, as they repeatedly conceded possession far too cheaply, Antonio was one of the guiltiest culprits, with the forward repeatedly failing to hold on to the ball long enough for team-mates to get in support but he was far from the only one. Too many passes failed to find a West Ham shirt and Moyes’s side were fortunate that Fiorentina's best efforts were restricted to the midfield areas and they rarely threatened the West Ham goal.
In fact the Serie A side failed to register a shot on target during the first half while West Ham did at least threaten when Vladimir Coufal’s long throw was only half cleared, allowing Declan Rice to fire in a shot that flew narrowly wide.
Coufal and Emerson Palmieri had been preferred in the full-back positions largely because of their abilities to get forward and support West Ham’s counter-attacks. Emerson in particular proved increasingly effective as the first half progressed, helping drive Moyes’s side forward down the left hand flank and unsettling the Fiorentina defence.
Moyes had been visibly frustrated by much of his side’s first half efforts but the dominant emotion for the manager was one of relief in the fifth minute of added time when Luka Jovic thought he had put the Serie A side ahead only for the effort to be ruled out.
Christian Kouame rose well to meet meet Nicolas Gonzalez’s cross and had the striker directed his header on target instead of against the post, West Ham would have fallen behind. Instead, the ball bounced off the woodwork and into the path of Jovic who scrambled in from close range but was correctly ruled to be narrowly offside by the assistant referee, a decision confirmed by the VAR.
It was a major let off for the Hammers and only sharpened the sense they had to assert themselves more, particularly in the central areas where Fiorentina’s holding midfielder Sofyan Amrabat was the dominant figure.
Antonio was clearly growing into the game but the pattern of the first half was maintained until Benrahma made the breakthrough. The opportunity arose when Jarrod Bowen collected a long throw on his chest, the ball deflected off Biraghi’s hand and the referee pointed to the penalty spot after a lengthy review.
Benrahma’s finish was exemplary but, agonisingly for West Ham, so too was Bonventura’s five minutes later when he collected Gonzalez’s knock down and directed a well-placed shot past Alphonse Areola as Fiorentina wasted little time responding.
The game was evenly poised and both sides traded chances with Rolando Mandragora coming close for the Italians before Tomas Soucek’s header drew a fine save from Viola keeper Pietro Terracciano.
It was West Ham, though, who were able to deliver the killer blow and end the club’s long wait for success.
Matchwinner Bowen said: “I obviously dreamed of scoring but to score in the last minute….I thought I was going to cry. I can’t put it into words. We had a dream, we haven;’t had the best season, but we have done it for these fans.
“You make that run ten times and ytou might get it once. I took my time and I put it away. And then I didn’t know what to do.
“I said before this was the biggest game of my career."
Terracciano 6; Dodo 7, Milenkovic 8, Ranieri 6 (Igor 84, 6), Biraghi 6; Amrabat 7, Bonaventura 8, Mandragora 6; Gonzalez 7, Jovic 5 (Cabral 45, 6), Kouame 6 (Saponara 61, 6).
Cerofolini, Ikoné, Terzić, Venuti, Martinez Quarta, Duncan, Bianco, Baráh, Brekalo.
Areola 6; Coufal 6, Zouma 7 (Kehrer 60, 6), Aguerd 7, Emerson 7; Soucek 6, Rice 8, Paqueta 6; Bowen 9, Antonio 6, Benrahma 7 (Fornals 76, 6).
Fabianski, Johnson, Cresswell, Lanzini, Downes, Cornet, Ings, Ogbonna, Potts, Mubama.
Carlos del Serra Grande (Spain) 6.
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