Soccer UEFA Europa League - Final Prediction

Sevilla vs AS Roma - Match Preview

⚽ 31 May 2023 - 19:00 GMT +0

Considering six of the last nine UEFA Europa League (UEL) titles have been claimed by Spanish sides, four of which were won by Sevilla, the trophy would already be heading to the south of Spain if history was deciding this final. Sevilla have won each of their last six final appearances in UEFA’s second-tier club competition too, so the omens are firmly stacked in the Andalusian side’s favour when they come up against Italian side Roma.

With Saturday’s 2-1 La Liga defeat to Real Madrid seeing José Luis Mendilibar shuffle his pack, his troops should be fresh for their visit to Budapest. Interestingly though, Sevilla hasn’t won any of their four UEL games held outside of Spain this term (D2, L2), and with that run forming part of a wider 13-match winless run outside of their home country in European competition, lifting another UEL trophy here is far from a foregone conclusion.

Roma knows precisely what it takes to claim a European title themselves, having won the UEFA Europa Conference League last term. Only four Italian clubs have won back-to-back major European crowns, and none since the turn of the century, so there is a small piece of history on the line here for the Giallorossi. Like Sevilla though, Roma warmed up for this clash with a defeat as they went down 2-1 against Fiorentina in Serie A at the weekend.

The similarities don’t stop there either, as Roma are also winless in their last four UEL games held outside of Italy (D2, L2), with the fact they were also goalless in each of those games perhaps serving as a bigger cause for concern for boss José Mourinho. ‘The Special One will hope he can turn the tide in Roma’s first-ever UEFA game held in Hungary. Mourinho has the added incentive of knowing that if his side lifts the trophy, he will become the most decorated manager in the history of major European competition!

📋 Key battle: Formerly of Roma, Sevilla’s Erik Lamela has seen two of his last three UEL goals come against Italian opposition, including their winner against Juventus in the semi-final. Roma stopper Rui Patrício will be trying to thwart him, and no player in UEL history has made more than his 68 appearances in the competition proper, five of the last seven of which have seen him keep a clean sheet.

⚡ Hot stat: The previous 13 UEL finals have seen an average of 2.92 goals per game.