The shots from 11 meters were decisive: everyone among the Rossoneri scored, including Muriqi and Radonjic, while Greif saved from Oyarzabal. For the title one between Atletico Madrid and Bilbao
Muriqi and Radonjic’s Mallorca, decisive from the penalty spot, returns to the King’s Cup final twenty-one years after the last time. After the 0-0 draw in the first leg of the semi-final, the Rossoneri achieved a 1-1 draw at Real Sociedad and advanced thanks to spot kicks, driven by a super Greif, the reserve goalkeeper, who hypnotised Brias Mendez in the first half and Oyarzabal once extra time was over. Aguirre’s team will face Athletic Bilbao and Atletico Madrid in the final in Seville: the Basques won the first leg 1-0 at the Wanda Metropolitano and will try to defend their lead in the second round, scheduled for Thursday at 9.30pm.
THE TEAMS
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the teams led by Alguacil and Aguirre did not reach the second leg semi-final in the best condition. Real Sociedad is seventh in the league and has only achieved one success, against Mallorca, in February. Muriqi and his teammates, however, are sixteenth in the Liga with just six points ahead of the relegation zone. Surprisingly, the former Lazio center forward starts from the bench: Mallorca takes the field with the 5-3-2, fielding the cup goalkeeper Greif in place of the starter Rajkovic and the offensive tandem made up of Abdon and Larin. In Real Sociedad, which relies on Kubo and former AC Milan player Andre Silva in attack, Oyarzabal is back available but starts on the bench, after missing the last three games due to injury.
the match
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Very little happens in the first half: the hosts try to break through on the right, relying on the usual Kubo, former player of the match, and taking advantage of Zakharyan’s timid insertions behind Andre Silva. Mallorca, however, shined in the 38th minute with a shot by Abdon, who wasted it by shooting wide of the goal. The first real scoring opportunity came in the 44th minute, when Raillo touched the ball with his arm in the penalty area: the referee awarded a penalty to Real Sociedad, but Brais Mendez shot centrally, allowing himself to be hypnotized by Greif. Mallorca gained confidence and, immediately after the break, moved forward with a header from Giovanni Gonzalez, who was good at choosing the timing of his insertion by coming out behind the opposing defenders. The Uruguayan winger also proved invaluable with a couple of defensive closures, but Real Sociedad soon got back on their feet thanks to the entry of their star onto the pitch. In the 63rd minute, Mikel Oyarzabal replaces Zakharyan, with an ovation from his crowd. The Spanish winger only needed 8 minutes to seal the equalizer with a great diagonal shot, piercing Greif after a pass from Mendez. The draw holds until the 90th minute, so the match continues until extra time.
SUPER GREIF
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The great protagonist thus becomes the Portuguese Samu Costa, who in the 95th minute saves Mallorca by making two consecutive interventions on the goal line: first on Merino, then on Tierney. Kubo and his associates protest, asking for another handball, but the VAR check confirms that the midfielder touched the ball with his chest. The coaches play their last cards: Real Sociedad brings in former Roma player Sadiq Umar, while Mallorca opts for Radonjic, to Turin until January. The result, however, does not change, because in the end it goes to penalties: everyone scores for Mallorca, including Muriqi and Radonjic, while Greif saves from Oyarzabal. The Rossoneri return to the final twenty-one years after the last time, when Samuel Eto’o was still in attack.
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