West Ham United have been crowned champions of the UEFA Europa Conference League after beating Fiorentina 2-1 in the final on Wednesday evening.
It was the Hammers' first major European final since losing 4-2 to Anderlecht in the 1976 European Cup Winners’ Cup final in Brussels. After winning all six of their matches in the group stage, David Moyes' men beat Greek side AEK Larnaca, Belgian club Gent and Dutch outfit AZ Alkmaar in their three knockout ties en route to tonight's final in Prague.
Meanwhile, Fiorentina finished second in their group, meaning they had to play all four rounds of the knockout stage, where they saw off Portuguese side Braga, Turkish outfit Sivasspor, last season's champions of Poland Lech Poznan and Swiss giants Basel.
It was a fiery first half in Prague, with Fiorentina defender Cristiano Biraghi struck on the head by a cup that appeared to be thrown by a West Ham fan. Blood then began to pour from Biraghi's head, with a number of Hammers players going over to their supporters urging them to stop.
The stadium announcer also echoed their concerns, urging fans to stop throwing objects. Luka Jovic then thought he had broken the deadlock on the stroke of half-time but the Serbian international was marginally ruled off for offside after a lengthy VAR review.
The east Londoners were then awarded a penalty on the hour mark after Biraghi was adjudged to have handled the ball in the area. Jarrod Bowen controlled a lofted pass with his chest before the Italian left-back appeared to knock the ball away from the England international with his hand.
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West Ham attacker Said Benrahma then stepped up to the spot, emphatically knocking his penalty past Fiorentina goalkeeper Pietro Terracciano to give his side the advantage. But the Serie A outfit quickly equalised through veteran midfielder Giacomo Bonaventura.
The 33-year-old produced a deft first touch with his left foot before beating Hammers shot-stopper Alphonse Areola with a perfectly-weighted right-footed half-volley. But Moyes' side won it in the very last minute.
Lucas Paqueta played a cultured through ball to the aforementioned Bowen, who made no mistake when he found himself one versus one with Terracciano in the final seconds of normal time. The former Hull winger was clinical from close range, poking the ball into the back of the net to deliver his side Europan glory in a thoroughly-entertaining fashion.
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