Glasgow Rangers against Eintracht Frankfurt: the Europa League final on May 18 in Seville (Spain) will be a story of passion between two teams transcended this season by the flavor of Europe.

Eintracht, after having achieved the feat of winning the first leg 2-1 at West Ham, confirmed Thursday, May 5 by controlling the Londoners at home 1-0, thanks to Rafael Borre (26th).

Rangers lost 1-0 in the first leg to the other German club in these semi-finals, RB Leipzig.

But it was a transformed Scottish team that suffocated the Saxons for more than an hour in their cauldron at Ibrox Park, first with goals from James Tavernier (18th) and Glen Kamara (24th).

The inevitable Christopher Nkunku briefly gave Leipzig hope (2-1, 70th), but John Lundstram sealed the logical victory for Rangers (3-1, 80th).

On May 18, the Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán stadium, Sevilla FC's usual home, may not host two of Europe's biggest clubs, but two teams that have shown an enthusiastic desire and fighting spirit throughout the competition.

A final that promises to be passionate

Eintracht, winners of the C3 which was then called the UEFA Cup in 1980, was a bit like the "Villarreal" of the Europa League this season: a lackluster mid-table team in its championship ( currently 11th), but literally transfigured by the lights of Europe.

The teammates of Kevin Trapp, the former goalkeeper of Paris SG, reach the final undefeated after 12 games in the competition.

Their ticket to Sevilla is all the more deserved as they themselves eliminated the big favorite, FC Barcelona, ​​in the quarter-finals, winning 3-2 at Camp Nou (1-1 in the first leg). Frankfurt).

Against West Ham on Thursday, they benefited from the exclusion of defender Aaron Cresswell in the 17th minute for a foul in the position of last defender.

"Hammers" coach David Moyes also saw a red card late in the game for protest.

Their opponents in the final, the Rangers, who won the Cup Winners' Cup, their only European trophy, in 1972, had built a defensive wall in their 30 meters in the first leg in Leipzig, to cash only one goal at the very end of the game.

They recalled on Thursday that, driven by 50,000 raging fans, they also knew how to put their aggression to use in attack.

With his opener, James Tavernier has become the only top scorer in this Europa League, with seven goals.

Between the Scottish "fighting spirit" and the intoxication of Europe which seizes Frankfurt with each exit, the final promises to be at least passionate.

We can count, moreover, on the supporters of the two camps, arch-boiling, to create the atmosphere of a great European evening.

With AFP

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