Jose Mourinho makes history as Roma win first Europa Conference League final
ROMA 1-0 FEYENOORD: Nicolo Zaniolo's tidy finish and a massive save from goalkeeper Rui Patricio helped Jose Mourinho's Roma side get the better of Feyenoord in Tirana
Jose Mourinho became the first ever manager to win European trophies with four different clubs after leading Roma to Europa Conference League glory against Feyenoord.
The Portuguese coach had already won the Champions League with Porto and Inter Milan, as well as the Europa League with Manchester United in 2017 . He was already the first to reach European finals with four different clubs, and Nicolo Zaniolo's first-half goal let his boss write his name into history.
It was far from straightforward, though, with Feyenoord giving as good as they got, particularly in the second half. Roma owed a lot to goalkeeper Rui Patricio and impressive centre-back Chris Smalling, but Mourinho's men held on in the end despite their opponents' pressure.
Henrikh Mkhitaryan made his return from injury after almost a month on the sidelines, moving straight back into Mourinho's starting XI after helping the manager win his last European trophy in 2017. However, after receiving treatment on the pitch inside the opening 20 minutes, the Armenian was forced to limp off with Sergio Oliveira taking his place.
Despite that setback, though, it was Roma who drew first blood. After an opening half-hour devoid of chances, Nicolo Zaniolo showed great close control to collect Gianluca Mancini's cross with his chest before calmly lifting the ball over onrushing goalkeeper Justin Bijlow.
The opening period was tough for Feyenoord, who struggled to create. Orkun Kokcu was the only player to really test Roma stopper Rui Patricio, firing a long-range effort which the former Wolves man struggled to gather cleanly.
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