August 16, (THEWILL) – Manchester City added the UEFA Super Cup trophy to their collection on Wednesday, beating Sevilla 5-4 in a penalty shootout after a 1-1 draw in regulation and extra time.
The match at Stadio Georgios Karaiskakis in Athens marked City’s first appearance in the annual showdown between the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League title holders. Sevilla took a 1-0 lead in the 25th minute through a towering header from Youssef En-Nesyri. The Spanish team went into the break ahead with goalkeeper Yassine Bounou keeping them in front.
However, City equalised in the 63rd minute via a header by winger Cole Palmer to make it 1-1. That scoreline remained all the way through extra time, forcing a penalty shootout. In the shootout, all nine penalty takers from both teams converted their attempts before Sevilla’s Nemanja Gudelj struck the crossbar with his kick. That miss handed City the 5-4 shootout victory and the Super Cup trophy.
The win marked City’s 15th trophy under manager Pep Guardiola, who took over in 2016. It helped make up for the loss on penalties to Arsenal in the FA Community Shield just 10 days ago.
For a club of City’s ambitions and financial might, the UEFA Super Cup represents another piece of silverware in its collection. City will now turn their focus back to defending their English Premier League crown this season with a fresh eye out for another treble or quadruple run.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
