Atalanta hero Lookman makes Europa League Team of the Tournament
After Atalanta were crowned Europa League champions on Wednesday evening, we’ve taken a look back at the standout performers from this season’s edition of the competition. Represented in our Team of the Tournament of those to have made at least eight appearances are Roma, Freiburg, Atalanta, Sporting, West Ham, Bayer Leverkusen, Liverpool and Marseille.
Roma goalkeeper Mile Svilar has been a revelation for the capital side this season having only made his first Serie A appearance in January. Under the recently installed Daniele De Rossi, the 24-year-old has shone, starring in the penalty shootout victory over Feyenoord in the knockout playoff round, while also impressing against the likes of Brighton, AC Milan and Bayer Leverkusen.
Japan international Ritsu Doan takes up the right-back berth in our XI having contributed two goals and two assists to Freiburg’s Europa League effort. Doan’s strongest displays in the competition this season came against Olympiacos in the group stage, where he both scored and assisted, and against Lens in the knockout playoff round.
Berat Djimsiti (Atalanta) - 7.14
Albanian defender Berat Djimsiti captained his Atalanta side to Europa League glory in Dublin this week, having starred along the way under Gian Piero Gasperini. The 31-year-old helped La Dea to a remarkable clean sheet at Anfield in the quarter-finals, as well as the semi-final return leg against Marseille, and of course the final itself, while he also found the net in a group-stage clash with Sturm Graz back in November.
Goncalo Inacio (Sporting) - 7.07
Highly-coveted Sporting defender Goncalo Inacio joins Djimsiti at the heart of the backline having netted three goals in nine Europa League outings this season. The 22-year-old bagged a brace from the bench against Sturm Graz in December, before finding the target against BSC Young Boys in the knockout playoff round.
Matteo Ruggeri (Atalanta) - 7.21
The second of three Europa League champions to make it into our XI is Atalanta wing-back Matteo Ruggeri, who played in 10 of the 13 matches across the campaign. Along the way, Ruggeri was on hand to contribute from the left-hand side, with a goal and an assist in the group stage, and a perhaps pivotal strike in the semi-final return leg against Marseille two weeks ago.
Mohammed Kudus (West Ham) - 7.57
With a WhoScored rating of 7.57, West Ham star Mohammed Kudus is our Europa League Player of the Tournament. The Ghanaian attacker notched a total of five goals in nine games, with three of those coming against Freiburg in both the group stage and round of 16. Kudus also made 18 successful dribbles and 13 key passes across the campaign.
Florian Wirtz (Bayer Leverkusen) - 7.31
The Bundesliga’s Player of the Season, Florian Wirtz shone not only in the German top-flight but also in Europe this term, with four goals and four assists to his name in the Europa League. Wirtz played a pivotal role in Die Werkself’s journey to the final, scoring the opener in the first-leg semi-final victory against Roma three weeks ago.
Exequiel Palacios (Bayer Leverkusen) - 7.11
Joining Wirtz in midfield is Leverkusen teammate Exequiel Palacios, whose battling style is not represented quite so clearly by direct goal involvements. Across the campaign, Palacios made 26 tackles, seven interceptions, eight clearances and eight blocks.
Ademola Lookman (Atalanta) - 7.10
Former Everton, Fulham and Leicester man Ademola Lookman was the star of the show as Atalanta ousted Bayer Leverkusen in Wednesday’s final. The Nigeria international netted a spectacular hat-trick, becoming the first player to do so in a Europa League final, while he also registered a further three goal involvements earlier in the competition.
Liverpool forward Cody Gakpo earns a place in our best XI having netted four goals and provided one assist in the Europa League this season. Gakpo’s goalscoring exploits came in the form of two braces against LASK in the group stage and in the 6-1 thrashing of Sparta Prague in the round of 16.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Marseille) - 7.25
Former Arsenal striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang ends the campaign as both the Europa League’s top goalscorer this season, with 10 goals, and the top scorer in the competition’s history (34 goals), having surpassed the likes of Henrik Larsson, Klass-Jan Huntelaar and Radamel Falcao with his efforts this term.
