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Atalanta midfielder Marten De Roon has shared a hilarious post after his side trounced Bayer Leverkusen to claim the UEFA Europa League trophy. The Italian outfit managed to put the disappointment of losing the Coppa Italia final behind them as they secured a first-ever European title.
German champions Bayer Leverkusen were on a 51-match unbeaten run dating back to last season, and were clear favorites to win a second trophy this season. They faced an Atalanta side that lost the Coppa Italia final to Juventus, but were responsible for eliminating Liverpool from the Europa League.
Xabi Alonso's side were, however, in for a rude shock as Atalanta dominated them and comfortably outplayed them to win the trophy. Dutch midfielder Marten De Roon, formerly of Middlesbrough, was unavailable for selection in the final, but was named on the bench.
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Following the final whistle, the 33-year-old was pleased with his team's achievement, and made a post on Instagram to celebrate. The midfielder lay in bed with the trophy as has become the norm in many title celebrations, and captioned it with a funny message to his wife.
"Texted my wife I was in bed with a new love."
Atalanta made history as they became the first Italian side to win the UEFA Europa League. It was also only the second title in the history of the club, with their first one, the Coppa Italia, coming 61 years ago. They also became the first side to defeat Alonso's well-oiled machine, doing so in style to end their hopes of an invincible season.
Ademola Lookman the hero as Atalanta trounce Bayer Leverkusen
After his struggles in the Premier League with Everton and Fulham, it would have been easy to lump Ademola Lookman into the "what could have been" category. The Nigerian forward took his craft to Italy, where he delivered a masterful display to help Atalanta defeat Bayer Leverkusen.
Lookman scored thrice, each goal more impressive than the preceding one, to lead the Italian outfit to a memorable victory. With each goal, he made history as he became the first African to score multiple times in a major European final and the first player to score a hat-trick in the Europa League final.
The 26-year-old forward was deservedly named Man of the Match after his stunning display as he joined some of football's greats in making history. He joined the likes of Ferenc Puskas and Alfredo Di Stefano in scoring a hat-trick in a major European final, becoming only the sixth player ever to do so.
