Forlan goals win Europa League for Atletico Madrid as Dempsey becomes 1st American in final
By Stuart Condie, APThursday, May 13, 2010
Atletico wins Europa League; Dempsey in final
HAMBURG — Diego Forlan scored his second goal of the game with four minutes remaining in overtime, giving Atletico Madrid a 2-1 victory over Fulham on Wednesday night in the first Europa League final.
Clint Dempsey became the first American to play in a European club soccer final when he entered in the 55th minute in place of Bobby Zamora.
Forlan put Atletico ahead in the 32nd minute when he redirected a mis-hit shot by teammate Sergio Aguero, but Simon Davies tied the score five minutes later with a right-footed volley.
Fulham, a small London club, was trying for the first major trophy in its 131-year history. Its only previous major final was a 2-0 loss to London neighbor West Ham in the 1975 FA Cup.