Leverkusen into UEL final and European record books

Bayer Leverkusen 2-2 Roma (4-2 on agg.)
Goals: 0-1 Paredes (pen. 43'), 0-2 Paredes (pen. 66'), 1-2 Mancini (o.g. 83'), 2-2 Stanišić 90'+7 (assist: Xhaka)

Leading 2-0 from the first leg in Rome, Leverkusen controlled the first half for long periods. Matěj Kovář had to be alert to a Luca Pellegrini header in a rare moment of defensive concern, but otherwise the Bundesliga champions asked nearly all the questions. Exequiel Palacios and Adam Hložek tested Mile Svilar with shots from distance, before the woodwork denied Palacios with 30 minutes gone. Jeremie Frimpong made the visiting goalkeeper work once more with a trademark inside run and shot, while Jonas Hofmann dragged wide when well placed in the area. It looked like being only a matter of time before the net would bulge as Svilar pulled off a superb double stop from Amine Adli and Hložek. The goal duly came late in the half, but at the wrong end from a Bayer perspective. After Jonathan Tah was adjudged to have brought down former teammate Sardar Azmoun, Leandro Paredes converted from the penalty spot to halve the aggregate score to 2-1.

The pendulum swung back and forth in the second half as Adli drove a shot through the legs of ex-Eintracht Frankfurt defender Evan Ndicka and agonisingly wide. Kovář thwarted Azmoun and Stephan El Shaarawy, either side of another fine piece of goalkeeping from Svilar to stop Hofmann capping a lightning counter led by Frimpong. It proved a key intervention for the Italians, who levelled the tie with 66 minutes gone. A VAR review deemed Hložek to have handled in the box, with Paredes stepping up to sink his second spot-kick of the contest. Xabi Alonso reacted by introducing Florian Wirtz and Patrik Schick, but it was Lady Luck that got them back in front as an Álex Grimaldo corner went in off Gianluca Mancini. Svilar denied Frimpong and Adli, before substitute Josip Stanišić struck in the 97th minute of added time to extend Leverkusen's proud unbeaten record. Alonso's treble candidates face Atalanta in the final on 22 May, three days before locking horns with Kaiserslautern in the DFB Cup.

Watch: Leverkusen reaction to reaching UEL final

Match stats

• Leverkusen have broken Benfica's previous 48-match unbeaten record, set between December 1963 and February 1965.
• Bayer's equaliser was their 17th competitive goal of the season in the 90th minute or later.
• Leverkusen are the competition's leading scorers with 31 goals.
• Grimaldo brought up his fifth Europa League assist of the season. Only Marseille's Amine Harit and Jonathan Clauss have more.
• Alonso's team have fired off a tournament-leading 234 goal attempts in 2023/24.
• Die Werkself are through to their second UEFA final, having previously lost the 2001/02 UEFA Champions League to Real Madrid.

Teams

Leverkusen: Kovář - Tapsoba, Tah (c), Hincapié - Frimpong (Stanišić 90'), Xhaka, Palacios, Grimaldo (Kossounou 90') - Hofmann (Wirtz 81'), Adli - Hložek (Schick 74')
Unused subs: Hrádecký, Lomb, Andrich, Borja Iglesias, Arthur, Boniface, Tella, Puerta
Out: Mbamba (ineligible)
Coach: Xabi Alonso

Roma: Svilar - Mancini, Cristante, Ndicka - Angeliño (Smalling 81'), Paredes, Pellegrini (c) (Abraham 81'), Spinazzola - Azmoun (Bove 72'), El Shaarawy - Lukaku
Unused subs: Patrício, Karsdorp, Dybala, Diego Llorente, Sanches, Aouar, Baldanzi, Çelik, Zalewski
Out: -
Coach: Daniele De Rossi

As it happened!

First-leg report 

Roma 0-2 Bayer Leverkusen
Goals: 0-1 Wirtz 28' (assist: Grimaldo), 0-2 Andrich 72' (assist: Stanišić)

Florian Wirtz and Robert Andrich goals gave Leverkusen a 2-0 win in Rome in their semi-final first leg.

It was immediately clear that Leverkusen would face a battle against the experienced Serie A campaigners. The Bundesliga champions stuck to their patient passing play and probed Roma, with Granit Xhaka hitting a couple of efforts in the opening minutes. The hosts fired the first shot on goal, though, with a Paulo Dybala drive saved by Matěj Kovář. Backed by a passionate Stadio Olmpico, Roma penned Xabi Alonso's men back and Romelu Lukaku sent a header crashing against the crossbar. The visitors pounced on a defensive mistake to take the lead against the run of play as Alejandro Grimaldo seized on a loss of possession from Rick Karsdorp to cut the ball back for Wirtz to slam the ball in. The dazzling playmaker had a chance for a second goal soon afterwards, but his stinging shot from Jeremie Frimpong's pass back was saved. With Roma rattled, Grimaldo picked out Frimpong in the box with another incisive drag back, only for the Dutchman to fire a whisker wide. Andrich also tested the goalkeeper and Frimpong missed a good opening on a break as Leverkusen finished the first period on top.  

With Roma seeking to force a way back, Leverkusen continued to find space to attack in with Piero Hincapié sending a free header wide from a Grimaldo corner. Bryan Cristante then glanced a header from a corner wide when in a superb position at the other end. Both teams showed ambition as the second half wore on, albeit few major chances fell for a while as the visitors closed in on a very useful away win. When Josip Stanišić dragged the ball back to Andrich around 25 yards out, the midfielder dispatched a stunning drive into the roof of the net to send the travelling Leverkusen fans into raptures. Hincapié then slid in to stop Leverkusen loanee Sardar Azmoun from pouncing in the box before Tammy Abraham headed over an open goal in stoppage time, keeping the champions unbeaten in a remarkable 47 competitive games in 2023/24 and in an ideal position in the tie ahead of next Thursday's second leg in Germany.