By Humberto Viera
Athletic Club de Bilbao won the final of the Copa del Rey after beating Athletic Club de Bilbao in a penalty shootout, in a match that the Basques dominated from the second half and which means a new title in this competition for the Basques later 40 years without winning it.
The team led by Ernesto Valverde won the match in the penalty shootout with a score of 4-2, thanks in part to a great save by Kepa and a deflected shot by the Mallorca goalkeeper.
Athletic has reached the final of the Copa del Rey on 39 occasions, being the second team with the most participations in this round behind FC Barcelona and Real Madrid. Despite this, they are the second most successful club in the competition after the Catalans, having won a total of 24 trophies.
Real Mallorca, led by Mexican Javier “Vasco” Aguirre, took the lead on the scoreboard with a goal from Dani Rodríguez in the 21st minute, after a corner. Athletic managed to tie just after the break with a goal from Sancet after a great assist from Nico Williams.
In the second half, Athletic could not find precision in its attacks against Mallorca’s solid defense, which based its danger on set pieces.
Although Athletic scored one more goal, disallowed for offside, the 1-1 tie remained until the end of regulation time and overtime, which led to a penalty shootout.
Since his debut as a coach with Atlante in 1996, and after his time as an assistant with the Mexican National Team in the 1994 World Cup, Javier Aguirre has won a total of seven titles as a coach and player combined.
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