A Europa League campaign like none other reaches what ought to be a pulsating conclusion in Gdansk on Wednesday, as Villarreal and Manchester United prepare for battle in the showpiece event.
Villarreal - under the tutelage of Europa League expert Unai Emery - have been presented with a magnificent opportunity to win a major honour for the first time in their 98-year history, while Man United prevailed in the tournament as recently as 2017.
After dumping his former team Arsenal out of the tournament, Emery will endeavour to claim his fourth Europa League crown after three consecutive successes with Sevilla between 2014 and 2016, and the Spaniard oversaw some thrilling showpiece events during that time.
While teams across the continent have been forced to welcome their European neighbours to empty stadiums devoid of atmosphere, 9,500 will be welcomed to the Energa Stadium with open arms to witness Emery's Europa League dominance continue or Ole Gunnar Solskjaer claim his first Red Devils piece of silverware.
Ahead of this year's showpiece event, Sports Mole takes a look a five of the most memorable UEFA Cup/Europa League finals since the one-legged format was introduced in 1998.
5. Sevilla 3-2 Inter Milan (2020)
Where better to start our countdown than with the most recent showpiece event? After football across the globe was thrown into disarray during the earliest months of the coronavirus pandemic, Sevilla and Inter Milan - two of the tournament's most successful teams - did battle at the Rhein Energie Stadion in the 2019-20 final.
The Spaniards had knocked this year's finalists Man United out in the semi-finals, but they found themselves one goal down within the opening five minutes after Diego Carlos cynically hauled Romelu Lukaku down in the area, and the Inter forward coolly converted from 12 yards.
However, Sevilla took just seven minutes to restore parity thanks to some exceptional work on the right flank from the veteran Jesus Navas, whose pinpoint cross found the head of Luuk de Jong, and his effort was too powerful for Samir Handanovic to keep out.
After Antonio Conte was booked following Inter's penalty appeal for handball being waved away, Sevilla's star striker De Jong once again proved his aerial prowess with a looping header from a free kick in the 33rd minute of the contest.
In a mirror image of De Jong's goal just three minutes before, veteran defender Diego Godin rose highest to meet Marcelo Brozovic's free kick, and the Uruguayan ensured that the tie would be delicately poised heading into the second 45.
With 15 minutes remaining, Carlos and Lukaku switched roles as the former's acrobatic effort deflected off the foot of the Inter forward, and as spectacular as the former's bicycle kick was, it was Lukaku's touch which directed it on target and ultimately settled the contest.
Sevilla did have to rely on a heroic last-ditch block from Jules Kounde late on to secure their sixth crown in the tournament, but there was simply no stopping the Nervionenses' reign of dominance.
4. Celtic 2-3 Porto (2003)
One year before Jose Mourinho steered Porto to the biggest prize of them all during his rookie days as a manager, the Portuguese set his side up for the 2003 UEFA Cup final against Celtic, who had already sent Liverpool packing en route to Seville.
As both teams stepped foot onto the Estadio Olímpico de Sevilla turf seeking their first triumphs in the tournament, Porto drew first blood through Derlei, who silenced 80,000 Bhoys in Seville by pouncing on Dmitri Alenichev's parried effort.
However, Celtic's super Swede Henrik Larsson unsurprisingly restored parity for the Scottish powerhouses two minutes after the restart, heading home at the back post before Alenichev latched onto a sublime pass from Deco to restore Porto's lead after 54 minutes.
The joy was short-lived for Mourinho as Larsson once again used his aerial prowess to head home the equaliser from a corner, and there were no more goals to be had in normal time following an enthralling 90 minutes.
Celtic were up against it in the extra-time period as Bobo Balde walked for two yellow card offences, and Derlei struck through a sea of bodies in the 115th minute to win Mourinho his first of four European honours.
3. Inter Milan 3-0 Porto (1998)
The inaugural final of the single-match format was one to remember for all the right reasons for Luigi Simoni's Inter Milan, but their Serie A counterparts Lazio were outgunned, outclassed and outplayed at the Parc des Princes.
Seeking their third UEFA Cup triumph of a memorable 1990s era, Inter Milan got off to the perfect start as Ivan Zamorano latched onto a long ball from Diego Simeone to poke home with just five minutes on the clock.
After Ronaldo and Zamorano both saw further efforts crash against the woodwork, a 24-year-old Javier Zanetti also saw the ball rattle the crossbar, but his thunderous effort cannoned off the correct side of the woodwork to double Inter's lead on the hour mark.
Ten minutes later, 1997 Ballon d'Or recipient Ronaldo added gloss to the scoreline by rounding Luca Marchegiani before slotting home for his side's third of the evening, and while tempers flared as both sides had a man sent off in the closing stages, scenes of jubilation followed for Inter just as they did in their triumphant 2020-21 Serie A campaign.
2. Feyenoord 3-2 Borussia Dortmund (2002)
Aiming to bring the UEFA Cup back to the Netherlands 10 years after Ajax last managed to do so in the 1992 final, Feyenoord welcomed Borussia Dortmund to their own headquarters in Rotterdam, with the German side last reaching the final in 1993.
The game exploded into life with 33 minutes on the clock, as Jurgen Kohler's mistake allowed Jon Dahl Tomasson a one-on-one with Jens Lehmann, and the Dortmund defender was forced to haul him down and take the walk of shame. Pierre van Hooijdonk made no mistake from the spot.
It was same corner, same result for Van Hooijdonk seven minutes later, but this time the dead-ball situation was a free kick, as the Dutch striker directed his 25-yard effort with pinpoint accuracy to give Feyenoord a 2-0 lead at half time.
Dortmund took just two minutes of the second half to make things interesting, as Marcio Amoroso won and converted a penalty following Patrick Paauwe's foul, but the joy was short-lived as Tomasson beat the offside trap before lashing a half-volley into the back of the net.
Jan Koller's own spectacular effort just before the hour mark set up a nervy finale to the encounter, but Feyenoord held on to lift the trophy for the first time since 1974.
1. Liverpool 5-4 Alaves (2001)
An infamous golden goal at the wrong end of the pitch settled one of the indelible UEFA Cup finals since the turn of the millennium, as Liverpool travelled to the Westfalenstadion aiming to sink Alaves and complete a cup treble in the 2000-01 season.
Having seen off Roma, Porto and Barcelona to book their spot in the final, Liverpool took all of three minutes to stamp their authority on Alaves, as Markus Babbel headed home from a free kick before a young Steven Gerrard doubled his side's lead not long after.
An inspired first-half substitution from Alaves saw defender Dan Eggen taken off for forward Ivan Alonso, who had only been on the pitch for four minutes before heading home his side's first of the evening.
A 40th-minute penalty from Gary McAllister put Liverpool in the driving seat once again, but a quickfire double from Javi Moreno - including a cheeky free kick - levelled proceedings at 3-3 before the 50-minute mark.
Efforts from Robbie Fowler and Jordi Cruyff would take a pulsating affair to extra time, during which Magno and Antonio Karmona were both brandished from the field of play, and Alaves were made to pay for their indiscipline.
From the free kick that Karmona gave away in the 116th minute, McAllister's delivery was met by Delfi Geli, whose header into his own net settled the contest as Gerard Houllier's cup treble was complete thanks to the unlikeliest of golden goals. body check tags ::
