Leverkusen draw with Roma to reach Europa League final

Bayer Leverkusen are through to the Europa League final 4-2 on aggregate after a stoppage time goal from Josip Stanisic snatched a 2-2 draw at home on Thursday, extending their unbeaten run to a record 49 games.

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In a rematch of last season’s Europa League semi-final, Roma came to Leverkusen 2-0 down after the first leg but levelled the tie-up despite having little possession thanks to penalties in each half from Leandro Paredes. With the tie heading for extra time, Alex Grimaldo curled in a corner which goalie Mile Svilar failed to catch, the ball going into the net after bouncing off Roma defender Gianluca Mancini.

Stanisic then kept Leverkusen’s stunning record of late goals alive by scoring on the counter in the seventh minute of added time, breaking Benfica’s European unbeaten record dating back to 1965.

“We had chances to score goals early and didn’t -- but hey we will in Dublin,” Leverkusen boss Alonso told RTL.

“It was a special evening. There were tense moments but it showed the personality and the mentality of the team.”