Ziyech and En-Nesyri among Moroccan scorers to make UEFA Super Cup history

Two Morocco internationals have scored in two of the past five editions of the UEFA Super Cup, with Hakim Ziyech finding the net for Chelsea in 2021 and Youssef En-Nesyri scoring for Sevilla in 2023.

Ziyech scored in Chelsea’s 2021 meeting with Villarreal in Belfast, although the Spanish side eventually forced a penalty shootout after the game finished 1-1 following extra time.

Chelsea took the lead through Ziyech, but Gerard Moreno brought Villarreal level after the interval. Neither side could find a winning goal during extra time, sending the match to penalties.

Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel made a decisive change shortly before the end of normal time by bringing on goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga. The substitute made the difference in the shootout, saving the decisive penalty as Chelsea won 6-5.

Two years later, En-Nesyri also scored in the UEFA Super Cup, giving Sevilla the lead against Manchester City in Piraeus. City responded in the second half, with Cole Palmer heading in the equaliser.

The penalty shootout remained finely balanced for much of its duration, but Nemanja Gudelj missed his attempt to hand Manchester City a 5-4 victory.

The two Moroccan goals came in contrasting circumstances, with Ziyech’s strike followed by a Chelsea triumph and En-Nesyri’s goal ultimately unable to prevent Sevilla from losing on penalties.

The other three editions among the past five were won by Bayern Munich and Real Madrid.

In 2020, Bayern Munich overcame Sevilla 2-1 after extra time in Budapest. Sevilla started brightly and went ahead when Lucas Ocampos converted a penalty.

Bayern created a number of chances before Leon Goretzka equalised in the 34th minute. The decisive moment arrived in extra time, when substitute Javi Martinez headed Bayern in front after taking advantage of a save by the goalkeeper. Bayern held on to lift the trophy.

Real Madrid defeated Eintracht Frankfurt 2-0 in Helsinki in 2022. David Alaba opened the scoring shortly before half-time, while Karim Benzema added a second around the hour mark.

Real Madrid defended their advantage solidly and preserved a clean sheet to secure the trophy.

The Spanish club also won the 2024 edition, beating Atalanta 2-0 in Warsaw. Atalanta resisted for a long period, but Federico Valverde broke the deadlock in the 59th minute.

Nine minutes later, Kylian Mbappe scored on his first appearance for Real Madrid to complete the victory. The success gave Real Madrid a sixth UEFA Super Cup, a record number of triumphs in the competition.