West Ham beat AZ Alkmaar, meet Fiorentina in Europa Conference League final

West Ham United substitute Pablo Fornals scored a breakaway goal in stoppage time as the visitors secured a 1-0 win at AZ Alkmaar on Thursday and a place in the Europa Conference League final after a 3-1 aggregate triumph.

The Hammers are through to a European club competition final for the first time in almost a half century after a 2-1 win in the first leg in London last week and the last-gasp 1-0 triumph in Thursday’s return leg against the Dutch side.

They will now take on Fiorentina in the final in Prague on June 7.

West Ham, who won the European Cup Winners’ Cup in 1965 and were runners-up in 1976, put up a dogged showing despite looking tired and spending much of the time chasing their opponents.

But they were stout in defence and already playing for time near the end of the game when Fornals broke away in the fourth minute of stoppage time to win the game.

AZ put up a brave showing but the difference in class between the Premier League outfit and their Dutch opponent was evident as West Ham dealt with everything their hosts threw at them.

There was a scare late in the game when the ball hit the hand of Kurt Zouma after being punched clear by his own goalkeeper Alphonse Areola but despite home protests no penalty was awarded.

Lucas Paqueta hit the outside of the post in the first half while AZ looked passive in the opening period, despite rowdy support, but came out with vigour after the break, making dangerous runs and delivering inviting balls into the West Ham penalty area but failing to find a decisive touch.

Jarrod Bowen had a breakaway chance in the 74th minute but his pull back in search of a team mate was cleared, while at the other end there was an anxious clearance by Areola after a back pass from Thilo Kehrer looked to be heading into his own net.

Defender Nayef Aguerd then put the ball wide when unmarked at the back post with seven minutes remaining before the last-gasp winner.

“His name is going to be written in West Ham history forever. He’s so happy,” said captain Declan Rice of Fornals’ achievement.

“We’re absolutely thrilled. It’s a big achievement for the club, but now it’s about going and winning it,” added manager David Moyes.

“AZ played a really good style, the Dutch football is really good. They gave us a shock in the first leg, and I knew if I didn’t set us up in a deeper block they could punish us.”

Fiorentina reach Europa Conference League final with last-gasp goal at Basel

Fiorentina’s Antonin Barak struck deep into stoppage time at the end of extra time to take his side into the Europa Conference League final with a 3-1 win at Basel in the second leg of the semi-final on Thursday that secured a 4-3 aggregate victory.

Fiorentina became the first club to reach the finals of four UEFA competitions, having played in European Cup, UEFA Cup, and Cup Winners’ Cup finals. They last reached a European final when they lost to Juventus in the UEFA Cup competition in 1990.

“Tonight we played like a mature team,” Fiore manager Vincenzo Italiano told DAZN. “It’s my first season in Europe and reaching the final is a great satisfaction. This path to the final will always remain with us but now we have a mission to complete.”

Fiorentina were chasing the game after Basel won the first leg 2-1 but they had trouble finding space as the Swiss employed a deep defensive strategy and sought to counter-attack.

However as the half wore on Basel’s defence began to falter, despite enthusiastic support from the St Jakob-Park crowd, and the visitors looked more likely to score.

Fiorentina took the lead in the 35th minute when a corner was met by the unmarked Nicolas Gonzalez, who headed home to level the aggregate score at 2-2.

Just before the break goalkeeper Marwin Hitz came to Basel’s rescue with a remarkable one-handed save from Giacomo Bonaventura’s effort to prevent another header finding the net.

Zeki Amdouni then scored for Basel 10 minutes into the second half before Gonzalez responded in the 72nd with a well-placed shot, sending the match into extra time.

Hitz made another crucial save in the opening minutes of extra time when he blocked substitute Luka Jovic’s header with another stunning one-handed reflex save.

The match was stopped for eight minutes near the end of extra time so medical assistance could be given in the stands.

Then nine minutes into stoppage time in the extra period Barak collected a loose ball inside the box and slotted it home from close range to send Fiorentina into the final.

After nearly three decades, Italian teams have reached the finals of all three European competitions, with Inter Milan facing Manchester City in the Champions League showpiece and AS Roma meeting Sevilla in the Europa League final.

“It’s wonderful, Italian football shows that it is returning to an important level. All three deserved to reach the final, we will all give heart and soul to achieve victory,” Italiano said.