Real Sociedad lift Copa del Rey after Marrero shootout heroics sink Atlético

• Atlético Madrid 2-2 Real Sociedad (aet: 3-4 on pens)

• Lookman 19, Alvarez 83; Barrenetxea 1, Oyarzabal 45+1pen

History has a pair unexpected heroes. Unai Marrero, a 24-year-old substitute goalkeeper, born in San Sebastián and raised at Real Sociedad, saved two penalties in the shootout to put his boyhood club within a single shot of victory on the what his captain had called the night of their lives. Then he embraced Pablo Marin, the former ballboy who now walked towards him carrying all of their hopes on his shoulders, and asked his teammate to take them over the line. So Marin, 22, and on as a substitute, did just that, stepping up and securing only the fourth Copa del Rey in la Real’s history, defeating Atlético Madrid from the spot after a 2-2 draw.

Last time they had won it, in 2021, it took a penalty. This time it took six of them; Mikel Oyarzabal, as he had done then, scored one during the 90 minutes on the way to a 2-2 draw and three more men did in the shootout. Back then, Real Sociedad had won the trophy it in an empty stadium, unable to avoid the feeling that something was missing. Now at last they had done it in front of thousands of fans in Seville – there to see a trophy lifted for the first time in 38 years.

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