During his two-decade career as a professional footballer, Diego Forlan has played in eight countries across three continents and turned out in a World Cup semi-final on his way to winning more than 100 international caps.
This journey has thrown up plenty of career highlights, but for the former Manchester United man, the 2010 Europa League final remains a particular standout.
The forward was a key part of Atletico Madrid’s 2-1 extra-time success over Fulham in Hamburg that night, scoring both goals for his side, including a 116th-minute winner to end the Cottagers' fairytale run to their first European final.
Forlan on firing Atletico to Europa League glory
“That night in Hamburg was one of the best of my career,” Forlan tells FourFourTwo. “A dream final. Not so much because it was a brilliant match, but because of the script.”
Fulham’s remarkable run to the final in just their second-ever European campaign had seen them first navigate a group containing Roma, CSKA Moscow and Basel, before Shakhtar Donetsk, Juventus, Wolfsburg and Hamburg were accounted for in the knockouts.
“Fulham arrived as the underdog, but they made life very difficult for us,” Forlan continues. I scored after half an hour, Simon Davies equalised, and the final went to extra time.”
With the clock continuing to run down, penalties loomed, only for Forlan to deliver when it mattered most, as he took full advantage of a chance that fell his way deep in the second half of extra time.
“When everything seemed to be heading for a penalty shootout, Sergio Aguero battled for a ball out wide and spotted me in the heart of the box,” he continues. “I managed to get the tip of my boot to it to give Atletico the title.”
Forlan’s reaction to the goal was as instinctive as his finish.
“I took my shirt off and threw myself onto the turf as if it were a swimming pool,” he recalls.
For Forlan, the significance of the goal stretched further than just adding another title to Atletico’s roll of honour.
“That goal tasted like glory, because it also marked a turning point for a club that started to feel important again,” he believes.
“Spain’s capital, a city used to seeing Real Madrid celebrating titles, was painted red and white, and thousands of fans gathered at Plaza de Neptuno in a huge display of pride.”
