Paulo Dybala recalled the moment he scored against Feyenoord in the Europa League quarter-finals: “It was an incredible moment.” La Joya’s goal was one of the decisive moments of the two legs, helping to inspire the Giallorossi on their way to the final. Speaking with UEFA, the Argentine international recounted the matches against the Dutch side, explaining how the late comeback inspired him and his teammates through the closing stages of the game:
“It was an incredible moment. After their goal I was a little scared because it was really close and in situations like this it’s sometimes difficult, the tension rises a lot but I think we all did very well. The action started with Nemanja, then Stephan was patient and didn’t cross right away even though there were many of us in the area. Then Lore (Pellegrini, ed) saw me and hit me with a first touch because there wasn’t much space.”
“I think that goal gave us a lot of energy in the last minutes to be able to turn the game around. On a technical level it was a very nice goal. I had to do that kind of turn because I had the defender on me and it was the only way to turn around and kick.”
“Luckily the ball stayed there and I was able to score. I should have gone and got the ball into the net to try and win, but after a goal like that and the roar of the crowd, we all understood that it could be an important moment to move forward. In extra time the team was united and strong and that made the difference.”
