As the season draws to a close, we know the finalists from all three European competitions – and some players could achieve personal goals in the weeks to come.
Firstly, the Europa League final sees Jose Mourinho’s Roma look to follow up their Europa Conference League victory last season with another trophy, although standing in their way in Budapest on May 31 are perennial European winners of Seville.
A week later, West Ham and Fiorentina travel to Prague to decide who will succeed Roma as Conference League winners.
And then the following Saturday, June 10, Inter Milan and Manchester City will face off for the Champions League, Europe’s highest club honour.
Three players can complete all three trophies – the Champions League, Europa League and Europa Conference League – and they can all succeed too.
Former Chelsea players including Tammy Abraham are just one game away from a trio of successes
A man has two UEFA trophies – and could complete the set in the Champions League final
Tammy Abraham
Champions League (Chelsea, 2021), Europa Conference League (Roma, 2022), Europa League (Roma?, 2023)
The first is 25-year-old Londoner Tammy Abraham, who worked his way through Chelsea’s youth system to be part of the team that lifted the Champions League trophy in 2021 – beating Manchester City in a final hotly contested.
However, Abraham was still struggling for opportunities at Stamford Bridge, and when Jose Mourinho offered him the chance to move to Rome that summer, he took it. That season, the Italian club went on to win the first Europa Conference League.
Thus, the striker can complete the set in consecutive seasons if Roma can defeat Sevilla in Budapest at the end of this month. They played an extremely defensive game to defeat Bayer Leverkusen 1-0 on aggregate over two semi-finals, and no doubt the Europa League final will also be a close encounter.
Tammy Abraham started a European trophy streak with the Champions League in 2021
After last year’s Europa Conference League, Abraham could complete the set with Roma
Emerson Palmieri
Europa League (Chelsea, 2019), Champions League (Chelsea, 2021), Europa Conference League (West Ham?, 2023)
The Brazilian left-back joined Chelsea in January 2018, and within 18 months had broken into the first team, setting up Olivier Giroud’s opener in their 4-1 Europa League final win over his London rivals Arsenal in May 2019.
Two years later he was reportedly frustrated at being left as an unused substitute in the Champions League final – but came away with a medal for his role in bringing the team to glory in the 2020/21 season.
Now 28, he led West Ham to the Europa Conference League final, having joined the Hammers in August. He can now complete the set with two London clubs in a very dominant four-year spell for the Brazilian. All eyes are on Prague to see if he pulls it off – although Fiorentina won’t let it be that easy.
Emerson Palmeiri assisted in Chelsea’s Europa League win over Arsenal in 2019
The left-back will win a third UEFA club trophy if West Ham are successful in Prague next month
Henrikh Mkhitaryan
Europa League (Manchester United, 2017), Europa Conference League (Roma, 2022), Champions League (Inter Milan?, 2023)
In his first season at Manchester United, Henrikh Mkhitaryan scored in the Europa League final as they beat Ajax to lift the trophy in 2017. He became the first Armenian player to win a major European trophy in the process.
After a stint at Arsenal, Mkhitaryan joined Roma, and there he was part of the team with Tammy Abraham that won the Europa Conference League final last year, before moving to Inter Milan, his Serie A rival that summer.
The Armenian is therefore just one game away from joining Abraham and Emerson Palmieri as Champions League winners – as long as his new Inter team-mates can help meet Manchester City’s challenge in Istanbul.
You wouldn’t pass Mkhitaryan either – his first goal for Inter was in the group stage of the competition, and he scored one of the goals in their winning first leg against rivals AC Milan. If he manages to score again in the June 10 tournament, anything is possible.
Henrikh Mkhitaryan scored for Manchester United in the Europa League final victory in 2017
He became the first Armenian to win a UEFA senior trophy by helping see Ajax that year.
The winger will complete the three-piece set if Inter Milan lift the trophy in Istanbul in June
