Shakhtar deserved more – Lucescu

Mircea Lucescu insisted Shakhtar Donetsk deserved more after they lost their Europa League semi-final 3-1 at Sevilla, going out 5-3 on aggregate to the two-time defending champions.

Following a 2-2 draw in the opening leg in Lviv last week, Sevilla’s Kevin Gameiro capitalised on a defensive lapse to open the scoring after seven minutes, only for Eduardo da Silva to hit back before the break on Thursday.

But Gameiro struck again shortly after half-time, his third goal in the tie, then Mariano’s swerving stunner ensured Sevilla will compete for a third successive Europa League title, taking on Liverpool in the final in Basel on May 18.

Lucescu felt Shakhtar acquitted themselves well at a typically loud and atmospheric Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan.

“We wanted more and probably deserved more,” Lucescu said after Shakhtar suffered their first ever European semi-final exit.

“In the locker room I congratulated the team for an excellent performance in the Europa League.

“I believe that in this second leg we felt the pressure of an incredible audience, which caused some mistakes on the part of my boys.”