Ukrainian side Shakhtar Donetsk was victorious in Istanbul, lifting the Uefa cup for the final time in the tournament's long and illustrious history, at least in this format.  Prior to the encounter, Romanian coach Mircea Lucescu had been stressing the differences in various media outlets regarding the disparity of both team's football cultures. 

Ukrainian Shakhtar was repeatedly heralded as a technically-driven team, particularly in the back four, which was going to come head to head with the physical and powerful midfield and attacking formation of the German side.  However, as  Tomas Hubschman was suspended Lucescu attempted to deploy a surprise as he inserted Willian in the starting eleven, while the tireless Fernandinho was relegated deeper into defence.  

Fernandinho was indefatigable, going back and forth interminably, which meant Shakhtar at times seemed they had an extra man on the pitch. Shakhtar initiated the proceedings with a fast passing game and quick rhythm, a determined drive that caught the Germans a little off guard. 

Just before the half hour mark, Luiz Adriano's delicate finish put Shakhtar in front.  After the opener, however, Bremen picked themselves up and went forward in turn, gradually displacing the Ukrainians from the middle of the park. Werder then equalised before the interval when Shakhtar keeper Andriy Pyatov could only deflect Ronaldo Naldo's 25-yard free-kick into the net.

The second half was not as dramatic as the first – there was a grey cat that climbed the advertising boards and attempted to get on the pitch, that gathered interest from all the cameras – her hope of a cup final appearance was thwarted, however. With the clock ticking, both teams seemed to be swapping domination for five-minute spells, but the goals were not happening.

Towards the last 10 minutes, it was apparent that the opponents would settle for extra-time  as their  attacking had waned considerably.

With extra time underway, if Shakhtar's manager's instruction for their team was to be cautious, or defensive, apparently they hadn't heard him, as the Ukrainians went completely gung-ho.  In one of those surges forward, Rodrigues Jadson struck the goal that sunk the hopes of  Werder Bremen and ensured Shakhtar Donetsk got their hands on the last ever Uefa cup trophy.

Visibly disappointed, Werder Bremen coach Thomas Schaaf said after the match, as quoted by the BBC
:
"We were just not fast enough and not just effective enough. We weren't able to play our usual football, we didn't put enough pressure on our opponents. We gave them too much space and lost too many balls. I congratulate Shakhtar, they were the best team on the night."

Shakhtar Donetsk coach Mircea Lucesu said:

"This is bigger because it is the last and maybe we can keep the trophy. We don't have to make a copy of it. We have bigger aims. We now want to do things in the Champions League: Reach the quarterfinals, maybe the semi-finals".