Vaduz reclaim crown with emphatic victory

Holders FC Vaduz secured a 43rd Liechtenstein Cup success, defeating third-tier FC Triesenberg 5-0 in the final to earn a UEFA Europa League qualifying place.

Currently second from bottom in the Swiss Super League, Giorgio Contini's charges can now look forward another European campaign following their success against Triesenberg. The runners-up, meanwhile, were appearing in their first final, meaning all seven clubs in Liechtenstein have now appeared in the cup decider.

Vaduz – Liechtenstein's only professional team – were firm favourites, and effectively sealed their 19th triumph in the last 21 editions of the competition in the first half.

Only 29 minutes had elapsed by the time Nico Abegglen, Philipp Muntwiler and Pascal Schürpf had struck for the holders in front of 919 spectators at the Sportpark Eschen-Mauren. Steven Lang extended the advantage with a 63rd-minute effort, before Mario Sara rounded off the scoring in the final minute.

"We wanted to be fully focused and show that we would take the match very seriously from the first minute," said Vaduz captain Sara. "We did that well. Triesenberg didn't cave in and tried everything right up until the end – they put up a lot of resistance and had a couple of shots that went just wide."

Team-mate Oliver Klaus also expressed his delight: "It's always a great feeling. We obviously know it very well, but we're still over the moon. Triesenberg gave a really good account of themselves today; they didn't make life easy for us at all. Nevertheless, it was a deserved win in the end."