It was Jose Mourinho at both his absolute worst and absolute best.
Eccentric, theatric, defiant; the Portuguese boss might have lost a European final for the first time in his distinguished managerial career, but the ultimate showman still found a way to take a centre stage. His Roma side were beaten on penalties by Sevilla in the Europa League final and in truth, the Italian side contributed heavily to an ugly spectacle as they were shown eight yellow cards, one of which Mourinho received himself.
Indeed, given the frequent delays, it was highly apt that a game which kicked off in May didn't actually finish until June. And if this was to be Mourinho's last dance in the Roma dugout before heading to PSG this summer, he ensured it was a memorable farewell - if not for the right reasons.
Furious at fourth official after Taylor points to spot
Mourinho, not to mention half of the Roma bench, had already spent most of the night berating the officials when, with 19 minutes left, Sevilla's Lucas Ocampos went down under a challenge from Roger Ibanez and was awarded a penalty.
No sooner had referee Anthony Taylor pointed to the spot though, was Mourinho on his way to the fourth official, finger wagging, head shaking, voice dissenting. His appeals to get the decision reviewed by VAR seemingly paid dividends though, when Taylor went to the monitor and promptly reversed the call.
Had he not, one could only have imagined the aftermath. The irony being of course, that three times during the 120 minutes Mourinho and his entourage were on the pitch protesting over tenuous penalty claims of their own.
Lamenting Lamela's escape
To label the final a 'feisty' affair would quite simply be a ludicrous understatement, with 13 yellow cards dished out - and that was just the players.
Burt Mourinho, who was also booked for his relentless antics, was apoplectic late on after Sevilla sub Erik Lamela committed a foul when already booked. To compound his anger, the Argentine then scored from the spot in the shootout and the Roma boss wasn't about to let it pass afterwards.
"Lamela should have been sent off," he told reporters, before taking aim at Taylor. "Too many yellow cards for us then he doesn’t give Lamela his second yellow allowing him to take a penalty in the end.”
Throwing away his runners-up medal
Six European finals, but only five mementoes.
Never one to handle defeat with dignity, Mourinho managed to steal the limelight in the post-match presentations, collecting his silver medal early and then duly tossing it away to a fan in the crowd. Rather than remain on the field to applaud the winners, the 60-year-old was down the tunnel before his own players had even finished their formalities.
In fairness, the fortunate supporter did seem pleased with his unexpected souvenir from Budapest. But the smart money is on disdain being behind the giveaway, and not a desire to make a young man happy.
Slamming the 'Spanish' referee
If every Mourinho moan at Anthony Taylor from Thursday night was transferred into written words, the subsequent book would be extensive.
But amid his not wholly justifiable set of complaints, questioning the Englishman's nationality surely topped the top. And it also flew in the face of the perception that the official actually handled a difficult night remarkably well.
"We will get home dead of tiredness and dead because of tonight’s unfair refereeing display," he said afterwards. "Great game, great final, intense, gritty, vibrant, but the referee seemed Spanish."
Taylor, incidentally, is from Manchester.
Confronting Taylor in the car park
Imagine being Taylor, escaping to the car park, and breathing a sigh of relief that you are clear from the chaos and can make your way back to bed - and then you have the seething 'Special One' tearing right into you.
Mourinho began hammering him in English, before switching between other languages to make his feelings known. He told Taylor he was a "f****** disgrace," saving his most bizarre act of the night until last.
Taylor's most controversial decision was arguably to demand a retake in the penalty shootout - a decision made by VAR - which allowed Sevilla's Gonzalo Montiel to dispatch the winning penalty. Had his initial miss stood, then Roma would still have needed to score twice to level it at 3-3, and rely on another Sevilla mishap to force sudden death.
