Europa League SF line-up: Eintracht Frankfurt vs West Ham; Rangers vs RB Leipzig
A summary of Thursday’s second leg quarter-final matches.
IMAGE: Eintracht Frankfurt players celebrate after beating Barcelona and sealing a place in the semi-finals of the Europa League, at Camp Nou, Barcelona, Spain, on Thursday. Photograph: Albert Gea/Reuters
Underdogs Eintracht Frankfurt scored a major upset when they stunned hosts Barcelona 3-2 on Thursday thanks to two goals from winger Filip Kostic to march into the semi-finals of the Europa League.
Serbia international Kostic converted a fourth minute penalty and added another in the 67th with a low drive after Rafael Borre thundered in their second goal in the 36th for a 4-3 aggregate victory and a sensational win at the Camp Nou.
The Catalans, pre-match favourites after a first leg 1-1 draw in Germany last week, missed a couple of chances with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang but were far less threatening than their opponents who could have added to their tally.
They did score twice in stoppage time through a Sergio Busquets shot and Memphis Depay’s penalty after Frankfurt’s Evan N’Dicka was sent off but ran out of time to score a third goal that would have forced extra time.
Eintracht, who last reached the semi-final stage in 2019 and are unbeaten away from home this season in the Europa League, will now face West Ham, 4-1 aggregate winners over Lyon.
IMAGE: Filip Kostic celebrates after scoring Eintracht Frankfurt’s third goal. Photograph: Eric Alonso/Getty Images
Oliver Glasner’s team, currently in ninth place in the Bundesliga, got off to a perfect start when Eric Garcia brought down Jesper Lindstrom four minutes into the game and Kostic coolly sent Marc-Andre ter Stegen the wrong way from the spot.
Despite Barcelona taking control, it was the visitors who were more effective and scored again with Borre’s 25-metre missile that left Ter Stegen beaten.
Aubameyang should have done better three minutes after the restart when he failed to connect with an Ousmane Dembele cutback in front of goal.
Ter Stegen then temporarily kept them in the game when he stopped a shot from Lindstrom in the 58th but could do nothing when unmarked Kostic found himself with far too much space on the left and drilled in a shot past the keeper.
Barca’s two stoppage time goals came far too late for a team that had almost 70 percent possession but fewer (10) attempts on goal to their opponents (16).
West Ham bulldoze past Lyon
IMAGE: Declan Rice celebrates with teammate Craig Dawson after scoring West Ham United’s second goal Olympique Lyon. Photograph: Claudio Villa/Getty Images
West Ham United powered into their first major European semi-final since 1976 with an emphatic 3-0 win at Olympique Lyonnais to secure a 4-1 aggregate victory in the Europa League quarter-final.
The London side, who won the Cup Winners’ Cup in 1965, overpowered their French opponents and goals by Craig Dawson, Declan Rice and Jarrod Bowen set up a repeat of their 1976 semi-final against Eintracht Frankfurt, who knocked out Barcelona.
After a 1-1 draw at home, West Ham soaked up early pressure at the Groupama Stadium before hitting Lyon in ruthless fashion to lead 2-0 at half-time.
Bowen added the third goal soon after the interval and there was no way back for Lyon.
The hosts made a bold start, with Karl Toko Ekambi’s shot from inside the area crashing onto Alphonse Areola’s post after five minutes.
West Ham, however, were also dangerous and Pablo Fornals threatened with a half volley that was well blocked by Julian Pollersbeck.
IMAGE: Jarrod Bowen is congratulated by teammates after scoring West Ham United’s third goal. Photograph: Claudio Villa/Getty Images
Lyon continued to pile the pressure but the London side kept their composure and opened the scoring seven minutes from the break.
Dawson headed home at the near post from Fornals’s corner and they doubled the advantage six minutes later, making the most of Lyon’s shaky defending.
Rice collected a clearance from the Lyon defence just outside the area and beat Pollersbeck with a low shot to give Moyes’s team a comfortable half-time lead.
Lyon’s hopes were all but over three minutes into the second half after manager Peter Bosz had sent on Tete and Lucas Paqueta to boost his attacking line.
Fornals sent a diagonal pass to Bowen, who raced down the middle and fired a searing shot past Pollersbeck.
Moussa Dembele and Tete had chances for Lyon but lacked precision and West Ham comfortable closed out the win, only Lyon’s third home defeat in the competition in 24 games.
A modest 10th in the Ligue 1 standings, Lyon have little left to play for this season and their fans vented their frustration as a security cordon was deployed around their bench in the closing stages of the game.
Rangers beat nine-man Braga after extra-time
IMAGE: Kemar Roofe celebrates scoring Rangers’s third goal against Sporting Braga, at Ibrox Stadium in Glasgow, Scotland. Photograph: Ian MacNicol/Getty Images
Kemar Roofe struck in extra-time as Rangers reached the Europa League semi-finals by beating nine-man Braga 3-1 (3-2 on aggregate) to set up a meeting with RB Leipzig.
Rangers, trailing 1-0 from the first leg, got off to a flying start when full back James Tavernier put them ahead in the second minute, sliding in at the back post to connect with a ball from Joe Aribo.
Roofe had an effort disallowed for the Scottish side but a minute before the break, Braga’s Vitor Tormena was ruled to have brought down Kemar Roofe inside the box and French referee Francois Letexier sent off the defender and awarded a penalty.
Tavernier kept his cool and converted the spot-kick to make it 2-0 on the night and 2-1 on aggregate at the break.
Roofe had another effort ruled out, but Rangers paid the price for the lack of sharpness in front of goal seven minutes from the end of regulation time, when David Carmo rose to head in a corner.
In the 11th minute of the extra period, however, Roofe sealed the contest, slotting home a low cross from the excellent Aribo.
Braga had Iuri Medeiros sent off after he was booked for a late challenge on Leon Balogun and again for dissent.
Nkunku fires Leipzig past Atalanta
IMAGE: Christopher Nkunku scores RB Leipzig’s second goal against Atalanta from the penalty spot, at Stadio Atleti Azzurri, Bergamo, Italy. Photograph: Daniele Mascolo/Reuters
RB Leipzig’s in-form French forward Christopher Nkunku sent them through to the Europa League last four after his double earned the German side a 2-0 win at Atalanta on Thursday, sealing a 3-1 aggregate quarter-final success.
Following their draw in the first leg in Germany, Leipzig dominated in Bergamo, deservedly taking the lead when Nkunku slotted home from close range in the 18th minute.
Atalanta just could not get going, with Leipzig having chances to make the result more comfortable before Nkunku sealed the victory by winning and converting a late penalty to take his tally to 30 for the season in all competitions.
The visitors, who reached the Champions League semi-finals two seasons ago, booked a Europa League last-four meeting with Rangers.
Poor domestic form has seen Atalanta, who have been a regular fixture in the Champions League in recent seasons, drop to eighth in the Serie A standings.
Putting their recent struggles to one side, and having got a more than commendable draw from the first leg in Germany, they will have fancied their chances to get the job done on Thursday.
But other than full-back Davide Zappacosta’s early effort, they did not really test keeper Peter Gulacsi, with the majority of the goalmouth action taking place down the other end.
The strike that edged Leipzig ahead in the tie came from a swift counter, with Konrad Laimer racing down the left before cutting the ball back for Nkunku, who was never going to miss given the season he is having.
The 24-year-old could only find the side netting when through on goal after the interval, though, with Laimer unable to convert after an error from goalkeeper Juan Musso.
As Leipzig pressed forward in the search for an equaliser, Yussuf Poulsen threaded Nkunku through and he was brought down by Musso before hammering home the spot kick in the 87th.
That wrapped up a deserved win for Leipzig who continue to go from strength to strength under Tedesco, with seven away wins in a row and 13 games unbeaten in all competitions.
