On Thursday, there were many interesting matches as part of the 1/8 football finals. It was already known that there would be no match between RB Leipzig and Spartak Moscow.
In Thursday’s first game, Sevilla put a lot of pressure on West Ham, but couldn’t find a way to beat Areola. This was not done until the 60th minute, when El Haddadi captured Acuna’s great free-kick. The English team was unable to create a threat under Sevilla’s goal, and the match ended with the result 1-0 for the Spanish team.
Much more happened in the game of Atalanta and Bayer Leverkusen. The first goal was scored in the 11th minute when Aranguiz finished the visitors’ action. Bayer, however, did not enjoy the lead for a long time. A dozen or so minutes later, Malinovsky was able to equalize, who found himself in a one-on-one situation after a perfect pass from Muriel. Two minutes later it was Muriel who took advantage of Malinovski’s excellent pass to put Atalanta in the lead.
Right after the break, Muriel increased his team’s lead, hitting again brilliantly from the edge of the penalty area after Malinovski’s pass. In the 63rd minute it was only 3: 2 for Atalanta, when Diaby defeated Musso with a clever strike. And although both teams attacked bravely in the end, the result has not changed until the last whistle.
VAR intervened twice, two penalties and a high victory for Rangers
The players of Crvena Zvezda can spit on the chin. As early as the 3rd minute they were able to take the lead when Katai hit the net, but VAR showed that he had been offside earlier. In response, Tavernier took the Rangers ahead a few minutes later using a penalty kick. Two minutes later Katai hit the net again and … VAR again showed that he was offside. Effect? Morelos took the lead of the Rangers.
Katai in the 24th minute had an excellent opportunity to reduce losses, but the Serb missed a penalty. The Rangers’ two-goal lead lasted until the break, which Balogun added right after the break. The score of 3: 0 remained until the end of the match.
Sporting Braga started the match brilliantly against AS Monaco. Already in the 3rd minute they took the lead thanks to Ruiz’s hit. And although the advantage of the hosts was huge, they were unable to score another goal. Monaco attacked after the break, but unsuccessfully, which the hosts took advantage of in the last minutes. In the 89th minute the goal was scored by Oliveira.
A surprise in the match of FC Barcelona
Barcelona’s meeting with Galatasaray ended as a surprise. After Barca’s high win against Napoli in the second leg of the 1/16 final, it seemed that the Turkish team should cause much less trouble for Xavi’s team. Barcelona’s advantage was huge, but the Spanish team failed to score and the game ended in a goalless draw.
The complete results of the matches of the 1/8 finals of the Europa League:
- Sevilla 1-0 West Ham
- Atalanta – Bayer Leverkusen 3-2
- Barcelona 0-0 Galatasaray
- Sporting Braga 2-0 Monaco
- Rangers – Crvena zvezda 3-0
- Betis Sevilla – Eintracht Frankfurt 1: 2
- FC Porto 0: 1 Olympique Lyon
The revenge clashes of the 1/8 finals of the Europa League in just a week, on Thursday, March 17.
Source: Sport
Tristin is an accomplished author and journalist, known for his in-depth and engaging writing on sports. He currently works as a writer at 247 News Agency, where he has established himself as a respected voice in the sports industry.
