SOCCER - EUROPA LEAGUE
2012/13
Last 32, 2nd Leg - Zenit St.Petersburg (1) @ (3) Liverpool - Despite vociferous home support, Liverpool narrowly missed out on a spot in the last 16 on the "away goals rule". Zenit led 2-0 after the 1st leg and increased their lead to 3-0 after 20 minutes of the 2nd Leg. But Liverpool roared back to score 3 unanswered goals to level the aggregate score 3-3 with 30 minutes left in the game. But Zenit held firm and saw out the game to take the win. The Zenit goal came from Hulk. The Liverpool goals came from Luis Suarez (2) and Joe Allen. The game proved to be the 150th and final European game for Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher (10, 2 Discs, ITV - Tyldesley/Townsend, PAL)
Last 16, 1st Leg - Inter Milan (0) @ (3) Tottenham Hotspur - Spurs put one foot into the Quarter Finals with a comfortable win at White Hart Lane. Spurs led 2-0 at the half with goals from Gareth Bale and Gylfi Sigurdsson and made the result safe with a 2nd half goal from Jan Vertonghen. Spurs out-shot Inter Milan 12-2 (10, 2 Discs, ITV - Drury/Beglin, PAL)
Last 16, 2nd Leg - Tottenham Hotspur (1) @ (4) Inter Milan - On a sensational night at the San Siro, Inter Milan almost overturned a 3-0 deficit from the 1st leg but ending up getting knocked out on the "Away Goals" rule. Inter Milan goals from Antonio Cassano, Rodrigo Palacio and an own-goal from William Gallas forced the game into extra-time, with Inter looking favourites to go through. But Emmanuel Adebayor put Spurs ahead for good 6 minutes into extra-time and despite a late goal from Ricardo Alvarez, Spurs held on to progress to the Quarter Finals. Spurs were missing Gareth Bale to suspension (10, 2 Discs, ITV - Drury/Beglin, PAL)
Quarter Final, 2nd Leg - Tottenham Hotspur (2) @ (2) FC Basel - On a rainy night in Switzerland, FC Basel won through to their 1st ever European Trophy Semi-Final with a penalty shootout win over Spurs. Both teams were level at 2-2 after the 1st leg and when the 2nd leg also finished 2-2, both teams went to a penalty shootout. FC Basel held their nerve to convert all their kicks and took the win. The Basel goals came from Mohamed Salah and Aleksandar Dragovic while the Spurs goals came from Clint Dempey (2). Spurs were missing Gareth Bale, Aaron Lennon and William Gallas to injury (10, 2 Discs, ITV - Drury/Beglin, PAL)
Semi-Final, 2nd Leg - FC Basel (1) @ (3) Chelsea - Chelsea booked a spot in their 1st Europa League Final with a strong 2nd half comeback at the Bridge. Basel led 1-0 at the half thanks to a goal from Mohamed Saleh but Chelsea sealed the win with 3 goals in 9 minutes at the start of the 2nd half. The goals came from Fernando Torres, Victor Moses and a great goal from David Luiz (10, 2 Discs, ITV - Tyldesley/Townsend, PAL)
Final - Benfica (1) v (2) Chelsea - 1 year after claiming the Champions League trophy, Chelsea claimed the Europa League trophy in dramatic fashion in the Amsterdam Arena. Benfica dominated the 1st half, but Chelsea scored first in the 2nd half through Fernando Torres. Benfica answered within 8 minutes through a penalty from Oscar Cardozo but Chelsea claimed the cup with the winning goal deep in injury time from Branislav Ivanovic (10, 2 Discs, ITV - Tyldesley/Townsend, PAL)