Spanish side Villarreal and Portuguese giants FC Porto put their Europa League-winning credentials on show with 5-1 wins apiece in the first leg of the quarter-finals last night.
Three Portuguese sides – Porto, Benfica and Sporting Braga – are among the last eight of Europe’s second tier club competition, boosting the chances of an all-Portuguese final at the Dublin Arena on May 18.
While 2004 Champions League winners Porto impressed with a 5-1 crushing of Spartak Moscow, Madrid-based Villarreal were just as impressive on their way to the exact same scoreline against hapless Dutch side FC Twente.
Another Dutch side, PSV Eindhoven, were on the wrong side of a 4-1 defeat in Lisbon against Benfica while Sporting Braga did well to come away with a 1-1 draw during their visit to Dynamo Kiev.
Porto, who at the weekend claimed the Portuguese league title under coach Andre Villas Boas, were inspired by Falcao who grabbed a hat-trick to take his tally in the competition to ten goals.
The Colombia international opened the scoring after 38 minutes as he met a fine cross from Alvaro Pereira with an equally good header at the back post.
Team-mate Hulk rattled the crossbar with a free-kick on the hour mark, before Silvestre Varela did score a second on 65 minutes when volleying home from the edge of the box.
Maicon then saw a header deflected into his own net by Kirill Kombarov, but the Spartak star immediately made amends with a neat finish at the other end. Porto, though, responded as Falcao scored twice in the final minutes with a neat finish from a Cristian Rodriguez cross and a header from a free-kick.
At the El Madrigal, defender Carlos Marchena put Villarreal into the lead with a header from a Borja Valero corner after 22 minutes, while Valero doubled their lead two minutes before half-time when racing onto a perfectly weighted pass from Santi Cazorla to produce a neat finish across the goalkeeper.
There was still time before the break for Nilmar to profit from a poor defensive header to nod home from close range.
Villarreal, currently fourth in La Liga, claimed a fourth goal through Italy forward Giuseppe Rossi as he curled home a lovely shot from the edge of the box for his ninth strike in the competition this season. The Italian then set up Nilmar for his second of the night as the Brazilian shifted his bodyweight and struck a fierce shot after 80 minutes, but FC Twente claimed a late goal through Marc Janko.
Benfica took control of the tie against PSV Eindhoven at Estadio da Luz.
Pablo Aimar struck after 37 minutes when latching onto a loose ball in the box and driving the ball home, and the Portuguese side claimed a second on the brink of half-time when Eduardo Salvio turned home a cross from Fabio Coentrao.
PSV’s woes continued in the second half when Salvio claimed his second of the game after 52 minutes when jinking away from two men in the box and finishing past Andreas Isaksson into the far corner. PSV responded with 12 minutes remaining when Zakaria Labyad took advantage of a mistake from Benfica goalkeeper Roberto Jimenez, but the final word went to Benfica as Javier Saviola struck deep into injury time.
Braga secured a useful away goal as they drew 1-1 at Dynamo Kiev. Andrey Yarmolenko struck after only six minutes when heading home from a cross from Oleg Gusev, but Kiev’s Ognjen Vukojevic gifted Braga an away goal when turning the ball into his own net following a corner from Hugo Viana.
Quarter-finals
Benfica vs PSV Eindhoven 4-1
Dynamo Kiev vs Braga 1-1
Porto vs Spartak Moscow 5-1
Villarreal vs FC Twente 5-1
Second legs: April 14.