On Thursday, Liverpool stormed into the Europa League quarter-finals with a resounding 6-1 victory over Sparta Prague, securing an aggregate score of 11-2. Meanwhile, Bayer Leverkusen executed a dramatic comeback, seizing victory from the brink of defeat against Qarabag.
Liverpool quickly established a commanding 4-0 lead within the opening 14 minutes, courtesy of goals from Darwin Nunez, Bobby Clark, Mohamed Salah, and Cody Gakpo. Despite Serbian striker Veljko Birmancevic pulling one back for the visitors before halftime, Liverpool maintained their dominance throughout the match.
Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp expressed to TNT Sports, “It was up to us to determine the quality of the game, and we certainly enjoyed playing football, especially with some fantastic early goals. However, maintaining momentum became challenging thereafter.”
Meanwhile, Leverkusen clinched a 3-2 home victory over Qarabag, with Patrik Schick’s stoppage-time brace securing a 5-4 aggregate win and extending Leverkusen’s unbeaten streak to 37 games.
Despite Brighton & Hove Albion’s efforts to overcome a four-goal deficit against AS Roma, they could only manage a 1-0 home victory, with Danny Welbeck’s curler serving as a consolation in Roma’s 4-1 aggregate triumph.
Roma coach Daniele De Rossi expressed to Sky Sports Italia, “As I’ve mentioned before, facing Roma in this competition is a daunting prospect for any team. Regardless of the draw outcome, it will certainly be an exciting challenge.”
In another fixture, Atalanta fought hard to claim a 2-1 home victory over Sporting, as Ademola Lookman and Gianluca Scamacca orchestrated a comeback to secure a 3-2 aggregate win for the Italian side.
AC Milan advanced comfortably to the quarter-finals with a 3-1 victory over Slavia Prague, capitalizing on an early red card for Slavia’s Tomas Holes to secure a commanding 7-3 aggregate triumph.
West Ham United delivered a commanding performance, overwhelming Freiburg with a 5-0 victory, marking their largest win in a major European competition. They secured a spot in the last eight with a 5-1 aggregate score.
Despite a resilient effort from Villarreal, Olympique De Marseille advanced, clinching a 5-4 aggregate victory despite a 3-1 loss in the second leg.
In a historic fixture, Scotland’s Rangers suffered their first home defeat against Portuguese opposition in a UEFA competition, falling 1-0 to Benfica and exiting the tournament with a 3-2 aggregate loss.
The draws for the Europa League quarter-finals, semi-finals, and final are scheduled to take place at UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland on Friday.
