PARIS: Danny Welbeck’s controversial penalty and a Gianluigi Donnarumma howler helped Arsenal beat AC Milan in the Europa League last 16 on Thursday 5-1 on aggregate, while Borussia Dortmund slumped to a shock exit at the hands of Salzburg.
The 3-1 win on the night eases some of the pressure on Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger, although his team’s 2-0 first-leg lead looked precarious when Hakan Calhanoglu fired Milan ahead.
But Gennaro Gattuso’s visitors were left incensed when Welbeck tumbled to the floor under little to no contact from Ricardo Rodriguez, with the spot-kick apparently given by the official on the byline.
The forward picked himself up to send Donnarumma the wrong way, and leave the infuriated Milan players demonstrating with the officials.
The seven-time European champions piled on the pressure in the second half, only for their hopes to be ended when Donnarumma allowed Granit Xhaka’s speculative 71st-minute strike to slip through his grasp and bobble into the net.
Welbeck nodded in his second late on as Arsenal reached their first European quarter-final since 2010, after seven consecutive Champions League last-16 defeats.
Borussia Dortmund bowed out of the tournament, though, with a tame goalless draw in Austria sealing their fate.
After falling to a shock 2-1 loss in the first leg at home, the German giants failed to break down their stubborn opponents, who will play in the last eight of a continental competition for the first time since losing the 1994 UEFA Cup final to Inter Milan.
CSKA Moscow stunned last season’s semifinalists Lyon, with a 3-2 victory in France ending the Ligue 1 club’s hopes of reaching May’s final at their own Groupama Stadium.
The Russian away side wiped out Lyon’s first-leg one-goal lead before half-time through Aleksandr Golovin, although Maxwel Cornet equalized for Bruno Genesio’s hosts.
But two goals in five minutes swung the tie in CSKA’s favor, as Ahmed Musa struck on the hour mark and Pontus Wernbloom made it 3-2 on aggregate.
Mariano Diaz gave Lyon hope, but CSKA held on to progress on away goals.
Earlier on Thursday, Fernando Torres scored twice as Atletico Madrid romped to a 5-1 Europa League thrashing of Lokomotiv Moscow in Russia to complete a resounding victory.
Diego Simeone’s side wrapped up an 8-1 win on aggregate to book a place in Friday’s quarter-final draw.
Elsewhere, Marseille continued their excellent run with a comfortable 5-2 aggregate victory over Athletic Bilbao to reach a European quarter-final for the first time since the 2011-12 Champions League.
But the match was marred as visiting fans attacked and injured two security guards in the city, just three weeks after an officer died during an unrelated bout of fan violence before Bilbao’s tie with Spartak Moscow.
A spokesman for the Ertzaintza, the Basque Country’s regional police, said a guard was injured in the neck with “a sharp object.”
Lazio joined Rudi Garcia’s Marseille in the last eight after a 2-0 win at Dynamo Kiev brushed off the disappointment of last week’s home draw.
A rare goal from Lucas Leiva gave the Serie A club a slender advantage and Stefan de Vrij’s late strike wrapped up a 4-2 triumph overall.
RB Leipzig edged into the quarter-finals as they continued their debut European season with a 3-2 aggregate win over Zenit St. Petersburg, despite out-of-form Germany striker Timo Werner missing a late penalty in Russia.
Rodrigo Battaglia sent Sporting Lisbon into the quarters for the first time in six years as the Argentinian struck in extra time to see off a spirited Viktoria Plzen in the Czech Republic.
Welbeck double helps Arsenal past Milan, Dortmund dumped out
Welbeck double helps Arsenal past Milan, Dortmund dumped out
Al-Ahli topple Al-Ittihad in Sea Derby as late Al-Hilal rout sees off Al-Najma
- Al-Ahli defeat rivals Al-Ittihad 3-1 in thrilling derby at Al-Inma Stadium
- Al-Hilal struggle against Al-Najma but three goals in final 10 minutes leads them to 4-0 victory
JEDDAH: The Saudi Pro League title race showed no signs of slowing on Friday as Al-Ahli and Al-Hilal played simultaneously in search of staying within touching distance of league leaders Al-Nassr, who play on Saturday.
While Al-Hilal took on Al-Najma, Al-Ahli’s weekend was about more than just three points. Waiting for them at Al-Inma Stadium were city rivals and defending champions Al-Ittihad.
For Al-Ittihad, this fixture was largely about pride. Their title defence has all but come to an end, with 19 points separating them and the summit heading into the Sea Derby.
Yet as shown in their 1-1 draw weeks prior against Al-Hilal while playing with a man down, Al-Ittihad tend to rise to the occasion in the bigger games regardless of their position on the table.
Al-Ahli did take control of proceedings through their high press, but the Tigers responded with confidence and urgency. A difficult season does not mean allowing your archrivals to take three points with ease, after all.
Matthias Jaissle, however, has converted Al-Ahli into one of the league’s most cohesive sides over the past three years. Some would even argue that despite never holding first place this season, they have indeed been the best team in the league.
That showed in the 23rd minute. Galeno was released into the space behind Muhannad Al-Shanqiti before delivering a low cross to Ivan Toney, who continued his prolific campaign with his 24th goal of the season.
Calls for a VAR review followed, as Houssem Aouar was brought down in the box prior to the goal. Referee Nikola Dabanovic ruled there was no infringement, and Al-Ahli led 1-0.
Al-Ittihad emerged after the interval with renewed vigour. Steven Bergwijn calmly held Zakaria Hawsawi on the edge of the box, tempting him into a foul that Dabanovic judged worthy of a penalty.
Fabinho stepped up and powered the ball past Edouard Mendy to equalise for The Tigers in the 51st minute. For a brief moment, there was hope. If Al-Ittihad could derail Al-Ahli’s title push and go on to win the AFC Champions League Elite later this season, this match could yet prove significant.
Those hopes lasted less than 10 minutes. Al-Ahli’s trademark pass into the channel released Galeno once again, and his low cross rolled across the face of goal to Riyad Mahrez.
The Algerian — who had repeatedly troubled the defence with his movement inside — made no mistake this time, restoring the hosts’ lead in the 59th minute.
Al-Ittihad came close on several occasions, but the match rarely felt out of Al-Ahli’s control for long. Their relentless press ultimately sealed the result when substitute Feras Al-Brikan disposessed Predrag Rajkovic and slotted home into an open net in the 84th minute.
Al-Hilal, meanwhile, endured a far more difficult night against bottom-placed Al-Najma. A glance at the scoreline suggests total dominance for Al-Hilal, but the reality was quite different.
Make no mistake, Al-Hilal created several openings, yet repeatedly lacked the decisive final touch. Salem Al-Dawsari’s decision to square the ball to Karim Benzema while through on goal summed up their struggles in front of the net.
It wasn’t until Nasser Al-Haleel received a red card in the 39th minute for pulling down Al-Dawsari as the last defender that Al-Hilal began to shift gears.
Four minutes later, Al-Dawsari made amends for his earlier mistake by setting up Benzema for first goal at Kingdom Arena.
Even with the numerical advantage, Al-Hilal produced one of their least convincing performances of the season. Fortunately for them, Al-Najma offered little attacking threat, registering just one shot across the 90 minutes.
They eventually collapsed in the final 10 minutes, as Benzema, Malcom and Sergej Milinkovic-Savic all scored within a six-minute spell, lifting Al-Hilal’s goal difference to +43 — a vital factor in a tital race where Al-Nassr sit on +46.
The victories move Al-Ahli and Al-Hilal to 62 and 61 points respectively, with Al-Nassr sandwiched between them on 61 ahead of their clash against NEOM.
Elsewhere, Al-Taawoun defeated Al-Fateh 3-2 in a match that saw the visitors mount a late rally but ultimately fall short of completing the comeback. Meanwhile, Greek duo Giorgos Masouras and Kostas Fortounis both found the net as Al-Khaleej secured a 2-1 victory over Al-Hazem.
Saudi Pro League action resumes on Saturday, with four clashes kicking off at 10:00pm. Al-Ettifaq host Al-Shabab, Al-Kholood take on Al-Qadsiah, Al-Okhdood welcome Al-Fayha, and Al-Nassr aim to maintain their spot at the top against NEOM.
