SPORTING LISBON 2-1 ATHLETIC BILBAO

Sporting Lisbon have given themselves a key advantage going into their Europa League semi-final second leg with Athletic Bilbao, after the Portugese side came from behind against their Spanish opponents, who hold a key away goal.

The first goal of the game came from Athletic, as Jon Aurtenetxe struck with a simple close-range shot (54′). While Bilbao had the chance to make it 2-0 when they hit the post, it was Sporting instead who began a fightback, as Aurtenetxe’s counterpart left-back Emiliano Insua flew in at the edge of the box with a powerful low header (76′), shortly before Diego Capel launched a strike from outside the penalty area that drilled into the back of the net (80′), and despite further efforts late on, could not improve on a 2-1 scoreline.

Capel later said of the win: “We gave a terrific performance against a great rival. It would have been unjust if we had lost that game. We played with a great attitude, tactically, defended well and then created lots of chances. But football can be like that. In the end we have got a great result against a side with real European pedigree. In fact it’s probably a tighter result than we merited, because we deserved another goal.”

Meanwhile, the other semi-final saw 2009-10 Europa League winners Atletico Madrid win 4-2 at home to Valencia, with the away side’s two goals in the injury time of each half giving them a better chance of launching a comeback. Next week will see the conclusion of these ties, but could there be the possibility of four Spanish sides lamenting defeat across the Champions League and Europa League by Thursday?

CHELSEA 1-0 BARCELONA

Chelsea have taken the initiative in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final first leg against FC Barcelona, despite resounding attacking dominance from the Spanish side.

While Chelsea only saw 4 shots throughout the game (in comparison to their opponent’s 19), their sole shot that was on target found the back of the net, a low and weak effort from Didier Drogba on the stroke of half-time. The competition holders had several chances either side of going behind, and despite a large number of near-misses including hitting the post and having shots cleared off the line (along with 72% of possession during the game), it was not to be at Stamford Bridge, and Barcelona will now have to win their home leg to keep alive their chances of being the first-ever club to retain the UEFA Champions League trophy.

Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola later said of his team’s futile efforts: “Congratulations to Chelsea. We had more possession but that doesn’t mean anything; that doesn’t win games. They outjumped us tonight and were physically stronger. We played well, created 24 chances and still lost – what can you do? We need to create 24 more chances at home in the return and hope that some go in. We need to find more ways of creating danger.”

In the meantime, current scores show that the hotly-anticipated ‘El Clasico final’ between Barcelona and Real Madrid could see the exact opposite happen in terms of finalists, as Bayern Munich also lead their Spanish opponents, with Mario Gomez taking a late winner to give Bayern a 2-1 advantage from the Allianz Arena, knowing that just avoiding defeat next week will be enough to give them a shot at winning the trophy in their own stadium. Could it be Chelsea involved on 19 May as well as a ‘home’ team?

Coventry

With today (18 March) marking 100 days to go until the Olympic Games, it seems a good time to make note of something that will begin 2 days before that – the men’s and women’s football tournaments.

While the line-up for the 12-team womens event is complete, the 16-team men’s version still has one more slot to be decided (an Inter-Continental Play-Off between Senegal and Oman on 23 April (St George’s Day)), which will be played in Coventry (England), the location for an event in the beginning of March that saw the official tournament matchball, the Adidas Albert, officially unveiled by potential ‘Team GB’ / England star Tom Cleverley, and Robert Ashcroft, a fan who won a contest to name the ball.

Named after a cockney rhyming slang term (Albert Hall = Ball), the official matchball version of the Adidas Albert is launched in official 2012 Olympic Games colours (including white, blue, and pink), and takes on the structure of the Adidas Tango 12 (the official matchball of UEFA Euro 2012).

With much of the tournament structure now fully planned, how many times will the Adidas Albert hit the back of the net in England, Wales, and Scotland later on this summer?

ARSENAL 1-2 WIGAN ATHLETIC

Wigan have taken a crucial step in their battle to avoid relegation from the Barclays Premier League, as they hit early on to beat Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium.

Wigan, who were noted before the game as having only scored once in the opening 20 minutes of a Premier League fixture this season, saw it happen twice early on through Franco di Santo (7′) and Jordi Gomez (8′). While Thomas Vermaelen (21′) pegged one back for the Gunners, it would not be enough to secure any form of positive result for the home side.

Arsenal coach Arsene Wenger said of the faults in his team’s performance: “We should have been ahead at half-time but in the second half we did not create a lot because we were not patient enough. In the second half we lost our cohesion, we were doing too much individually, the passing wasn’t quick enough to be dangerous. We had too many strikers, we were exposed a bit but we weren’t sharp enough. Wigan defended well and I believe we became a bit impatient in the second half and lost our way. They defended well in the first half and we had five or six chances but in the second half we dropped our level physically and collectively.”

The win moves the Latics onto 34 points for the season, in 16th place and 5 points above the relegation zone. Roberto Martinez will be pleased with a run of form that has seen Wigan win 4 of their last 5 Premier League games (the only blip (amongst wins over Liverpool, Stoke, Manchester United, and Arsenal) being an unfortunate defeat to Chelsea). Will this turnaround be the critical factor in keeping the north-west side in the top flight?

MARSEILLE 1-0 LYON

Marseille have won the Coupe de la Ligue for the third season in a row, after overcoming the odds to defeat Lyon and claim the trophy.

Having not won a game in their previous 11 attempts (including 10 defeats in all competitions), Marseille were classed as rank underdogs by pundits despite winning the trophy in 2010 and 2011, though the match turned out to be a fairly drab affair for both sides, with no goals and little chances in the regular 90 minutes. Late in the first half of extra-time, the breakthrough came for Marseille, with substitute Brandao smashing the ball low through Hugo Lloris’ legs from a tight angle (105′).

Lyon did not provide too much in the way of a comeback, though, and a late red card for Dejan Lovren was additional insult added to what turned out to be a defeat, with Steve Mandanda lifting the trophy for the south coast club, at the one of the most opportune times for them to end their winless streak, and to secure a passage into the UEFA Europa League for next season.

For Lyon, their chances to get into European competition are a lot brighter, with the team currently sitting 4th in Ligue 1, along with a Coupe de France Final 2 weeks from now against Quevilly (who eliminated Marseille en-route to the final). Will Lyon be back on the continental stage, or will they end up having a ‘Marseille’ run of form?

LIVERPOOL 2-1 EVERTON

Liverpool have set up an FA Cup final showdown with Chelsea, following their 2-1 semi-final win late on against Merseyside rivals Everton at Wembley Stadium on Saturday.

Everton took the lead in the first-half when Jamie Carragher’s poor and confused clearance reached the feet of Nikica Jelavic for a fairly straightforward goal (24′), though it seemed to spark an improved performance from the Reds, and in the second half, Everton seemed to concede a similar effort, when a weak backpass from Sylvain Distan was latched onto by Luis Suarez, who made no mistake with a 1-on-1 situation (62′). Liverpool were not finished by then, though, as late into the game, Andy Carroll flicked in a header from a Craig Bellamy free-kick (87′) to silence his critics and put his club into the final.

The following day, Chelsea joined them in clearing their diary date of 5 May, with a resounding 5-1 win over Tottenham Hotspur, thanks in key part to a second ‘goal’ that did not cross the line. The two were due to meet at 12:45 at Anfield on the same day in a Premier League encounter, although the chances of that happening are probably now smaller than 1%, as the two instead face off around 4 1/2 hours later in search of a bigger prize…

CELTIC 1-2 HEARTS

Heart of Midlothian have set up an intriguing Scottish Cup Final on 19 May, as they prepare to face city rivals Hibernian at Hampden Park, after a surprise defeat of Celtic at the same venue in this weekend’s semi-final.

After a goal-less first half, Rudi Skacel got the Edinburgh club into the lead with a simple shot thumped into the net (47′). Celtic pressed for an equaliser having been the more attacking side throughout the game, and got it late on with a close-range header from Gary Hooper (87′), and while it seemed as though extra-time or even a Celtic win could be looming based on momentum, it swung in the opposite direction when Hearts were awarded a penalty for a dubious Celtic handball.

Former Celtic player Craig Beattie stepped up, and subsequently went on a shirtless lap of honour round the pitch after converting what would be the winning goal (90+1′), despite a late Celtic claim for a penalty under similar circumstances.

The win, coupled with Hibernian’s late 2-1 defeat of Aberdeen the day before, now sees an all-capital final in the Scottish Cup for the first time since the 1895-96 season, with fans from both the maroon and green sides of Edinburgh set to travel down to Glasgow for a fairly unique occasion. Whose victory will be made all the sweeter with a win over their biggest rivals?

RED BULL SALZBURG 4-1 RED BULL SALZBURG JUNIORS

Red Bull Salzburg are through to the semi-finals of the Austrian Cup (OFB-Cup) after a 4-1 quarter-final win at home, though it should be noted that the young club would have had some sort of presence in the next round anyway, regardless of outcome, as their defeated opponents were the ‘Red Bull Salzburg Juniors’, a secondary team of the Austrian Bundesliga leaders who are playing in Austria’s 3rd-tier.

For a while in the match, it was shaping up to see Red Bull Salzburg receiving an upset from some of their own ‘backups’, as Daniel Krenn scored an opener for the Juniors (37′) in front of a small crowd of little over 1,000 at the Red Bull Arena. They would witness a fightback from their main team, though, as efforts from Soriano (43′), Ibrahim Segyaka (75′), Georg Teigl (77′), and Soriano again (83′) gave Red Bull Salzburg a 4-1 win, and with it progression to the semi-finals.

In that round, they will play one of Austria Wien, SV Ried, or TSV Hartberg in early May to decide on a place in the final. At least they won’t face anyone wearing the same badge as them now…

US QUEVILLY 2-1 RENNES

US Quevilly are set to continue their Coupe de France journey on the biggest stage, as they now face a final showdown with Lyon in 16 days’ time at the Stade de France, after defeating top-tier side Rennes in their semi-final meeting last night.

It was a poor start to the match for the 3rd-tier side, as Julien Feret scored an opener for the Ligue 1 club (8′). However, it seemed to only be a partial point of Rennes raising their game for the occasion, as the second half witnessed a stronger performance from Quevilly with an equaliser from Karim Herouat (62′), and a last-second winner from Anthony Laup (90+3′).

The victory ensures that Quevilly (from the small northern town of Le Petit-Quevilly) will go at least one better than their semi-final elimination from the 2009-10 season, while making only their second appearance at the showpiece event (the only other occasion being in 1926-27). The place in the final on its own could even guarantee Quevilly a spot in the UEFA Europa League next season, as scheduled opponents Lyon currently reside in 4th place in the Ligue 1 table, which (should they stay there) would get them into continental competition regardless of what happens in the Coupe de France (or the Coupe de la Ligue).

In other news, Ligue 1 surprise package Montpellier have now opened up a 3-point lead over PSG in the table following a 3-1 win over Marseille. In the German Bundesliga, Borussia Dortmund extended their lead to 6 points with a 1-0 win against 2nd-place Bayern Munich, Juventus went back to the top of Italy’s Serie A with a late Alessandro Del Piero-inspired 2-1 win over Lazio, while in England, Premier League leaders Manchester United were surprised with a 1-0 defeat away to relegation battlers Wigan Athletic.

The story of the night in European club football, though, is arguably Quevilly’s, as progressing from the 5th round of the competition, they are now set to play in this season’s 14th & last, having eliminated big names Marseille and Rennes in the quarter-finals onwards. Will Lyon become the third top-flight giant killed by Quevilly?

GAZALEC AJACCO 0-4 LYON

Lyon have made it to the final of this season’s Coupe de France, after a Semi-Final triumph over Corsican side Gazalec Ajacco, with the 3rd-tier side ending their impressive cup run (which included defeats of Toulouse and current Ligue 1 leaders Montpellier) just one hurdle from the showpiece event.

Despite holding off one of the French league’s highest-profile clubs for almost an hour, Gazalec then fell to an average of a goal every 10 minutes, with Lacazette (59′), Lisandro Lopes (73′), Grenier (80′), and Gomis (90′), all contributing to a 4-0 win for Lyon.

The result now means that Remi Garde’s side will play in the final on 28 April at the Coupe de France (just a fortnight after playing the Coupe de la Ligue final at the same venue against Marseille (this Saturday evening)), with their opponents to be decided tonight. Will Gazalec’s fellow 3rd-tier side US Quevilly fly the proverbial flag for ‘Championnat National’, or will Brittany-based Ligue 1 club Rennes make it an all top-flight final?