Arslan the architect as Besiktas stun Liverpool
HOLDERS SEVILLA THROUGH, UNDER-STRENGTH TOTTENHAM BEATEN
Tolgay Arslan was the hero as Besiktas stunned Liverpool to knock them out of the Europa League on penalties on Thursday. The Turks went into the game looking to claw back a 1-0 first leg deficit and Arslan scored the only goal of the game at the Ataturk Olympic Stadium. Then, following a goalless half hour of extra-time, he struck the decisive penalty before Dejan Lovren blazed his effort for Liverpool over the bar.
With a tough clash against Manchester City in the Premier League to come at Anfield tomorrow, it was the nightmare scenario for Liverpool manager Brendan Rogers. Not only did they play an energy-sapping 120 minutes of football, but also had the mentally draining penalty shoot-out and a morale-sagging defeat to contend with before making the long trip home from Istanbul.
Besiktas had levelled on aggregate in the 72nd minute with a stunning strike from Arslan, assisted by a deft backheel from Senegalese striker Demba Ba, who had been the scourge of Liverpool last season when his goal, following a slip from Steven Gerrard, set Chelsea on the way to a 2-0 win at Anfield that wiped out the Reds’ advantage over eventual champions City in the league.
With penalties level on 4-4 after all the takers had held their nerve, Arslan deftly slotted in. Lovren stepped up for Liverpool, but his effort went high, leaving Besiktas fans running onto the pitch in joy.
Title-holders Sevilla are also through to the last 16 following a 3-2 win at Borussia Moenchengladbach on Thursday.
Machin Vitolo scored a brace as the Spanish La Liga side earned a 4-2 aggregate win after winning the first leg 1-0 in Andalusia.
Fighting back
Borussia didn’t go quietly, though, twice fighting back from a goal down — Martin Stranzl’s own goal opened the scoring — through Granit Xhaka and Thorgan Hazard before Vitolo’s second ensured there would be no dramatic turnaround for the Germans.
Mauricio Pochettino’s gamble on resting several first-choice players, including star striker Harry Kane, backfired as Tottenham Hotspur crashed out against Fiorentina.
With one-eye on Sunday’s League Cup final against Chelsea, Pochettino had made seven changes to the team that started against West Ham last Sunday.
Veteran German forward Mario Gomez and Mohammad Salah scored the goals as La Viola won 2-0 on the night in Florence to progress 3-1 on aggregate.
But it could have been so different had it not been for a glaring miss by Kane’s replacement, Spaniard Roberto Soldado in the first half, before Fiorentina’s second half goals.
Soldado raced onto a lovely through ball from Erik Lamela, with Nacer Chadli joining him in escaping a faltering offside trap. Two-on-one against goalkeeper Neto, Soldado badly underhit his pass to Chadli, allowing the Fiorentina stopper to snatch the ball and prevent a goal.
Everton are the only British side remaining in the competition after completing a crushing victory over Young Boys.
Having hit a hat-trick in the 4-1 win in Switzerland last week, Belgium forward Romelu Lukaku scored two more in a 3-1 victory at Goodison Park that secured a 7-2 aggregate success.
Roma went through 3-2 on aggregate after a 2-1 win at Feyenoord in a match that was twice stopped by the referee — coming after the vandalism committed by Feyenoord fans in Rome last week, it was another blot on the game.