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Milan clubs on course for semifinals

Villarreal's Juan Roman Riquelme, center, of Argentina tries to dribble between Inter Milan defenders Ivan Cordoba, left, of Colombia, and captain Javier Zanetti of Argentina during their Champions League first-leg quarterfinal soccer match at the San Siro stadium in Milan, Italy, on Wednesday. PHOTO: AP

Inter Milan and AC Milan came away from the first leg of the Champions League quarterfinals with positive results on Wednesday.

Inter rallied to beat visiting Villarreal 2-1, and AC Milan held host Lyon to a 0-0 draw. The second-leg matches are scheduled for Tuesday.

Obafemi Martins and Adriano scored a goal each for Inter, which last won the European Cup in 1965.

Martins scored the winning goal in the 54th minute after Dejan Stankovic controlled the ball nicely and sent a cross into the middle of the area that the Nigerian kicked into the net despite being off balance.

"We played very, very well the first 25 minutes of the second half and maybe we paid for that with some fatigue in the final quarter hour," Inter coach Robert Mancini said.

Adriano scored Inter's first goal in the seventh minute, and Stankovic again made the final pass. The Serbia-Montenegro international, filling in for Luis Figo on the right wing, sent a ball in front of the net that Villarreal defender Juan Manuel Pena failed to clear.

Manchester United's Ruud van Nistelrooy, center, celebrates scoring against West Ham United during their English Premiership soccer match at Old Trafford, Manchester, on Wednesday. PHOTO: AFP

In the first minute, Jose Mari Romero's shot was saved by Inter goalkeeper Francesco Toldo, but the rebound went to Diego Forlan, who scored the opening goal and gave the visitors an early lead.

Mancini had indicated he might not start Adriano due to the forward's poor form -- he entered with only three goals this year in all competitions, including one penalty. He had scored 10 between August and December.

Adriano did start, though, and was a force throughout the first half, barely missing headers in the 18th and 42nd and free kicks in the 35th and 45th.

"He played a good game, he tried hard at the beginning," Mancini said. "It was important that he scored a goal, I hope that helps him. But he can do better."

The away goal, however, would be enough for Villarreal to advance to the semifinals if it beats Inter 1-0 in Tuesday's second leg.

"We don't like to lose but there are still 90 minutes to play," Villarreal coach Manuel Pellegrini said.

Both Milan and Lyon had several chances to score at Stade Gerland -- Milan striker Andriy Shevchenko wasted three scoring chances and Lyon goalkeeper Gregory Coupet made several key saves.

"We showed them too much respect in the first 20 minutes," Lyon coach Gerard Houllier said. "So a 0-0 draw is not a bad result."

Lyon attacked strongly in the second half, but was thwarted by a Milan defense led by Alessandro Nesta and Kakha Kaladze.

With time running out, Tiago shot from 25 meters and Milan goalkeeper Dida had to be alert to tip it over the bar. Tiago, however, will miss the second leg after receiving a yellow card in the final seconds.

"Lyon is a very strong team with solid organization and we put them under a lot of pressure, but they responded well in the second half," Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti said. "I wouldn't say we have the advantage. I think it is still 50-50."

Ruud van Nistelrooy made an immediate impact on his return from a five-match exile, producing the only goal in Manchester United's 1-0 win over West Ham in front of a record Premiership crowd at Old Trafford on Wednesday.

The Dutch striker had been limited to just 51 minutes of action since the FA Cup defeat at Liverpool on Feb. 18 and his prolonged absence has brought inevitable talk of a summer move away from United.

But in front of a crowd of 69,522 he scored his 20th league goal on the stroke of half-time to earn Sir Alex Ferguson's outfit a seventh straight league win. Van Nistelrooy is now the Premiership's top scorer, having scored one goal more than Arsenal's Thierry Henry.

More importantly United, who were 18 points adrift three weeks ago, have now reduced Chelsea's lead at the English summit to nine points with seven games remaining.

Ferguson is refusing to give up the chase for the title until it is mathematically impossible. His side face Jose Mourinho's leaders on the penultimate weekend of the season and there is growing belief in the United camp that they can further reduce Chelsea's cushion before they visit Stamford Bridge on April 29.

They moved five points clear of third-placed Liverpool in the race to qualify automatically for next season's Champions League without the services of several key players.

There was no Gary Neville or Kieran Richardson while Mikael Silvestre, Ryan Giggs and Louis Saha were all relegated to the substitutes bench as Ferguson made five changes to the side which started the 3-0 win over Birmingham three days earlier.

Injury denied Neville his 501st outing for the club, the England defender's absence paving the way for Gerard Pique to make his first Premiership start.

Pique did not let himself down, the young Spaniard producing a mature performance beyond his teenage years. He forced West Ham's Shaka Hislop into his first serious save before playing a key role in the winning goal.

Van Nistelrooy's 149th goal in a United shirt was probably one of his sweetest as he released almost six weeks of pent-up frustration in one clinical moment.

This was not vintage United by any means as West Ham made life difficult for the hosts. Alan Pardew's side have enjoyed a successful first season back in the top-flight. Not only have they established themselves in the top-half of the table but the London club have also reached the semi-finals of the FA Cup.
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