Esteban Cambiasso fired Inter to a 2-1 first-leg victory over Chelsea in the Champions League on Wednesday, while a 30m drive by Mark Gonzalez salvaged a 1-1 draw for CSKA Moscow against Sevilla.
In a high quality and evenly contested game at San Siro, Inter coach Jose Mourinho gained an advantage over the Premier League team he led to back-to-back English titles in 2005 and 2006.
“There were no surprises for me, no surprises from Chelsea — just two teams playing with the quality they have,” Mourinho said.
PHOTO: AFP
“Chelsea can play better, Inter can play better, but this is the reality of the Champions League. Sometimes it’s difficult to express your qualities. This is a knockout, so you know any mistake can cost you qualification,” he said.
Chelsea, managed by former AC Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti, only need to win the second leg 1-0 at Stamford Bridge on March 16 to reach the quarter-finals on away goals.
Ancelotti fielded an attacking formation of three strikers but his side trailed after only three minutes.
Diego Milito collected a ball from Samuel Eto’o and easily sidestepped Chelsea captain John Terry before firing past goalkeeper Petr Cech at his near post.
After Chelsea striker Didier Drogba’s free kick from 25m hit the Inter bar, the visitors equalized in the 51st minute.
Salomon Kalou scored with a 22m shot inside the far post after a determined run by right back Branislav Ivanovic had opened up the defense.
But Chelsea was level for only four minutes. Cambiasso hit a shot that was blocked and followed up with a low, left-footer that flew inside the far post.
Chelsea lost Cech to a calf muscle injury in the 60th and replaced him with Hilario.
At Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow, Sevilla went ahead in the 25th minute when an unmarked Alvaro Negredo tapped the ball into an empty net from a cross by Jesus Navas. But CSKA earned the draw when Gonzalez fired in a left-footed shot in the 66th minute.
“It would have been better to win but this can be considered a good result,” Sevilla coach Manolo Jimenez said. “We needed to make short passes because of the artificial pitch. We got a draw and we will decide everything in the second leg.”
■FA CUP
AP, LONDON
Ryan Shawcross and Tuncay Sanli scored extra-time goals as Stoke beat Manchester City 3-1 in an FA Cup fifth-round replay on Wednesday to reach the quarter-finals.
While Tottenham and Aston Villa made it safely into the last eight with replay victories, big-spending City’s only realistic target now is finishing fourth in the Premier League, which would at least mean qualification for next season’s Champions League.
Stoke now face Chelsea in the last eight of soccer’s oldest club competition.
In a dramatic game at the Britannia Stadium, Dave Kitson gave Stoke a 79th-minute lead but Craig Bellamy leveled for City two minutes later.
City striker Emmanuel Adebayor was sent off before the game went into extra time and Shawcross regained the lead for Stoke in the 95th minute. Tuncay sealed the win for Stoke in the 99th minute when he went on a run before firing in the third.
Roman Pavlyuchenko scored twice as eight-time FA Cup winner Tottenham thrashed Bolton 4-0 to reach the last eight, where they will visit Fulham.
Bolton aided Tottenham’s cause by scoring two own goals, with goalkeeper Jussi Jaaskelainen and defender Andy O’Brien finding their own net.
Two penalties by John Carew in the last nine minutes gave Villa a 3-1 victory over cash-strapped Crystal Palace in another replay.
Gabriel Agbonlahor headed Villa in front before a penalty by Darren Ambrose pulled Palace back level at Villa Park.
Villa will next visit second-tier Reading, who reached the quarter-finals for the first time since 1927 by winning 3-2 after extra time at West Bromwich Albion.
Reading were trailing 2-1 in injury time after 90 minutes before Brian Howard equalized and Gylfi Sigurdsson scored the winner in the fifth minute of extra time.
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