Defending champion AC Milan came back to beat Deportivo de La Coruna 4-1 Tuesday in the first leg of the Champions League quarterfinals, while FC Porto topped Lyon 2-0.
Milan, which leads the Serie A and is looking for its seventh Champions Cup title, got two goals from Kaka and one each from Andriy Shevchenko and Andrea Pirlo. Uruguay international Walter Pandiani scored for Deportivo.
Deco scored one goal for UEFA Cup champion Porto and set up Ricardo Carvalho for the second.
PHOTO: REUTERS
In Milan, Pandiani's away goal gave Deportivo the early edge in the 11th minute, but the hosts exploded for four goals around both sides of halftime.
Kaka netted in first-half injury time to put the Milan powerhouse on equal terms at the break, controlling a Cafu cross and blasting the ball into the corner of the goal.
Shevchenko, who leads the Serie A with 19 goals, danced past three defenders to slip an angled shot past Deportivo goalkeeper Jose Francisco Molina to score another in the 46th, and Kaka made it 3-1 in the 49th with an accurate shot from inside the penalty arc.
Pirlo then got in on the action, scoring a fourth in the 53rd from a long free kick over a five-man Deportivo wall.
"There was certainly a superiority on our part," Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti said. "We'll try to repeat it in the return leg. Everything is coming very easily for this team right now."
Also, Milan captain Paolo Maldini broke Dutchman Frank de Boer's record for most appearances in European club play with his 130th match.
"I'm really honored to be captain of this team," Maldini said. "I think the fans appreciated what they saw from Milan tonight.
"We gave up a goal on the first chance against us, but we stayed united and waited for our chances. We always play 90 minutes."
In the previous round, Deportivo knocked out 2003 Champions Cup runner-up Juventus as Pandiani scored the lone goal in the second leg in Turin.
In Porto, Deco put the Portuguese league leaders ahead in the 44th minute against French counterpart Lyon, deflecting a powerful volley from teammate Benni McCarthy past Lyon goalkeeper Gregory Coupet.
Carvalho headed in the insurance goal in the 71st minute from a Deco cross.
The Portuguese champion's slick passing ensured it dominated the midfield during the first half, but the visitor's quick-witted defending limited Porto's goalscoring chances.
Lyon's best chance came from midfielder Michael Essien in the 35th, but his shot flew just wide of the goal.
Porto, which is unbeaten in the Portuguese league this season, knocked out Manchester United in the last round.
The second leg matches are scheduled for April 7, with the winners facing each other in the semifinals. The final is set for May 26 in Gelsenkirchen, Germany.
On Wednesday, Chelsea hosts English rival Arsenal in an all-London quarterfinal at Stamford Bridge, while nine-time champion Real Madrid hosts Monaco.
Arsenal, which leads Chelsea in the English Premier League and is looking for a treble along with the FA Cup and Champions Cup, has not lost to Chelsea in 16 straight matches.
Madrid, which has been slumping since Ronaldo limped off the field with a muscle tear on March 6, will be bolstered by the Brazilian's return.
It will also be a return of sorts for Monaco striker Fernando Morientes, who is on loan from Madrid this season. The Spanish international has 17 goals in all competitions for Monaco, including five in the Champions League.
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