AC Milan needed a late goal from Filippo Inzaghi to reach the semifinals of the Champions league on Tuesday.
Inter Milan needed a goal from anyone.
Inzaghi knocked in the deciding goal in the 88th minute to help Milan beat Lyon 3-1 and advance 3-1 on aggregate, the third time in four years it has reached the semifinals.
PHOTO: AFP
"With the talent we have in attack, we always believe we have a chance," Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti said. "I agree we didn't play a great game, but we had a small advantage playing at home and I think that helped."
Inter was eliminated on away goals after losing to Villarreal 1-0. The two-leg series finished 2-2 on aggregate.
In the semifinals, Milan will face either Benfica or FC Barcelona. Barcelona was to host Benfica yesterday after a 0-0 draw in the first leg last week.
PHOTO: AP
Villarreal will play either Italian champion Juventus or Arsenal. The English team heads to Turin leading 2-0 from the first leg.
"This isn't a miracle or a dream. It's based on hard work and belief," Villarreal coach Manuel Pellegrini said.
Inzaghi also scored the first goal of the match at the San Siro in the 25th minute, heading in a perfect cross from Clarence Seedorf.
"He has a lot of experience in games like these," Ancelotti said. "He's always able to find the needed motivation, from the first to the last minute."
Mahamadou Diarra equalized for Lyon in the 31st minute, heading in a deflection off a teammate after Juninho's free kick, and it looked as if the four-time French league champions were going to advance.
With only two minutes to go, however, Andriy Shevchenko took a shot that Lyon goalkeeper Gregory Coupet tipped. The ball rolled off Coupet's fingers and hit the far post, then rolled across the goal line and hit the near post.
Inzaghi was in the middle and poked the ball into the net.
"The key was our heart, determination," Inzaghi said. "We were a bit nervous in the second half because minutes were passing and we were close to elimination. At one moment we thought we were out. Then I had some good luck on that rebound from the post."
Shevchenko added a third goal in injury time, giving the Shevchenko-Inzaghi duo 108 goals in European competition -- the most in history.
Shevchenko has scored a competition-best nine this season, and he's tied with former Benfica striker Eusebio with 56 goals for his career in Europe -- second all-time behind Bayern Munich's Gerd Mueller.
Inzaghi now has four goals in five Champions League matches this season, and 52 in 80 career European matches.
"I can't be too disappointed because we played well, maybe better than our opponent," Lyon coach Gerard Houllier said. "It all happened in the last few minutes. We had the win in our pocket."
Villarreal got its winning goal from Rodolfo Arruabarrena in the 58th minute. The defender headed a free kick from Juan Roman Riquelme past Inter goalkeeper Francesco Toldo.
"I was convinced we would beat Inter," Pellegrini said. "The first half was balanced but in the second perhaps we deserved more than one goal."
Riquelme, one of 14 South Americans to start the match, shook off a series of attempted tackles before sending the ball over the crossbar in the 34th.
Villarreal, which is in its seventh season in the Spanish first division, is the sixth team from the country to reach the semifinals of Europe's top club competition. Real Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, Deportivo La Coruna and Atletico Madrid are the others.
Jiri Jarosik scored in the 36th minute for Birmingham to beat Bolton 1-0 and move out of the relegation zone in the English Premier League on Tuesday.
The Czech midfielder, who is on loan from Chelsea, evaded Jay-Jay Okocha to score with a left-footed shot past goalkeeper Jussi Jaaskelainen.
Birmingham moved up two places to 17th in the standings with 28 points, while Bolton stayed seventh with 48.
League leader Chelsea has 79 points, followed by Manchester United with 72 and Liverpool with 67. Sunderland is last with 11 points, while 19th-place Portsmouth and No. 18 West Bromwich Albion both have 27.
FA releases coach shortlist
The English Football Association (FA) have drawn up a shortlist of up to four names as they continue their search for a successor to Sven-Goran Eriksson as England coach, British media reported yesterday.
According to the BBC, all four potential candidates are British and include former Celtic boss Martin O'Neill, Middlesbrough's Steve McClaren, Bolton coach Sam Allardyce and Alan Curbishley of Charlton.
This would appear to rule out foreign coaches like PSV Eindhoven boss Guus Hiddink, Fabio Capello of Juventus and Portugal coach Luiz Felipe Scolari.
The FA will apparently discuss the interview process yesterday.
Eriksson has already agreed to step down from the post after this summer's World Cup finals in Germany, which kick off on June 9, even though his original contract was due to run until 2008.
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