Zaragoza make most of advantage

By Javier Bielsa at La Romareda

Real Zaragoza are through to the last 16 of the UEFA Cup for the fourth time in their history after beating Fenerbahçe SK on a bitterly cold evening at the Romareda.

Early opener
The 1994/95 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup winners went into tonight's match with a 1-0 lead from last week's first leg in Turkey. Sensing victory was within reach, the home side took just eleven minutes to open the scoring tonight when Luciano Galletti blasted in following an indirect free-kick.

Villa miss
David Villa was presented with a golden chance to double Zaragoza's tally, and finish the tie, shortly afterwards but goalkeeper Rüstu Reçber matched his effort, blocking superbly. Zaragoza defended their lead with ease, with Gabriel Milito and Alvaro thwarting the Turkish club's attack while maintaining the threat of hitting their opponents on the break.

Game over
Zaragoza held the visitors at bay for the rest of the game and Savio Bortolini's exquisite chip over Rüstu on 71 minutes confirmed their presence in the next round although Alex managed to pull a goal back for Fenerbaçhe with two minutes of normal time remaining.

Aggregate win
However, it was too late for Fenerbaçhe, with the Spanish side prevailing 3-1 on aggregate to secure a last 16 meeting with either compatriots Athletic Club Bilbao or FK Austria Wien. The first leg of that game - postponed until tonight because of snow - ended goalless, and Zaragoza will learn the identity of their opponents after the second leg is played on Sunday.