Juventus, Porto and Benfica head last-eight lineup
Thursday, March 20, 2014
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Three-time winners Juventus were among the teams to book their place in Friday's UEFA Europa League quarter-final draw, streamed live on UEFA.com from 13.00CET.
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The lineup is complete for Friday's UEFA Europa League quarter-final draw, streamed live on UEFA.com from 13.00CET.
First to win their round of 16 tie were 1980/81 UEFA Cup runners-up AZ Alkmaar, who were 1-0 aggregate victors over FC Anji Makhachkala following a goalless draw in Russia. While it was far more comfortable for Valencia CF – 4-0 winners overall against PFC Ludogorets Razgrad – Spanish Liga counterparts Sevilla FC required extra time and penalties to edge out city rivals Real Betis Balompié.
Elsewhere, in a repeat of the 1990 UEFA Cup final, Juventus overcame ACF Fiorentina thanks to Andrea Pirlo's superb clincher in Florence. SL Benfica and Olympique Lyonnais, meanwhile, appeared to have done the hard part last week; however, they were made to sweat by Tottenham Hotspur FC and FC Viktoria Plzeň respectively, though both ultimately progressed.
FC Porto also had to work for their place in the last eight. Leading 1-0 going into Thursday's trip to SSC Napoli, they surrendered their advantage before decisive second-half strikes from Goran Pandev and Ricardo Quaresma. Finally, last season's semi-finalists FC Basel 1893 ousted hosts FC Salzburg with a 2-1 victory on the night and on aggregate.
At this stage of the competition, no teams are seeded and clubs from the same association can be pitted against each other. The first side drawn in each tie will play the first leg at home, on 3 April, with the return matches a week later. Our live DrawCentre will bring you full build-up and reaction from Nyon, with the draw itself also streamed live on UEFA.com.
The UEFA Europa League semi-final draw will be made on Friday 11 April, with ties taking place on 24 April and 1 May. This year's final will be held at Juventus Stadium on Wednesday 14 May.
UEFA Europa League/UEFA Cup pedigree
As well as three-time winners Juventus (1976/77, 1989/90, 1992/93), there are three other former champions in the last-eight lineup. Porto (2002/03, 2010/11) and Sevilla (2005/06, 2006/07) have both lifted the trophy twice, while Valencia also had a taste of success in 2003/04.
