The second legs of the Europa League quarterfinals were played on Thursday, and some Nigerian players were in action for their teams, Soccernet.ng reports.
Four Super Eagles players were in action for their clubs, and while three qualified, one was sent packing in a dramatic encounter.
Nigerian forward Victor Boniface and Nathan Tella featured for Bayer Leverkusen in their 1-1 draw against West Ham. In the first leg that took place at Bay Arena last week, Boniface scored for Die Werkself to help them to a 2-0 win, so they just needed to avoid a loss to qualify for the semi-final.
After starting Boniface in their Europa League win on Sunday, coach Xabi Alonso started Boniface from the bench. However, Nathan Tella was in the starting XI.
West Ham dominated the first half, and got the lead pretty early through Michail Antonio. The first half was really open, with West Ham getting multiple chances to score, but they did not take them. Eventually, Boniface was introduced at half time. That change affected Bayer Leverkusen positively, and they eventually drew level through Jeremie Frimpong in the 89th minute.
It eventually ended that way, ensuring that Bayer Leverkusen preserved their unbeaten run and progressed 3-2 on aggregate.
Meanwhile, in the game between Liverpool and Atalanta at the Gewiss Stadium, the Italian side produced a solid performance to stifle Liverpool’s comeback. Atalanta took a 3-0 advantage from the first leg, but they still needed a strong second-leg performance against a Liverpool side that would be thirsty for blood. Coach Gian Pero Gasperini started Lookman from the bench for the fixture, but he introduced him into the game in the 79th minute, when the game was 1-0 in Liverpool’s favour.
Eventually, the game ended 1-0 in Liverpool’s favour, but 3-1 on aggregate in Atalanta’s favour. Hence, Lookman and his Atalanta side booked a spot in the semi-final.
Meanwhile, Samuel Chukwueze and his AC Milan were ousted from the Europa League after a 2-1 loss at Roma. The Rossoneri were a trailing by a goal from the first leg and needed to stage a comeback. However, coach Stefano Pioli opted to start Chukwueze from the bench.
Within 22 minutes, Roma were two goals up courtesy of Gianluca Mancini and Paulo Dybala. However, AC Milan got a lifeline in the 31st minute, when Zeki Celik was sent off.
Chukwueze was introduced at halftime, but despite their numerical advantage, the Rossoneri only pulled one back through Matteo Gabbia. It eventually ended 3-2 on aggregate, ending AC Milan’s run in Europe.