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Germany vs. Ukraine in UEFA Cup semifinals
It's down to Ukraine vs. Germany for the UEFA Cup.
Shakhtar Donetsk and Dynamo Kiev advanced to the semifinals for the first time and will meet in the final four, while Hamburg and Werder Bremen progressed despite failing to win their second legs Thursday.
Shakhtar defeated former European champion Marseille 2-1 to ease through 4-1 on aggregate, while Kiev beat Paris Saint-Germain 3-0 in the Ukrainian capital after a scoreless first leg.
Diego repeated his first-leg performance for Bremen, scoring twice at Udinese to earn the German club a 3-3 draw and a 6-4 total edge.
While there are three English Premier League sides in the Champions League semifinals, the last English UEFA Cup representative, Manchester City, was eliminated by Hamburg 4-3 on aggregate despite winning the second leg 2-1.
"It's unbelievable, to get to the semifinals is fantastic," Hamburg coach Martin Jol said. "Bremen have got probably more experience, but we've got a talented team."
The semifinals are April 30 and May 7. Bremen and Kiev are at home first. The Germany-Ukraine final will be on May 20 in Istanbul.
Hamburg held a 3-1 lead after the first leg in Germany, and Paolo Guerrero extended the advantage by scoring after 12 minutes when City captain Richard Dunne failed to clear Jonathan Pitroipa's low cross.
But Elano responded for City 4 minutes later from the penalty spot.
Felipe Caicedo scored City's second in the 50th minute after being fed by Stephen Ireland. But City was reduced to 10 men in the 75th when defender Richard Dunne was shown a second yellow card for hauling down Ivica Olic.
Udinese had gone ahead of Bremen in the 15th minute when Switzerland midfielder Gokhan Inler struck from 35 yards. Diego, who played with a thigh injury, took advantage of a defensive error to equalize in the 28th with a spin move and precise shot.
Fabio Quagliarella restored Udinese's lead in the 30th, lifting the ball over charging goalkeeper Tim Wiese. Quagliarella then made it 4-4 on aggregate by scoring again in the 38th as he fell down at the edge of the area.
But Diego connected again in the 60th minute, heading in a rebound after a shot from Hugo Almeida hit the crossbar. Diego has five goals in six UEFA Cup games.
"He's a great player. Every team would like to have a player like that," Udinese's Brazilian defender Felipe said.
Diego had a chance for a hat trick, but his penalty kick was blocked by goalkeeper Samir Handanovic in the 72nd. A minute later, Claudio Pizarro scored an insurance goal for Bremen.
Already 3-0 up from last week's home leg, Luis Fernandinho extended Shakhtar's lead after 30 minutes in Marseille when goalkeeper Steve Mandanda failed to cover his near post.
Hatem Ben Arfa leveled in the 43rd for the French league leaders. But they missed numerous chances before, in the third minute of injury time, Luiz Adriano poked the ball through Mandanda's legs.
Ismael Bangoura set Dynamo Kiev on its way to a victory over PSG, scoring with a low long-range drive in the 4th minute.
PSG goalkeeper Mickael Landreau scored an own-goal in the 16th. Defender Ceara headed a cross from Olexandr Aliyev up in the air, and Landreau failed to punch the ball away as it spun off the back of his fists and into the net.
Ognjien Vukojevic made it 3-0 in the 61st by reacting quickly to the rebound after Landreau blocked Aliyev's free kick. Associated Press
