The 1/8 finals encounter opposing two Ukrainian teams turned out full of drama. Metalist Kharkiv were very close to making history by advancing to the quarter-finals, but they were denied by compatriots from Dynamo Kiev.
Metalist lost 0:1 in the first leg and threw their full weight into the battle from the get-go. In the 29th minute, Valentyn Slysur put Metalist in the lead with a header after a cross from the edge of the surface by Walter Acevedo. Jackson Coelho added a second from a powerful free kick at the 56th, and the team from Kharkiv, too excited by such success, lost concentration. This led to a goal at the 68th minute by Goran Sablic for Dynamo Kiev.
But Metalist took the lead again two minutes later again through Slysur. All seemed set for a Metalist win, but Dynamo got unexpected help from…Metalist substitute defender Andriy Berezovchuk: five minutes after entering the pitch he deflected a ball with a knee into his own goal.
Coelho earned the most rating points in the match—19.30. He now has 47.32 points.
The match between Galatasaray and Hamburg ended in the same score. Harry Kewell scored from a penalty and Milan Baros added another for the Turks, while Jose Paolo Guerrero (twice) and Ivan Olic did the same for Hamburg. Olic earned a whopping 26.29 rating points in the match and with 147.57 points is now the best Croatian player.
© FTBL