Barcelona, Getafe and Deportivo Coruna reached the semi-finals of the King's Cup on Wednesday though their achievement was overshadowed by incidents in another tie between Real Betis and Sevilla.
The match between the Seville rivals was called off after Sevilla coach Juande Ramos lost consciousness when he was hit by a full bottle thrown from the crowd shortly after Frederic Kanoute had put them 1-0 up on aggregate in the 57th minute.
Medical staff from Betis told reporters that Ramos had regained consciousness as he was put into an ambulance. He will remain in hospital overnight for observation.
The normal procedure in Spain when matches are called off is for the remaining minutes to be played at a later date.
Barca went through on the away goals rule after a 2-1 win at Zaragoza, Getafe progressed 3-1 on aggregate despite losing 1-0 against Osasuna and Deportivo reached the semis 5-2 on aggregate after a 1-1 draw at second division leaders Valladolid.
Barcelona looked to be facing an uphill battle after losing the first leg 1-0 at the Nou Camp, but they turned the tables on Zaragoza in the space of a little over five minutes.
Midfielder Xavi put the Catalans ahead in the 19th minute when he slotted the ball low past keeper Cesar after exchanging a gleaming one-two with Rafael Marquez.
Six minutes later fellow midfielder Andres Iniesta fired home a second after Cesar had blocked a shot from Lionel Messi following another neat interchange of passes.
FURTHER TROUBLE
Zaragoza were in further trouble midway through the second half when Argentine midfielder Andres D'Alessandro was dismissed for a light head-butt on fellow countryman Messi.
Despite the setback, Zaragoza set up an exciting finish when defender Gerard Pique pulled a goal back after he got his foot to a free kick from Pablo Aimar.
Getafe reached the semi-finals for the first time in their history despite their defeat at Osasuna.
Trailing 3-0 after the first leg, Osasuna were given brief hope of a comeback when Argentine striker Bernardo Romeo headed home unopposed from three metres in the 16th minute.
But Bernd Schuster's side kept things tight for the remainder of the match to ease their way into the last four.
Deportivo, Cup winners in 1995 and 2002, went ahead through defender Filipe in the first half and Bulgarian striker Vladimir Manchev scored a late equaliser for the second division side.
Both sides ended the game with 10 men. Depor had Argentine defender Fabricio Coloccini sent off on the stroke of halftime after an exchange of words with the referee and Valladolid striker Victor was dismissed in injury time.
© 2024 Rediff.com -