Sport

Saviola pounces for the winner

Barcelona 3; Panathinaikos 1 (Barcelona win 3-2 on agg) Barcelona edged past Panathinaikos and into the semi-finals on a 3-2…

Wed Apr 10 2002 - 01:00

Barcelona 3; Panathinaikos 1 (Barcelona win 3-2 on agg)Barcelona edged past Panathinaikos and into the semi-finals on a 3-2 aggregate at the Nou Camp last night - a Luis Enrique double and a cool Javier Saviola finish earning the Catalans a memorable comeback win.

Barcelona, trailing 1-0 from the first leg, had their task further complicated in the eighth minute when Michalis Konstantinou muscled past Frank de Boer and powered a 25-yard shot low past Roberto Bonano.

That left Barcelona needing three goals to reach the last four and for a while that looked an unlikely target as the massed ranks of Panathinaikos defenders kept them at bay.

But Saviola's chip forward set up Luis Enrique for an equaliser on the night on 23 minutes and the Spanish international midfielder headed in from a Rivaldo free kick five minutes into the second half to make it 2-2 on aggregate.

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Rivaldo was just wide with two long-range efforts before Saviola got what proved to be the winner just past the hour mark, taking a through ball from Xavi and sweeping his shot past Antonis Nikopolidis.

The Argentine hit the bar a minute later but Barcelona could not find a fourth goal to give themselves some breathing space and Panathinaikos gradually started to threaten more. Carles Puyol was forced to clear off the line from Konstantinou eight minutes from time as play was allowed to carry on after Bonano was injured in a challenge with substitute Emmanuel Olisadebe.

BARCELONA: Bonano (Reina 84), Puyol, Abelardo, de Boer, Coco (Kluivert 45), Luis Enrique, Cocu, Overmars (Gabri 75), Xavi, Rivaldo, Saviola. Subs Not Used: Reiziger, Rochemback, Christanval, Geovanni. Booked: Puyol, Xavi, Reina. Goals: Luis Enrique 22, 49, Saviola 61.

PANATHINAIKOS: Nikopolidis, Henriksen, Basinas, Goumas, Fissas, Saric, Kyrgiakos, Karagounis (Michaelsen 45), Konstantinou, Kolkka (Vlaovic 76), Liberopoulos (Olisadebe 46). Subs Not Used: Kotsolis, Galetto, Vokolos, Pitsos. Booked: Kolkka, Saric, Goumas. Goals: Konstantinou 7. Attendance: 82,000.

Referee: U Meier (Switzerland).