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Friday April 17, 2009

Shakhtar Donetsk reaches UEFA Cup semifinals

MARSEILLE, France (AP) - Shakhtar Donetsk has reached the UEFA Cup semifinals for the first time, beating former European champion Marseille 2-1 to set up a meeting with Ukraine rivals Dynamo Kiev.

Shakhtar advanced 4-1 on aggregate after winning the first leg 2-0 at home. Luis Fernandinho gave the visitors the lead after 30 minutes Thursday, while Hatem Ben Arfa replied for Marseille in the 43rd.

Luiz Adriano scored in the third minute of injury time to seal the win after Marseille missed numerous chances.

Marseille is the only French team to have won the European Cup, in 1993, and it also reached the UEFA Cup final in 2004 thanks in large part to Didier Drogba.

"Of course it hurts, I think we really did have a chance to qualify," Ben Arfa told French television.

"Now we will have to concentrate on the league."

Marseille leads the French league by one point ahead of Lyon, and hopes to end the seven-time champion's monopoly on the title.

Marseille goalkeeper Steve Mandanda was at fault for Shakhtar's goal in the 30th minute as he failed to cover his near post, and Adriano poked the ball through his legs for the second goal in the third minute of injury time.

"We knew the most difficult thing for us would be not conceding a goal," Marseille president Pape Diouf said.

In the 30th, Fernandinho found space behind Kabore and collected a fine pass from Rodrigues Jadson before aiming a pass back across goal, but his cross took a small deflection off Charles Kabore's ankle and drifted over Mandanda's right arm.

That left Marseille needing four goals to qualify and Marseille defender Taye Taiwo missed a chance almost immediately afterward by heading a cross wide of goal.

Marseille had started brightly and almost took the lead in the 25th minute when Mathieu Valbuena crossed from the left and Mamadou Niang headed the ball across goal and just out of reach of his strike partner Bakari Kone.

Ben Arfa brought the teams level in the 43rd to give Marseille fans some hope at a raucous Stade Velodrome.

Kabore crossed from the right and Ben Arfa lost his marker and aimed a downward header toward goal that was saved well by goalkeeper Andriy Pyatov, but the France winger was able to thump the rebound high into the net.

Taiwo was brought down by a heavy tackle seconds before the interval and hobbled off the field for treatment, and was replaced by former Netherlands winger Boudewijn Zenden.

Marseille started the second half well and Kone should have done better in the 50th when he headed wide from Kabore's perfect cross.

Moments later, Kabore crossed again for Benoit Cheyrou, who clipped the ball just wide.

Substitute Mamadou Samassa missed an open goal in the 75th, and Pyatov later dropped the ball into his own net, but the goal was disallowed because of a challenge from Samassa.

Shakhtar coach Mircea Lucescu is hoping for a a return to Istanbul for the May 20 final, where he previously coached Turkish club Galatasaray. - AP


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