London: Fernando Torres will face his former club Atletico Madrid in the Europa League semi-finals after scoring twice to help Liverpool beat Benfica 4-1 at Anfield on Thursday.
Hamburg SV's Mladen Petric scored one of the best goals of the season, volleying home from 15 metres with his back to goal, to help them win 3-1 at Standard Liege and set up a semi-final against unfancied Fulham who beat Vfl Wolfsburg 1-0.
Petric also headed the first while Peru forward Paolo Guerrero, banned for the rest of the Bundesliga season for throwing a plastic bottle at a fan on Sunday, added the third -- his first goal since a cruciate ligament injury in September.
Atletico Madrid grabbed their place in the last four on away goals after a stormy 0-0 draw at home to fellow Spaniards Valencia, who surrounded the referee to protest at the end after having a late penalty appeal turned down. The first leg was 2-2.
Fulham striker Bobby Zamora scored after 21 seconds as the London side continued their surprise run in the competition at German champions VfL Wolfsburg, going through 3-1 on aggregate.
Bureau Report
First Published: Friday, April 09, 2010, 09:35