Sevilla ease past Lazio as both sides see red
Five-time Europa League winners Sevilla advanced to the last 16 of the competition with a 2-0 home win over Lazio yesterday morning (Singapore time), with a goal in each half sealing a 3-0 aggregate victory as both sides finished the game with 10 men.
French forward Wissam Ben Yedder, scorer of the only goal in the Spanish side's win in Rome last week, gave Sevilla a two-goal cushion in the 20th minute by pouncing on the rebound after Thomas Strakosha had parried Franco Vazquez's shot.
Lazio required two goals to stay in the competition and they missed a golden opportunity to get back into contention early in the second half when defender Francesco Acerbi sneaked into the area, but was thwarted by Sevilla goalkeeper Tomas Vaclik.
SENT OFF
The Italians' hopes of a comeback were boosted when midfielder Vazquez was sent off for a second yellow card with half an hour remaining and former Sevilla forward Ciro Immobile sent a shot on to the roof of the net.
But Simone Inzaghi's side surrendered their numerical advantage 11 minutes later when Adam Marusic was given a straight red card for striking midfielder Roque Mesa in the face.
Sevilla midfielder Pablo Sarabia closed out the tie in the 78th minute with a well-worked goal, playing a one-two with Jesus Navas down the right wing and racing into the box to smash the ball inside the near post.
The win eased the pressure on Sevilla coach Pablo Machin after Sunday's chastening 3-0 defeat at Villarreal in La Liga and should boost their confidence ahead of tomorrow's game against leaders Barcelona.
Lazio suffered their third straight defeat in all competitions. - REUTERS
Get The New Paper on your phone with the free TNP app. Download from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store now