Thu Apr 10 18:00:30 2008

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UEFA Cup: Bayern advances with two late OT goals

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Getafe, Spain (Sports Network) - Bayern Munich's Luca Toni scored twice in the final six minutes of overtime - the second on the last play of the game - in a wild 3-3 draw against Getafe in the UEFA Cup on Thursday that sent the German giants into the semifinals on away goals.

Toni's heroics were only possible after teammate Franck Ribery evened the game at 1 in the 89th minute of regulation to force the four-goal overtime session.

Francisco Casquero and Nobrega Braulio scored in the opening three minutes of overtime to put Getafe in control, but Toni scored his ninth and 10th goals of the competition to rescue the favorites.

Zenit St. Petersburg, Rangers and Fiorentina secured the final three berths in the semifinals Thursday.

Toni's first goal in the 115th minute was a gift from Getafe goalie Pato, who gathered in a cross from Mark van Bommel before dropping the ball to Toni. The Italian international converted the easy chance, then took the ball out of the back of the net and raced to midfield.

Toni delivered the series winner minutes later when he headed a pass from Jose Sosa into the ground and past Pato on the last play of the match. The referee blew the final whistle just after play was restarted.

Getafe, which went a man down in the seventh minute, took the lead just before halftime thanks to a goal from Cosmin Contra - who scored the tying goal with just minutes remaining in the 1-1 first leg in Munich.

Despite being a man down, Getafe was Bayern's equal - even playing better for extended periods - and came within a few minutes of winning in regulation.

Ribery rescued Bayern for the first time in the 89th when a bad clearance fell right to him and he volleyed into net from just inside the penalty area. Toni helped set up the goal by trying to play the ball to himself in the box. David Cortes got a head on the ball for Getafe but the ball went just a few yards to Ribery.

The Spanish side, in a European tournament for the first time, bounced back in overtime with Casquero's goal 54 seconds in and appeared to secure a berth in the semifinals when Braulio scored.

Bayern, a Champions League regular, and the clear favorite to win the UEFA Cup pulled out the late-game heroics for one of the most memorable rallies in the tournament's history.

After Toni scored his first goal to bring Bayern within one goal, the Germans pushed everyone forward - even goalie Oliver Kahn - and converted on its final chance. Toni worked through a number of Getafe defenders and soared above them to net the series-winner.

The series ended 4-4 on aggregate but Bayern's three away goals were enough to send the Bundesliga leaders into the semifinals.

Zenit St. Petersburg was shutout by Bayer Leverkusen, 1-0, but eased into the final four thanks to a 4-1 win in the first leg in Germany.

Dmitri Bulykin scored the lone goal for Bayer, which needed a 4-0 win to stay alive. Zenit advanced on aggregate, 4-2.

Italy's Fiorentina got two goals from Adrian Mutu to defeat PSV, 2-0, and move into the next round with a 3-1 aggregate victory.

Jean-Claude Darcheville scored a key away goal for Rangers at Sporting Lisbon, but Steven Whittaker added a stoppage-time goal to secure the Scottish side's spot in the next round via a 2-0 win and 2-0 aggregate score.

Bayern Munich plays Zenit and Fiorentina plays Rangers in the semifinals. The first legs are April 24 and the second legs are May 1.