Two English clubs through to Champions League semis

By Can Erozden

ANKARA (AA) - English clubs Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool advanced to the UEFA Champions League semi-final stage late Wednesday.

Tottenham lost 4-3 to Manchester City in their quarter-final match in Manchester but earned their ticket to the semi-finals on away goals.

Man City had lost against Tottenham 1-0 in the first leg of the quarterfinals in London.

In the second leg, home team Manchester City took an early lead when Raheem Sterling put the ball into Tottenham’s net.

But Tottenham came back as South Korean star Son Heung-min scored two consecutive goals in the seventh and 10th minute of the game.

Only a minute later, however, Manchester City equalized when Bernardo Silva netted for his team. In the 21st minute of the game, Sterling found the net again, which meant a 3-2 lead for Manchester City.

In the second half, Man City's Argentine star Sergio Aguero made the score 4-2.

However, Tottenham's Spanish striker Fernando Llorente replied in the 73rd minute, making it 4-3 and enabling Tottenham to advance to the semi-finals.

Near the end of the game, Manchester City's Sterling scored for his team, but his goal was disallowed because he was offside.

Sterling's equalizer was ruled out by the referee, who watched the goal position on the VAR (Video Assistant Referee) system.

As a result, Tottenham advanced to the Champions League semi-finals despite the 4-3 loss against Manchester City.

- Liverpool through to semis easily

Liverpool meanwhile booked its place in the semi-final phase as they eliminated Portugal's Porto in the last eight.

The team toppled Porto 4-1 in Wednesday's match in Portugal as the English side won 6-1 on aggregate.

Home team Porto's only goal was scored by Eder Militao in the 69th minute.

Liverpool's offensive threats were on duty in Portugal as Senegalese forward Sadio Mane, Egyptian star Mohamed Salah and Brazilian striker Roberto Firmino scored against Porto.

Liverpool's Dutch star Virgil van Dijk, playing as central defender, netted a goal for his team as well.

Following these games held Wednesday, the quarter-final stage of the Champions League ended.

As a result, Liverpool will meet Spanish powerhouse Barcelona in the semi-finals.

Meanwhile, Tottenham will take on Champions League underdogs Ajax.

The 2019 UEFA Champions League final will be held on June 1 at Madrid's Wanda Metropolitano Stadium.