Sevilla predictably progressed to the final four of the Uefa Cup at the expense of Zenit St Petersburg, but the 1-1 draw, which produced a 5-2 aggregate win for the Spaniards, was full of drama and incident.
Young striker Kepa Blanco had warded off fears of a Russian comeback when he replied to Hyun Young-min's second half strike, but the striker was then dismissed a minute later.
Zenit were also reduced to ten men when Ivica Krizanac was given his marching orders, and Sevilla passed up the chance to ease their passage further as they missed a penalty in awful conditions in Russia.
After a goalless first half the game kicked into life when Hyun gave the home side a glimmer of hope with a 50th minute strike.
The midfielder fired home from the edge of the area with a right-foot effort after collecting the ball from Krizanac.
Zenit still needed two goals to complete a remarkable turnaround after losing 4-1 in Spain, but they were stopped dead in their tracks 16 minutes later when young striker Kepa (pictured) drew the Spaniards level just a minute after coming on as a substitute.
A foray from Daniel Alves down the right flank created havoc and as the Brazilian crossed he found Kepa alert on the penalty spot to knock the ball home against the run of play.
Remarkably, an action-packed 120 seconds for Kepa then took another twist when he was shown a red card for arguing with the referee.
It was a bizarre cameo for the visitors, but the drama continued when Zenit saw Krizanac dismissed a minute later.
The Croatian defender became the third player sent off for the Russians over the two legs for a foul on former West Brom midfielder Enzo Maresca.
Sevilla could have progressed in more convincing fashion but Daniel contrived to have a penalty saved by Viatcheslav Malafeev on 73 minutes as his side confirmed they will be playing Schalke in the final four.
Click below for match summary:
Young striker Kepa Blanco had warded off fears of a Russian comeback when he replied to Hyun Young-min's second half strike, but the striker was then dismissed a minute later.
Zenit were also reduced to ten men when Ivica Krizanac was given his marching orders, and Sevilla passed up the chance to ease their passage further as they missed a penalty in awful conditions in Russia.
After a goalless first half the game kicked into life when Hyun gave the home side a glimmer of hope with a 50th minute strike.
The midfielder fired home from the edge of the area with a right-foot effort after collecting the ball from Krizanac.
Zenit still needed two goals to complete a remarkable turnaround after losing 4-1 in Spain, but they were stopped dead in their tracks 16 minutes later when young striker Kepa (pictured) drew the Spaniards level just a minute after coming on as a substitute.
A foray from Daniel Alves down the right flank created havoc and as the Brazilian crossed he found Kepa alert on the penalty spot to knock the ball home against the run of play.
Remarkably, an action-packed 120 seconds for Kepa then took another twist when he was shown a red card for arguing with the referee.
It was a bizarre cameo for the visitors, but the drama continued when Zenit saw Krizanac dismissed a minute later.
The Croatian defender became the third player sent off for the Russians over the two legs for a foul on former West Brom midfielder Enzo Maresca.
Sevilla could have progressed in more convincing fashion but Daniel contrived to have a penalty saved by Viatcheslav Malafeev on 73 minutes as his side confirmed they will be playing Schalke in the final four.
Click below for match summary:
